Under
the watchful guard of Miracle, Guido, Emma, and Connie, our
Angora goats graze in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains
outside of Charlottesville, Virginia. Over the years, we have
selectively bred for healthy, parasite-resistent animals with
fine fleeces and sturdy bodies. Our animals consistently produce
soft, lustrous fiber that is used in our own line of hand-dyed
yarns and rovings. With a herd size of over one hundred animals,
we produce hundreds of pounds of mohair a year.We welcome visitors.
Just email kidhollow@cstone.net or
call ahead and meet the "kids" of Kid Hollow Farm.
(Email
us for directions to Kid Hollow Farm)
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Besides the goats and guardian dogs, if you come by you can also meet
our Border collies, Annie, Ellie, and Ben and our friendly alpacas. |
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" Goat
to Coat"
It
all starts with beautiful fiber from healthy animals. Here
is a close-up of the type of fleece on one of our herd sires and
on one of his offspring.
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Next,
our animals are hand-shorn in February and August by Kevin
Ford (author of Shearing Days). Kevin spends several
days at the farm shearing with hand blades using techniques
he learned while training in Ireland. Goats take more time
to shear than sheep because they have fiber on their legs and
faces and many skin folds to navigate through. As the mohair
is removed, it is sorted and the best is put into paper bags
to be used later.
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Some
of it is sold as raw fleece. Some is dyed and blended with the
finest Border Leiscester to make luxurious rovings for hand spinners.The
rest is used in a variety of hand-dyed yarns. |
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Then we are ready for the show
season. In addition to Internet, mail, and farm sales, we are
vendors at Maryland
Sheep and Wool, VAGMA, Fall Fiber Festival, New York Sheep and
Wool Festival, SAFF, and in the Charlottesville area, at the
Downtown Christmas Farmer's Market on Saturdays between Thanksgiving
and Christmas.
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