A knitter's quest for authentic Peruvian yarn, from ancient textile treasures to elusive vicuña fibers. Unravel the complexities of traditional crafts in a world of fast fashion.
So true and so sad. When I went back to Ecuador in 2012, the place I had loved in 1987 had vanished, including the hand-dyed and -woven textiles. In its place were the ubiquitous cheap acrylics churned out in a factory. Even sadder, none of the young people looked remotely interested in learning ancient textile skills, being completely hypnotized by their phones, like adolescents everywhere in the world. The skills are indeed being lost.
That is sadly true. However, the resurgence of the interest in the fiber arts makes me hopeful that more and more people will learn to appreciate these crafts and will prefer buying real artisanal products rather than the cheap factory made items.
I live in Maryland and found a friend-of-a-friend who has a small local alpaca farm. My daughter and I were invited to visit. We petted a few of the alpaca, saw the spindle where she spins (though she sends some of the wool out to be spun as well), and of course walked out with several skeins of luxuriously soft alpaca yarn, undyed, a rich dark chocolate brown that was the animals’ natural coat color. It was from several of the lovely ladies we’d petted and fed treats to. So much sympathy for your quest for just the right yarn, and I’m glad you enjoyed your travels.
I do not think there is a better feeling that wearing something that reminds you not only of the process of knitting, but also of the experiences that are embedded in buying the yarn. We were both so fortunate to have had such experiences and I am sure we will cherish whatever items we knit forever. Thank you for sharing your story :)
It was so interesting to learn about what you found in your quest for authentic Peruvian yarn. Do you have any ideas on what you'll create with the yarn you've brought back with you?
I am sure that I will be doing a Sophie scarf by PetiteKnit with the Vicuña yarn as I want to make something that I can use close to the body. For the baby aplaca yarn I started a baby blanket as it is so soft I could not think about anything better to use it for! For this, I am using a free pattern by Drops called Terracotta dreams.
I still have no idea what I will do with the cochineal dyed yarn. So if you have any ideas, please do share them with me!
Wonderful! I can imagine you'll experience delight and a flood of memories whenever you wear your Sophie scarf. It's a lovely stitch pattern in the Terracotta Dreams baby blanket, perfect for your baby alpaca yarn. It'll be fun for you exploring ideas for the cochineal dyed yarn.
So true and so sad. When I went back to Ecuador in 2012, the place I had loved in 1987 had vanished, including the hand-dyed and -woven textiles. In its place were the ubiquitous cheap acrylics churned out in a factory. Even sadder, none of the young people looked remotely interested in learning ancient textile skills, being completely hypnotized by their phones, like adolescents everywhere in the world. The skills are indeed being lost.
That is sadly true. However, the resurgence of the interest in the fiber arts makes me hopeful that more and more people will learn to appreciate these crafts and will prefer buying real artisanal products rather than the cheap factory made items.
I live in Maryland and found a friend-of-a-friend who has a small local alpaca farm. My daughter and I were invited to visit. We petted a few of the alpaca, saw the spindle where she spins (though she sends some of the wool out to be spun as well), and of course walked out with several skeins of luxuriously soft alpaca yarn, undyed, a rich dark chocolate brown that was the animals’ natural coat color. It was from several of the lovely ladies we’d petted and fed treats to. So much sympathy for your quest for just the right yarn, and I’m glad you enjoyed your travels.
I do not think there is a better feeling that wearing something that reminds you not only of the process of knitting, but also of the experiences that are embedded in buying the yarn. We were both so fortunate to have had such experiences and I am sure we will cherish whatever items we knit forever. Thank you for sharing your story :)
It was so interesting to learn about what you found in your quest for authentic Peruvian yarn. Do you have any ideas on what you'll create with the yarn you've brought back with you?
I’m very happy you like my post!
I am sure that I will be doing a Sophie scarf by PetiteKnit with the Vicuña yarn as I want to make something that I can use close to the body. For the baby aplaca yarn I started a baby blanket as it is so soft I could not think about anything better to use it for! For this, I am using a free pattern by Drops called Terracotta dreams.
I still have no idea what I will do with the cochineal dyed yarn. So if you have any ideas, please do share them with me!
Wonderful! I can imagine you'll experience delight and a flood of memories whenever you wear your Sophie scarf. It's a lovely stitch pattern in the Terracotta Dreams baby blanket, perfect for your baby alpaca yarn. It'll be fun for you exploring ideas for the cochineal dyed yarn.