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THE CLOTH · Nº 04 OF 04
Alpaca,
raised at
altitude.
The fibre of the herd raised three thousand eight hundred metres above Lake Titicaca.
One species — alpaca (Vicugna pacos).
Two breeds — Huacaya and Suri.
ROYAL ALPACA 100% PURE · 520 g/m²
01 — ABOUT THIS FIBRE
A fibre born where almost nothing else survives — on the high plains of the Andes, more than three thousand eight hundred metres up, where temperatures swing between the extreme heat of the day and the glacial cold of the night.
The alpaca is the smallest of the South American camelids, raised by the Quechua and Aymara peoples for six thousand years with a single purpose — the fibre. There are two breeds: the Huacaya, with a crimped, dense, lofty fleece, close to wool of the body; and the Suri, whose fleece grows in long, silken pencil locks, close to wool of silk. Both are hollow, both ungreased.
Fineness is measured in microns. The two noblest grades are Royal Alpaca, below 19 microns, and Baby Alpaca, up to 22.5 — the only grades worked in true high tailoring.
It carries no lanolin. It is naturally hypoallergenic — it does not irritate sensitive skin nor provoke reactions, and it does not require chemical scouring. A fibre clean from its source.
— Atelier notes · Extremadura, Spain
02 — TWO FLEECES, ONE ANIMAL
Huacaya & Suri.
Alpaca is the same species in both breeds — but the character is another, and each pattern asks for its own.
Huacaya, the crimped.
A short, springy fleece with uniform crimp. A more sober finish, with presence. It asks for patterns of clean lines, where the protagonism rests on cut and drape — the cloth envelops without drawing attention to itself.
CRIMP
HUACAYA BREED
9 - 11 crimps / cm
The most common, around 90% of the world herd.
STAPLE LENGTH
HAND
80 - 110 mm
Lofty, matte
Suri, the locked.
A long fleece, in pencil locks hanging parallel. Without crimp, with lustre. Worsted, it yields a flowing, silken cloth, with a drape close to silk. A finish with more personality, more expressive, more visual.
CRIMP
SURI BREED
None — straight
The rare one, around 10% of the world herd.
STAPLE LENGTH
HAND
110 — 150 mm
Silken, lustrous
03 — THE COAT
Four things an alpaca coat does.
Nº 01
Warmth
The fibre is hollow. At equal weight, it warms more than wool and almost as much as cashmere — without the density of camel.
Nº 02
Against bare skin
No lanolin, no prickle. Alpaca fibre carries no grease. Hypoallergenic by nature.
Nº 03
Drape
The balance: more body than silk, more fluid than sheep's wool. It falls in a column without weighing.
Nº 04
Resilience
The alpaca's crimp recovers its shape. The coat leaves the wardrobe almost as it falls.
04 — THE ROLLS
ONE BABY ALPACA, today.
Technical sheets. Before the first cut.
ROLL WEIGHT
640
g/m²
Pure baby alpaca — the finest grade of the fibre, spun from the softest, most delicate part of the fleece — hence its extreme fineness. A cloth of short, luminous pile: soft, light and very warm, wrapping with barely any weight. It keeps its natural colour, a milk white that has passed through no dye, the fibre's sheen and softness intact. The alpaca lives high in the Andes, where the cold bites at night: the same fleece that protected it is the one that now warms. At 447 grams per square metre it has the body of a coat without giving up that lightness. The finest of the alpaca fibres, soft and luminous, in its milk colour.
COMPOSITION
100% Baby Alpaca
Baby, the finest grade of the first combing.
FIBRE ORIGIN
Puno, Peruvian altiplano
Herd, 3,800 m. First shearing.
CLOTH ORIGIN
Italian Piedmont
Italy, Biella wool district.
CONSTRUCTION
Single face
One finished face; made up with a lining.
FINISH
Short-to-medium pile, luminous
A short-to-medium pile surface, soft and lustrous.
COLOUR
Natural milk white
Undyed, not optical. The fibre keeps its colour of origin.
CHARACTER
Silken and luminous
Baby, the finest grade of fibre: light, fluid and with sheen; a white that asks for no structure.
EDITION
Limited run
Archive roll. Not restocked.
LIST SUBSCRIPTION · THE JOURNAL
Letters written from the atelier, notices of new pieces in the catalogue, and word of upcoming Trunk Shows or events. One letter every few weeks. Nothing more.