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Prima Alpaca:How Ancient Art Informs Luxury Interior Textiles

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andra Jordan’s passion for design began dur-ing her colorful childhood in Peru. As she visited the markets with her relatives, she was exposed to handmade products of un-rivalled beauty and provenance that inform her designs even today.

Jordan received her education in British Schools around the world as she traveled with her diplomat step-father to diverse countries and receiving her education in Britain. She developed a passion for art and handicrafts from cultures across the world and has continued to travel extensively throughout her life, with the side ef-fect of honing her international design sensibilities even further.

She later taught at the high school and college levels and, according to her web site, “built a reputation amongst her students, colleagues and customers for her compassion, enthusiasm and devotion to her subjects and work.”

Until 2007, Sandra Jordan was Creative Director at Jordan Winery, focusing on revamping the public areas of the winery and simultaneously winning national

awards for her package design. Her first book, The Art of Decanting, published in 2006, examines the rituals of wine presentation.

This led to another foray into design. As she was re-modeling the Jordan Winery, she created her own Sandra Jordan Collection, honing in on patrons’ interest in the wine country lifestyle. By creating products visitors to the wine country desired, she was also able to develop a way to create jobs for the people living in her native Peru.

In 2006, Prima Alpaca was introduced, a line of textiles specifically geared toward the design commu-nity. Items were heirloom quality, handcrafted pieces of beauty that connoisseurs and those fond of the finer things in life wanted in their everyday lives.

The design ideas were borne first from the colors of the wine harvest. Jordan’s collections have since grown to grace showrooms in the United States, Canada, Aus-tralia, New Zealand and Russia.

Jordan makes her home in California wine country but continues to be inspired by travel and to exercise her unique knack for bringing the best of what she sees into

S

Below: A detail from the Sandra Jordan Prima Alpaca Millenium Collection, which celebrates the vibrant artistry of Peruvian textiles, the world’s oldest and most continuous textile tradition. Opposite: Portrait of Sandra Jordan by Jen Siska. Photos courtesy Prima Alpaca.

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quality that we can consider for Prima Alpaca.”“Suri is a very special and rare alpaca,” Jordan

explains. “Unlike other alpacas, the Suri have silky locks that bring to mind long curls or dreadlocks. The fleece of these animals can grow long enough to sweep the ground. The fiber is extremely glossy and will maintain its luster for years to come. Working with Suri has al-lowed us to offer designs with a very dense, deep pile and plush feel that is extremely luxurious.”

The glossy Suri fiber Jordan uses in her designs is a result of careful husbandry and many years of deliberate breeding. More attention than ever before is being paid to strategic breeding directives for use in high-end textiles.

She explains, “Traditionally, herdsmen have inter-bred alpacas with llamas to create coarser fibers that are heavier. They were then paid by the weight of the fiber. We have begun to encourage herdsmen to breed alpacas so they are paid for the quality rather than weight or quantity of their fleeces – this ultimately gives them a much higher standard of living and gives us a higher quality fiber. It’s a win-win situation.”

About a year ago, Alpaca Culture was fortunate to visit Peru and attend the Alpaca Fiesta, where we first

her designs. An internal curation is constantly happening inside as she explores worlds new to her and gathers bits and pieces to incorporate later.

Her material of choice for all the interior design tex-tiles for Prima Alpaca is alpaca. “As a young girl grow-ing up in Peru, I became very familiar with the romance of fine alpaca,” Jordan says. “Years later, when I began my company, no one had really explored the fiber’s po-tential in the interiors field. I had the opportunity as the creative director of Jordan Winery to use alpaca during a renovation of our winery and hospitality areas. I saw that everything that was said about the fiber—its beauty, drape, strength and softness—was true. I began exploring other applications, including using alpaca in the interior design of the Les Mars Hotel, which led me to found my own line, Sandra Jordan Prima Alpaca. It was a business opportunity that grew organically out of my memories of and love for my native country.”

“We are very specific about the fiber we source. Prima Alpaca only includes fiber from the first shearing of the baby alpaca. So it is extremely soft and luxurious. Typically only one percent of the world’s luxury fiber is alpaca and only ten percent of that one percent is of the

Left to right: An example of the exquisite finishing techniques used in the Millenium Collection. Luxurious, durable fabric from the Suri Collection, created in an earth-conscious way. An intriguing pattern representative of the sumptuous, limited edition jacquard of the Millenium Collection.

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shook Sandra Jordan’s hand. Greatly inspired by the archeological ruins we visited and by the people them-selves, we saw evidence of the uniquely Peruvian artistic tradition that stretched back hundreds of years. Jordan’s work is informed by the Toquepala Caves in Southeast-ern Peru, the Nazca lines, Wari geometric shapes and other cultural standouts.

