Washing
Prepping the fibers for the machines is the most important process. We want to start with great, clean fiber to run through all the machines seamlessly. We spend a lot of time skirting and delicately washing to ensure the best quality.
Picking, Dehairing, & VM Remover
After washing and drying the fibers go through the picker or dehairer which detangles and opens up the fiber to create beautiful, fluffy fibers. If you have dual coated fiber, such as alpaca, it will go through our Dehairer/ VM Remover combo to knock out all the guard hairs leaving all that good fiber!
Carding
Carding is next where we feed all the opened fibers. This will result in either roving or quilt batting. The process can stop here for a finished product or continue on in our system to become yarn!
Pin Drafting
While the carder begins the process of aligning the fibers, the Pin Drafter finishes the job to result in a smooth roving. At this stage we can also blending with other fibers such as nylon or bamboo to make a sturdy sock yarn. We can even take this step to blend colors!
Spinning & Plying
Probably the most exciting part for us to see at Great Lakes Fiber Mill...Yarn! As yarn enthusiasts, we love to see the end product from all of the well loved animals. We can do a variety of weights from lace all the way to bulky with different ply options, the possibilities are endless!
Finishing
To prep the yarn for pick up or shipping we can either finalize the yarn in Skeins or Cones. Skeins are great if you wanted to sell them immediately or dye the yarn first and cones are great to be used in knitting machines for socks or mittens.