This is Diego. He’s an alpaca and lives with my mum. Alpacas are delightfully inquisitive creatures that originate from South America. He likes to watch people garden, snack on plants he shouldn’t and he also has the most wonderful soft wool.
This is Diego’s little mate Alfalfa, also provider of oh so soft wool. Shorn like a sheep, they produce quite a lot of wool from a yearly shearing.
Alfalfa’s wool spun and ready to be knitted.
Knitted into a warm soft hat for Monkey Boy.
cityhippyfarmgirl 
That is such a gorgeous beanie. This may be a silly question – but are the colours both natural? Are they from the two alpacas your mum has?
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Not a silly question. Yes they are both natural colours, and from the ‘two boys’ as she likes to call them.
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Lovely, lovely, lovely!! How lucky you are to have access to alpaca fibre!
Friends of ours keep alpacas, and I’ve often wondered if they would be more suited to us than goats..I haven’t heard of alpacas jumping fences..? Plus, many people use them to keep foxes away when keeping lambs/kids…BUT that wool, that wool would be the drawcard for me! Lucky Monkey Boy :o)
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Christine they would be perfect for you. They really are lovely creatures, curious, they like hanging around people (if they have grown up with them), neat- they poo in a pile, they do eat a lot of things they shouldn’t (but so can goats.) Good protection if you have other livestock/kids :-), and the wool is so soft.
They do spit a little, but I think its more amusing than annoying and its only at each other, like a dust bath, like playing under water, sing a humming song and generally are just lovely creatures to have.
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Lucky Monkey Boy indeed – what a gorgeous beanie! Did you make it, or did you mum? What wonderful sustainable living – making clothing from your own animals!
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It is sustainable living, thats for sure. You could make quite a few things from all the wool those two produce. My mum did the spinning and knitting, I’m still baby level…need to work on my knitting skills.
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Diego and Alfalfa are very cute. I love alpacas, silent creatures and great guards for foxes…! The beanys look very warm xx
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The beanies are really warm, and no itchiness that you can get from sheep wool. Super soft!
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How marvelous!
I love Alpacas- and the wool is so soft and inviting!
I should have chosen family that would keep animals- mine are mostly gardeners. LOL- not complaining- really- just a little envious.
That truly is a lovely hat and a very adorable Monkey Boy!
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They are lovely animals. Maybe you could convince a few of your gardeners that they need a few alpacas within their gardens 🙂
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Aren’t they just gorgeous looking animals. We have a friend who is nutty about them and spends every Saturday helping out at a local alpaca farm. The wool however, is really expensive to buy. She does occasionally bring us a treat of a bag of their manure, which is really good for the garden and can be applied directly.
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Alpacas are quite considerate animals they poo in a pile, making it easy to collect. (There is a funny fact for the day 🙂
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