Alpaca Pie

A real treat for little girls, boys or babies, Alpaca Pie alpaca cardigans, hoodies, Fair Isle jumpers, alpaca yarn tank tops, toys and accessories all made from the finest alpaca fibre and available in a whole range of bright and trendy designs.

IDEAL MATERIAL

Handmade in Peru on small, hand-operated machines, Alpaca Pie is a small family-run enterprise involving twenty or so people based in the Andean city of Arequipa, the heartland of Alpaca country. Alpaca is a smooth fibre which doesn't absorb or catch dirt (or smells) in the same way as other fibres. Softer than sheep's wool, it is a hollow fibre, light and warm, but also self-ventilating with breathable thermal qualities, making it the ideal material for children.

SOCIAL PROJECTS

Alpaca Pie's alpaca fibre supplier is committed to social projects, which include educating the local farmers on modern alpaca breeding programmes and contributing to the medical and educational needs of the surrounding villages. The raw material comes from over 20,000 farmers in the highlands of the Puno, Arequipa and Cuzco regions and is often the sole source of income for these Andean communities.

QUIRKY DESIGNS

While the ethically sound background of Alpaca Pie and benefits of the alpaca fibre are reason enough to visit Alpaca Pie, it is the vintage-style, classic British designs of jumpers, cardigans and alpaca hooded tops that make them so hard to resist. It even offers grey alpaca school jumpers (recently featured in The Telegraph) - perfect for keeping kids warm over the winter months. Is it wrong to be jealous of a child's clothing? When he or she is wearing an Alpaca Pie jumper, it seems not and we're pleased to hear that Alpaca Pie is looking at designing a range of men's jumpers to add to the collection soon.

31st August 2011