Seth and Morgan gave me some fiber straight from Suzie. It is so very soft!
Since meeting Morgan and Seth Kareus, they have acquired three yaks, four dogs, a tractor and a trailor for hauling animals. Before I met them, I had no idea why someone would have a yak, so I will share what I have learned about yaks.
Yak fiber is becoming very popular as a sustainable source for fiber and it is similar to cashmere in it’s softness and tensile strength. Yaks look a little like cows, but they have very long hair and a hump on their back. Morgan and Seth harvest the fiber from their yaks every spring. Collecting fiber from yaks is done by hand grooming, because they have a course outer layer of hair and the soft fleece is underneath, so you can’t sheer them as you would a sheep. Apparently the yaks enjoy the harvesting.
If you would like to read more about yak fiber, I found these two sites interesting:
http://www.cool-organic-clothing.com/shokay.html
http://fashionista.com/2015/05/myak-baby-yak-fiber
Here are some pictures of stages of the process for “Knitting Yak” which I completed in the Artist in Residence studio at 970 West.
