The Holiday Season at Lavender Hill Farm

We had a great holiday season at the farm, meeting new friends and catching up with old ones. The shop was open 10:00 - 5:00 each Saturday and Sunday following Thanksgiving up until Christmas.  Visitors could browse the shop and also visit the alpacas in the barn.

Welcome to the shop!  The little orange ball of fur to the right of the door is Kitten, our "greeter".  He loves to wait for customers to stop in.

All the alpacas had stockings hung inside the shop, each one with their name on it.

If you visit the shop, be sure to sign our guest book to get word of future events at the farm.

Our large tree was decorated for the season.  It makes a great back drop for photos!

 

We have apparel made in Peru, where alpacas originate, available for purchase.  We have sweaters for the whole farmily, gloves, mittens, scarves, hats and socks!

We had certified sorted yarn for sale as well as a variety of yarn from our own animals.

 

The felted alpaca ornaments made at Lavender Hill Farm were a hit!  There were many colors and styles to choose from and were no doubt a unique gift to give.

We had roving in many shades, all from the animals on our farm.

 

We had many different styles of hats to choose from, including these made from baby alpaca.

There's nothing that beats alpaca socks in the winter!  You'll be hooked after wearing them just once!

 

 

The barn was also decorated for the season.  Each alpaca has a name sign also, 

making identifying each alpaca easier for visitors.

 

At night the barn looked great all lit up!

 The chicken coop was quite festive also.

Kitten was still waiting at the shop when we were about to close for the day.  He's a hard worker!

The shop is now closed for the winter, but you are always welcome to visit by appointment.  Call Paulette at (860)917-5154 or email us at lavenderalpacas@gmail.com.  See you in the spring!

National Alpaca Farm Days 2014

This is the fourth National Alpaca Farm Days we've participated in at Lavender Hill Farm.  We couldn't have asked for better weather for both days!  We had many visitors from nearby, but also had visitors from other parts of New England.  It was great to meet new visitors and see old ones return to visit the alpacas again!

 When you browse our shop you'll find yarn and roving from our alpacas and alpaca apparel from Peru (where alpacas originate).

 Welcome to the barn!

 Our males are on the left side of the barn.  Each of them has a name tag with photo.  The females have the same on the right side of the barn.

 JJ is enjoying a roll in the dust while Mikey and Miko take a nap in the sun.

 Adonis is relaxed and enjoying the day.

 The girls are out and about, grazing.

 Ember and Mellea are catching some rays.

 Champ is saying hello to a new friend.

Buddy is checking things out.

 Miko is such a handsome boy.

 These visitors had a group of alpacas join them.

 Our hens were enjoying the weather also, as this one is!

 Thor is surrounded by our hens!  They get along together really well.

Shearing Day 2014

Shearing Day was Friday, May 9, 2014.
 Jeremiah and Rick from Twist of Fate Spinnery were our shearers once again. 
We enjoyed a perfect day weather wise!

 Mateo is first in line to be shorn.  We start with the white alpacas and work
our way through all of them until we end with the black ones.  We do this so that as we collect the fiber there's a less chance of different colors getting mixed together.  

The shearing area is swept between each alpaca.

 Mateo during shearing.  In this photo, only his blanket has be shorn.

 Mateo after shearing.  What a difference!

 The next photos show Buddy's blanket being shorn off in succession.

  

This is the blanket.  It comes off as one big piece.

 Ember's tail is getting trimmed.

 Look at all that fiber!  We set it out to air dry since it was a little damp that morning.

 Sabrina is having her teeth trimmed.  If need be, the alpacas will also have

 their toenails trimmed during shearing.

These are the clippers that the shearers use to get the job done.

  You want to be sure to keep your fingers away from those blades as they are very sharp!