“Peru offers the world’s oldest and most continuous textile tradition. It’s an honor to pay homage to that tradi-tion in my work. I have been inspired by all of the sites . . . at their ancient meaning as well as how relevant they are today. I designed an entire collection, a limited edition, jacquard throw line called Prima Alpaca Mil-lennium, which reinterprets many of these ancient ideas with new textures, forms and colors that transcend ge-ography and time. I love all of our groupings but Prima Alpaca Millennium is particularly close to my heart because I am from Peru.”

Prima Alpaca Collections include:Millenium

The Millenium collection celebrates “the vibrant art-istry of Peruvian textiles, the world’s oldest and most

continuous textile tradition.” Prima Alpaca Millen-nium is a line of sumptuous, limited-edition jacquard woven textiles and throws, rich in pattern, depth and human endeavor. Made from luxurious Prima Alpaca, these offerings harken back to the extraordinary technique and beauty achieved by Peruvian weav-ers of long ago and refined over the millennia. This collection features five limited edition throws in Cave Alpacas, Nazca Flowers, Wari Black, Chancay Red and Yellow and Chancay Pelican designs.

Suri A designer’s dream fabric, Prima Alpaca Suri is more sumptuous than cashmere and warmer and lighter than sheep’s wool. The splendid yet durable fibers of-fer supreme insulation and do not break, pill, deform or create static. Unlike wool, Suri fibers contain no lanolin, making the fiber hypoallergenic. Elegant to drape, luxurious to handle and strong, Prima Alpaca Suri keeps its appearance over time. Like all Sandra Jordan Prima Alpaca fabrics, Prima Alpaca Suri is the result of an earth-friendly produc-tion cycle—from raising and shearing the animals to finishing the textiles—that leaves a light footprint on the land. The process creates jobs for herdsmen and

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Sandra Jordan Prima Alpaca is the world’s only extensive line of luxury residential alpaca textiles. Here, upholstery from the Suri Collection.

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fun to push the fiber in unexpected ways, even though we may not be using brand-new technologies.”

As a textile designer, Jordan consistently consid-ers the contemporary need to protect the environment. “Sustainability is an important part of what we do. That said, we don’t think that much about it because it seems that any modern company is careful about resources and aware of the environmental impact of its production cycle.”

“The alpacas by nature are very sustainable animals. They live high in the Andes in a land of harsh climates and limited resources therefore, as a grazing animal, they evolved to be exceptionally light on the land. And our earth-friendly production cycle—from raising and shear-ing the animals to finishing the textiles—is a process that dates back to the time of the Incas, who also had to be very careful about resources, living in this extreme climate. So part of being sustainable for us is reinstating and celebrating these traditionally earth-friendly tech-niques.”

To view the Prima Alpaca collections and learn more about Sandra Jordan, visit www.SandraJordan.com.

SOURCES:• “Datebook: Sandra Jordan Sonoma County.” Luxe Interiors +

Design n.d.: n. pag. Web. 10 Aug. 2015.• “Design Mind: The Clouds on Earth.” San Francisco Cottage and

Garden June-July 2015: 38. Web. 10 Aug. 2015.• Personal interview Sandra Jordan.

their families and revives a traditional art that dates back thousands of years.

Sateen “Marketed as “The world’s only extensive line of alpaca textiles for the home,” Prima Alpaca Sateen “combines all of the wonderful attributes of Prima Alpaca—strength, luxury and versatility—with an in-triguing elegance and sexiness. The way light catches this timeless weave is almost magical. Prima Alpaca Sateen makes any room glamorous.”

A unique company, Prima Alpaca stands out for its extensive use of alpaca fiber as well as the beauty and quality of the designs. “In all honesty, there is no other company in the world that does what we do,” Jordan says. “Sandra Jordan Prima Alpaca is the world’s only extensive line of luxury residential alpaca textiles. That said, we are a very small company and we are person-ally involved in all aspects of our business. I do all the designs, which are inspired by my personal experiences including my love of travel, art history, culture and color.”

As much as ancient artistic ideas inform Prima Alpaca, current technology is in use when it makes sense or drives things forward. Jordan says,“I wouldn’t say that there is one new technology that we employ. Often times we use older technologies but apply them to alpaca fiber – like introducing a jacquard weave in our throw collec-tion. Textiles offer an extremely ancient tradition and its

Fabric from Sandra Jordan’s Prima Alpaca Sateen Collection, in four rich, neutral colorways.