Princess

Two of our lovely alpaca girls have moved to their new farm.  The Princess of Peaceful Heart and RC’s Guellermo’s Natalia joined the alpacas of Mackenzie’s Meadow Farm in November.  The Princess is a daughter of our Lord Tennyson and granddaughter of our foundation herdsire Powergrid.  She has a royal baby, white fleece (AFD 19.3) with beautiful crimp.  Natalia was not born on our farm, but she is the mom of our adorable spring crias, Elsa.  Natalia is 10 years of age with a fawn fleece that ranks in the top 5% of EPDs for staple length (2014).  She has great genetics, and is bred to Lord Tennyson for a spring cria.  We know they both will fit right into the herd at Mackenzie’s Meadow and be very happy there.

Natalia

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We have some adorable new alpaca plush toys now in stock.  We have added a couple new styles of alpacas, and have a great selection of alpacas in all sizes.  They are all fluffy and cuddly, and each one is uniquely hand crafted.

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Just in time for Christmas, we have our smallest alpacas and teddy bears back in stock.  Currently we have a big selection of adorable 4 inch alpacas and 3 inch alpaca teddy bears.  They never last long, though, so get yours now online or at the farm.

These brand new therapeutic alpaca socks are made in North Carolina.  They have the same design as our other therapeutic alpaca socks, with a seamless toe and a loose fit through the calf to prevent binding.  They are designed specifically for those with diabetes or other circulatory problems, but are popular with everyone who enjoys a soft and warm sock.

These socks are 50% alpaca, and are available for men and women in several colors.  We currently only have men’s socks in brown, but have socks for women in 4 colors.  You can see our new Made in the USA alpaca socks online here.  We are also still offering our therapeutic alpaca socks made in Peru in a variety of sizes and colors.  Our Peruvian socks are available online here and here.

This has been a season for boys.  Our 5th male cria was born this fall on October 30.  Peaceful Heart Tennyson’s Tithonus is our second cria from Snobelle and our fourteenth cria from Lord Tennyson.  Like his full sister Wild Bells, and many half siblings, Tithonus, “Ty“, is named after one of the poems written by Alfred, Lord Tennyson.

Our Ty is a cutie who was quickly up and running around despite our cold weather.  At night he is wearing a coat to provide some extra warmth, but during the day he has been running around with the other fall boys kicking up his heels in the snow and wind.  All the boys and their mamas were happy to see the sun and warmer temperatures come back and are looking forward to having a couple more playmates join them soon, hopefully before it turns cold again.

We invite you to come by and see the boys.  For those of you who are looking to begin or add to your alpaca herd, we have an alpaca package available for sale now which includes some of these adorable boys and their mamas.

Peaceful Heart's Maximum Joy

Yesterday, October 14, was a busy day.  We were getting ready for a large storm headed our way, making sure all the alpacas had plenty of hay in the barn and sheds and that things were as clean and dry as could be after days of fog, when one of our girls due this week went into labor.  Ima Joy has been acting ready to deliver for several days now, so we were not surprised to see her go into labor a little before noon.  Her labor progressed normally, but took a little longer than the usual 15-20 minutes because Ima laid down and refused to stand back up, alpacas normally give birth standing up.  We helped minimally by pulling gently on the crias legs (one at a time to help the shoulders pass through the birth canal in case they were stuck).  Everything went fine and the cria was ready to get on his feet as soon as he was born.  What a beauty!  He has beautiful spots in many colors.  We suspect that we will find even more when we shear him for the first time next May as he has a dense fleece and much of the color is masked by the  cria tips (whose color can be affected by the amniotic fluid during pregnancy).

We have named this adorable boy after his parents, Peruvian Maximus and Ima Joy.  Peaceful Heart’s Maximum Joy will go by the nickname MJ around the farm.  He is full of energy and running around the pasture today with Wade R., Hercules, and our second surprise of yesterday.  MJ’s coloring is just a great example of the fun of alpaca color genetics.  We never know what to expect.  MJ’s full sibling Dante was born last year, and was such a pretty boy with lovely dense fleece that we decided to repeat the breeding.  Despite having the same parents, Dante is a lovely solid beige in color, and MJ is a spotted wonder.

