The weekend after my two weekends of knitting classes, I ventured out of the confines of the city to my first ever fibre festival. It was a small one held out in one of the very rural suburbs at the county fair grounds, but I think that was just what I needed for my first time. I hear many horror stories from podcasters about the rush of people waiting to get in to the big festivals and the hordes of people all grabbing at the same yarn from a certain dyer and how people are carrying around armfuls just to make sure no one takes the one they want, and I’m just pretty sure that scene’s not for me. Instead, I went to this small one on the lookout for a select few things for a select few projects and I had a really great time. There were sheepdog trials and spinning demonstrations and many very nice vendors who I still feel bad about not giving money to. In the end I got just what I wanted (yarn to make the aforementioned sweater that I’m laughingly trying to accomplish by July 9, beautiful variegated organic wool yarn in just the right colours to finally make myself the Hobbit dress before the third movie premieres in December, and the perfect colour green yarn for my yarn swap partner (see the Third First)) and I also got some things I’ve been dreaming of for a long time (two skeins of Alisha Goes Around –and let me tell you that (1) Alisha is an AMAZING and LOVELY individual and (2) I wanted to buy the whole damn table, and two skeins of Dansk garn called Kauni that I’ve been loving and wanting and dreaming of for a long time and have never seen in person anywhere in the US). Originally I thought I would make my sweater with Kauni, but then the other yarn turned up and I somehow knew that it had to be the sweater yarn and the Kauni will be turned into something perfect and wonderful. It may linger in my stash for years to come until it meets exactly the right pattern and circumstance and that is okay because I wish nothing but the best for it.
I also got an adorable pattern that SO picked out and a charming skein of wool/bison blend handspun from reasonably local bison (Dakotas) that still has the beautiful smell of lanolin and bison wool. Aside from yarn there was a booth selling all manner of sheep cheese and since I’m intolerant to all cow milk I have to get my cheese fix exclusively from sheep or goat cheese. So … I bought a lot of cheese. My drawers are full of yarn and my freezer is full of cheese and that’s the best possible way I can think of to exist.
In short, I had a blast at the festival and look forward to the next one. Maybe I’ll work my way up to something bigger. Here’s a photo of my yarny take homes (minus one skein because it got pretty much instantly converted to sweater) that caused me to text my best friend and say “I’m yarn envying myself because of all the awesome things I got”.
Fibre festival: A+ would do again.
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