Whispering Spirit Alpacas’ annual shearing day is Sunday, May 17, 2015 from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Pura Vida Shearing will be shearing the flock of 38 alpacas of their fleecy coats so that the resulting fibers can be made into beautiful, hand-loomed and handmade garments, accessories and fabrics.
“Pura Vida Shearing sets the standard for alpaca shearing,” say Sandy and Lee Liggett, owners of Whispering Spirit Alpacas and Whispirit. “Peter Connelly and his handlers are trained in proper camelid handling techniques and shearing protocol. They lay each animal down gently on safety mats. Once the animal is prone he shears each animal calmly and efficiently.”
The resulting fleece ‘blanket’ is then skirted (the process of removing sections of the fleece that are dirty, coarse, or contaminated), bagged and sent to a mill for batting. The returned batted fibers are then turned into beautiful fabrics by Whispirit’s FeltLOOM machine, suitable for construction into garments, hats, shawls, scarves and other accessories.