Peaceful Heart's Polar Night and Henrietta Ruth

When we got Ima and MJ settled in the barn within a pen to keep MJ from wandering out into the expected rain*, we headed back up to the store and found that Ruthie had delivered a beautiful little boy while we were busy.  He was sitting up pretty as you please surrounded by his mom and the other girls in the pasture.  She had even passed the placenta, our “no drama mama” (and most typical birth type on the farm).  With the storm heading our way, we decided that Ruthie and her boy should join Ima and MJ, so picked him up and carried our newest farm member to the barn with his mom following close behind.  We had not expected the other two girls in their pasture to get so upset, but they were worried about him leaving and running along the fence line trying to find him, so we opened the gate and let them follow too.  We had a barn party, the two newest and their mamas in the pen and the pregnant girls and new mama and crias with them in the rest of the barn.  Everybody was settled and ready for the storm which brought a lot of heavy rain overnight.

Ready for the storm

We named our newest farm member Peaceful Heart’s Polar Night.  His parents are the lovely Henrietta Ruth, “Ruthie”, and fabulous Polar Ice.  Night is a rich true black in color and as we sat around discussing name possibilities, we read that the opposite of the midnight sun phenomena at the poles is called polar night, when the night lasts for more than 24 hours in the polar circle.  We thought it was a perfect name for our newest boy.  Night weighed 18 pounds at birth, and is also enjoying being out and about with the other crias today.

Ima Joy, MJ, Night and Ruthie

Wade is a little more standoffish with the new boys and is content to stand back and watch them.  Hercules is ready to play!  He is kicking up his heels and running from cria to cria.  You can see more pictures of our fall crias on our Facebook page.  (You can see the pictures without having a Facebook account.)

Hercules with the new crias, Wade in the background

We invite you to come out and watch them play this weekend.  The weather is supposed to be sunny and the leaves are predicted to be at their peak colors.  Come by the farm to see the alpacas and then enjoy some of the other fun things to do in the area, including the Blue Ridge Music Center, Blue Ridge Pumpkins, Mabry Mill, and Nancy’s Candy Company to name a few.  We also have great places to eat nearby.

For those of you looking to begin or add to your alpaca herd, our Ready to Deliver Package is no longer available, but we still have a lot of other options.  Talk with us today about creating your own special alpaca package.

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* In our experience, newborn alpaca crias don’t have enough sense to come in out of the rain, and in fact seem to have an unfortunate habit of settling out in the rain no matter how bad the storm.  Within a few days, they have mastered following their mothers, so when a heavy rain starts they run to the barn with everyone else.  After too many experiences of running out in storms to bring crias back under the shelter only to have them head outside again with their worried mothers close behind, I have decided that preventing the possibility is less stressful for all.

I am late in posting our 2014 MAPACA Spin-off Results, but I want to share them because we are so proud of how well our alpacas did in this very large show.  One hundred huacaya* alpacas entered the MAPACA Spin-off this year, 8 of which came from our farm.  Our eight alpacas brought home 10 ribbons to the farm, including 5 First Place and 2 Highest Scores in their color groups.

First Place honors went to Sunspot, Shareen, June Delight, Bonnie Alice and Polar Ice.  J Dubs and Gabriel brought home Second Place ribbons, and Lucky brought home a Fourth Place Ribbon.

Our stars of this show are definitely Sunspot and Shareen.  Both won Highest Score in their color groups in classes of 19 and 17 alpacas respectively.  Shareen’s half brother Hyppogryff took home this same honor at MAPACA in 2012.

