Musk Ox Farm
This is one of the woman who belongs to the Qiviut Cooperative in Northern Alaska. For a membership of $2.00 yearly the woman can order the Musk Ox yarn/fur and needles to makeQiviut products such as the shawls, hats and ear warmer bands which go around your head and ears.
The products are sold at the non-profit Musk Ox Farm shown in these pictures.
The products are sold at the non-profit Musk Ox Farm shown in these pictures.
The Musk Ox is descendant from the last ice age and perhaps its closest relative is the goat. Strange thought. The musk Ox Farm is operated as a non-profit existing to encourage and help remote native northern Alaska women bring money into their family and community.
This is a herd of wild Musk Ox (above) currently
kept separated from the Farm Musk Ox.
The Musk Ox is carefully combed each year for the under hair and anything they shed on their own is picked up for processing. The hair is very soft and it is this fur which keeps the animals warm in the winters. The underhair is sent out to Vermont for cleaning and spun into yarn for the women of the cooperative. Upon completion of processing the yarn is sent back to the Musk Ox Farm. The women have no quota to meet, but are paid for each piece when it is turned in to the Farm. The pieces are checked carefully for quality control and any dropped or missed stitches are replaced. Each woman uses a different pattern unique only to themselves, which makes each piece more special.
It is our understanding that Qiviut is 8 times warmer than sheep's wool and does not itch because there are no "barbs" in the fur, Yea!! and is finer than cashmere. Additionally Qiviut will not shrink in any temperature water.
The natural Qiviut underhair color is brown. Any piece knit with white in the pattern, silk has been used for the white color.
The underhair is coming off on its own on the
Musk Ox above.
It is the Farms objective to breed for continuing generations and they occasionally bring in Musk Ox from the wild, hoping to blend the gene pool into the tamer domesticated animals, keeping a better, more natural strain of Musk Ox.
Moms and their babes.
Hope you enjoyed the gentle animals. I would have thought they were related to Buffalo or Water Buffalo from Africa....nope goat??
BBFN, Karen & Don
This is a herd of wild Musk Ox (above) currently
kept separated from the Farm Musk Ox.
The Musk Ox is carefully combed each year for the under hair and anything they shed on their own is picked up for processing. The hair is very soft and it is this fur which keeps the animals warm in the winters. The underhair is sent out to Vermont for cleaning and spun into yarn for the women of the cooperative. Upon completion of processing the yarn is sent back to the Musk Ox Farm. The women have no quota to meet, but are paid for each piece when it is turned in to the Farm. The pieces are checked carefully for quality control and any dropped or missed stitches are replaced. Each woman uses a different pattern unique only to themselves, which makes each piece more special.
It is our understanding that Qiviut is 8 times warmer than sheep's wool and does not itch because there are no "barbs" in the fur, Yea!! and is finer than cashmere. Additionally Qiviut will not shrink in any temperature water.
The natural Qiviut underhair color is brown. Any piece knit with white in the pattern, silk has been used for the white color.
The underhair is coming off on its own on the
Musk Ox above.
It is the Farms objective to breed for continuing generations and they occasionally bring in Musk Ox from the wild, hoping to blend the gene pool into the tamer domesticated animals, keeping a better, more natural strain of Musk Ox.
Moms and their babes.
Hope you enjoyed the gentle animals. I would have thought they were related to Buffalo or Water Buffalo from Africa....nope goat??
BBFN, Karen & Don
posted by Traveling with Katydid @ 1:43 PM
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