All about our Baby Alpaca Lining

Meraki is a Peruvian brand of ethical, artisanal and eco-sustainable fashion. We use all our ancient knowledge of the alpaca fiber and use it in our gloves with our leather obtained from subsistence hunting. 

Alpacas live on the highlands of the Andes, mostly between Peru and Bolivia, at altitudes up to 4800m above sea level. They feed from the vegetation in this places and their thick coat can withstand harsh environments and below cero temperatures. 

Baby alpaca wool: The finest fiber in Peru

First, let me explain something that has been a common believe by travelers and people not familiarized with Alpaca fibers: Baby Alpaca Wool is NOT from baby alpacas or puppies.  Baby alpaca wool refers to the fineness of the wool and is obtained from the youngest alpacas or from the oldest alpacas where the hair is thinner. 

Now, a fact you probably never imagined is that the happier the alpaca is the better the fiber will be. Ok, this means that the more the animal is happy in its environment the better the quality will be because less stress and good feeding will reflect in their skins and wool. 

Our Peruvian artisans are experts knitters on this fiber and they know the secret of perfect processing and know how to keep intact all the precious properties and qualities of the fiber for the linings. Remember that Baby Alpaca wool is probably one of the warmest material you can use for gloves lining in the world besides being the softest and natural hypoallergenic. 

Comparison of different everyday fibers

To have some idea of what i will show you here please take note that a human hair has a measure from 40 to 90 microns when compared against the next fibers. In clothing, the smallest the microns the better because it means more softness and more quality in the garment for example, merino wool, cashmere and our incredible baby alpaca wool. 

As can you see in the comparison, our Baby Alpaca wool linings are quite soft, warm and with incredible properties such as hypoallergenic and antibacterial protecting you even against bad odors and all is done naturally since the wool from alpacas is not processed industrially or chemically manipulated.