Peaceful Heart's Sunspot - Highest Score in the White Color Group

Peaceful Heart's Shareen - Highest Score in the Gray Color Group

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*  There are two types of alpacas, huacayas and suris.  We raise huacayas, who have a crimpy fleece that makes the alpacas look round and fluffy as their fleece grows out.  The suris have a straight, silky fleece that hangs like dreadlocks as it grows out.

Peaceful Heart's Hercules & his mama Marquessa

Peaceful Heart’s Hercules was born the afternoon of October 6, 2014 to the beautiful Marquessa and our true black champion herdsire Maximus.  Hercules was on his feet quickly with his mama following him around the pasture.

Our first fall cria, Wade R., who was 8 days old today is fascinated by the new cria, but also a little intimidated.  Wade is not quite sure what to think of Hercules, but I suspect they will be playing together soon.

Wade kept a close watch on Hercules as he was first getting around.

Hercules has some great siblings.  Last year Marquessa gave birth to a fabulous little boy named Marcus who just moved off the farm to join another farm as a junior herdsire.  His sire Maximus has given us five fantastic crias in a variety of colors from beige to black.

We are expecting several more crias this spring, including from three fabulous girls now available for sale.

Quick on his feet

We hope you can come by the farm and see our two sweet new boys soon.

We have many wonderful alpaca gift ideas for those on your Christmas list.    You can also browse our online store, come by the farm to visit the store (and see the alpacas), or give us a call for suggestions.

Alpaca Slippers:  Our number one best seller for Christmas is our beautiful alpaca slippers.  These incredibly comfortable and warm alpaca slippers are reversible.  They can be worn with either the alpaca fleece or alpaca fabric side out for two different looks and feel.  Available in sizes Extra Small to Extra Large, they will fit everyone on your list.

Alpaca Sweaters:  Soft and warm, our elegant alpaca sweaters come in a variety of styles.  Our cardigans have been our most popular sellers, but we have been adding some new pullover designs that people are loving as well.  Alpaca sweaters are wonderfully warm, but their lightweight fiber keeps people from becoming too hot while wearing them, making them perfect for indoor and outdoor wear and a wide range of climates.  The strength and durability of alpaca fiber means these lovely sweaters will be a gift treasured for years.

Alpaca Teddy Bears:  Loved by all, our soft and cuddly teddy bears come in a range of sizes from 3 inches to 15 inches tall.  They also come in many different colors from the natural white, fawns, browns and multicolor bears to our lovely pastel and bright colored bears.  One hug, and they’ll never want to put these beautiful bears down.

Alpaca Yarn: I often get questions similar to the following, “My relative/friend loves to knit/crochet, do you think they would like some yarn as a gift?”  My response is always the same, “Yes.”  As a fellow yarn lover, I know that one or two skeins of a lovely yarn can always be turned into a beautiful hat or scarf, or incorporated into a project with some other yarn from my stash.  If you’re looking for something more specific, choose a pattern you know they’d like and get the yarn to go with it.  We have a big selection of patterns, which list the yarn requirements right on the webpage.  You can browse our yarns and patterns online or in the store, or consider giving a gift certificate for your yarn lover to choose their own project.

Alpaca Scarves:  We have some beautiful and incredibly soft Alpaca Scarves available in both solid colors and patterns.  One of our lovely new patterns are the houndstooth scarves available in seven different colors.  We also have some of our hand felted scarves available, made here at the farm with fiber from our own alpacas.

Alpaca Coats:  Our Reversible Alpaca Coats offer two coats in one in a classic style that can be worn daily.  Wear it with either jeans or slacks for a dressy or more casual look.  It has a comfortable fit that closes with 5 buttons up the front.  It has two pockets on both sides of the coat.  The coat falls about mid thigh, and has sleeves that can be rolled back to see the complementary color on the reverse side allowing the sleeves to be adjusted to one’s preferred length.  You can see our current selection on our webpage, though we will be adding a few new coats soon to replace some recently sold.

