I would like to welcome Sarah King
I
am a sorter apprentice
waiting to take my final exam to become a Certified
Fiber Sorter.
I have completed a course in sorting and sorted over 200
Huycaya fleece
and 50 Suri fleece.
I have worked under to supervision of
a mentor
who has helped me through the process.
I am hoping to be certified
within the next few months.
As
a Fiber Sorter I sort Alpaca fiber,
help with quality control for fiber co ops,
mills and hand spinners,
educate clients to help them reach their fiber goals.
I also help with breeding decisions.
Having
your harvested fiber sorted is the first step in Quality Control.
It will
make sure that there is a uniformity and standard for processing.
This
will produce higher quality alpaca products.
Before
I sort the fiber I educate the producer (farmer)
on how to collect the fiber
for sorting in a noodle wrap
that keeps the fiber in somewhat of an order to
make sorting easier.
I will sometimes work with the shearer to make sure
that they understand what I need from them to get more usable fiber for the
client.
I learn the producer's fiber goals and sort to best suit their needs.
I
take the newly shorn fiber and sort it into grades, color and length.
I
score the density of the fleece, the luster, the crimp or lock style and color.
I then look at the individual fibers
and grade them according to the
micron count,
the difference in the primary fibers to the secondary fibers and
their ratio.
This determines the grade of the fiber.
It is then sorted
into grades and bagged for processing.
Each
alpaca will have an individual sort record that will have the fiber weights and
the characteristics of their fleece. I will also write comments about the fiber
and any suggestions that I may have about processing and the fleeces strengths
and weaknesses.
Then
an Interactive Inventory Sheet is completed.
This will tell the big
picture of the whole harvest for the farm.
It tells the retail and
wholesale worth of the fiber,
total amount of each grade
and gives the producer
information to help them realize
their cost to produce this fiber.
Appropriate uses for each grade is discussed
and information is given on
general fiber processing.
I discuss this with the producer
and assist
them with herd management
and breeding decisions.
Because I have inspected the
fiber I can see areas of tenderness
that can identify illness, check for
parasites and see some skin conditions.
With
sorting there is an increase in profits from the fiber.
This comes from
more usable fiber after sorting
which leads to less loss during processing due
to the grading of the fiber.
A more superior product can
be created from sorted fiber which will increase prices for product and
there will be repeat customers.
Having your fiber sorted
does not take anything away from the mini mill process. It
can enhance what they do and save time.
Having
your fiber sorted by a Certified Sorter will help
with the farm's breeding
program by showing which animals
have the highest quality fleece, the
fleece traits
and qualities that may be passed along thereby assisting in
picking the next breeding.
I
hope that this give you a better understanding of the fiber sorting process. To
learn more you can visit my website at royalskeinsalpacas.com,
fibersorting.com or naturalfiberproducers.com
--
Sarah
K King
Thank you ever so much Sarah!
I didn't realise there was so much in fiber sorting.
It's a lot more complicated and a lot more processes
than I thought it would be.
I hope you'll all join me in thanking Sarah
and visit her sites.
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