Alpaca Socks:  Throughout the year and especially at Christmas, alpaca socks are a favorite gift.  Our two most popular socks are our warm and soft Therapeutic Alpaca Socks and Alpaca Boot Socks.  These socks will keep you warm throughout the winter.  We also have a great alpaca sock with alpaca shaped non-skid strips on the bottom, which are perfect for wearing around the house or while doing yoga.  Our thinner dress sock is an incredibly comfortable alpaca sock perfect for year round wear with slacks.  We have just added a new style to our alpaca sock selection, and I am really finding them comfortable to wear (pictured here).  They are an ankle sock perfect for wearing with tennis shoes.  And just in time for Christmas, we have a super soft alpaca children’s sock for kids ages 2-9.

Alpaca Blankets:  Nothing feels better on a cold winter day than snuggling up under a soft and warm alpaca blanket.  We have a wide selection of blankets in solid colors, and patterns such a herringbone and plaid.  Most of our blankets are in the natural alpaca color range such as grays and browns, but we have a few colorful blankets in blue, green or red.  You will be amazed by their lightweight feel and perfect warmth.

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Alpaca Calendars:  Each year since 2010, our farm has created a wall calendar full of pictures of our alpacas hanging around the farm.  (A special thanks to Karen Bopp for the original idea, design, and first few years of calendar pictures.)  We try to include a mix of closeup pictures and larger group shots with our lovely Blue Ridge Mountain views, and of course we have plenty of pictures of our sweet alpaca crias.  Several people have told me they save the calendars each year for the pictures (my favorite this year is April).  A perfect gift for any alpaca lover.

Alpaca Plush Toys:  We have soft and cuddly alpaca figures in a variety of sizes up to 14 inches tall, but our most popular alpaca for Christmas has always been our 4 inch alpaca figures.  Hand crafted from 100% alpaca, around a wire frame to help them stand upright, and stuffed for softness, each alpaca is as unique as those in our pastures.  They come in a variety of colors.  These alpacas are popular with kids and adults, and we know people of all ages who look forward to adding a new alpaca to their mini-herd each year.

We had a great group of teens from the Appalachia Summer Regional Governor’s School visit the farm today with their instructor Penny Moseley.  They are studying economic development with the arts and learning more about some of the work and members of Round the Mountain.  We gave them a tour of the farm and were able to share a little about our business.

We love to give farm tours, and have had quite a few tour groups come through this summer already.  Our tours are designed for all ages, and we try to adapt them to each group’s interests and needs.  We generally bring out one of our alpacas so everyone can pet them and see an alpaca up close as we talk about these fabulous animals.  Then we talk about the process of moving from the alpacas to processing their fiber into beautiful clothing and other items.  As much as possible we let people touch the fiber in each step of the process as we discuss them, usually demonstrating spinning and weaving.  A quick tour through the store to see the many things that can be made with alpaca concludes the tour.

If you have a group that would enjoy touring the farm, give us a call to set up a time.  There is no charge for the tour, as we love to share our beautiful and fascinating alpacas with others.

Alpaca Socks

We are very happy to post that our most popular alpaca socks are now back in stock in all colors and sizes!  These wonderful alpaca socks are made specially for our farm by a wonderful Fair Trade Certified company in Peru.  The socks have a small alpaca at the top and our farm name “Peaceful Heart” along the bottom of each sock.  Made from 80% Baby Alpaca, 10% spandex, and 10% nylon, our alpaca socks are soft and comfortable.  They keep your feet warm and dry while not getting overheated.  Perfect for wearing in boots while hiking or hunting, the sock are also comfortable worn with tennis shoes or around the house.

These great alpaca socks are available in four colors:  black, pearl white, silver gray, and brown.  Each color is available in four sizes:   Large (Men’s shoe size 11+, that come up mid-calf); Medium (Men’s size 10 or less, Women’s size 8 1/2+, mid-calf); Small-Tall (Women’s shoe size 8 or less,  mid-calf); and Small-Crop (Women’s shoe size 8 or less, that come up to right above the ankle).

Visit our online store or come by the farm to get your alpaca socks today.