New Hampshire Sheep and Wool 2011

Contoocook New Hamster.  Gas up the car.  Caffeinate the driver.  Recaffeinate the driver.  Set the autopilot for true North.

Wait.  There IS no autopilot.  Okay.  Just plug Kearsarge Avenue into the GPS.  One pee stop in Hooksett, two tolls, take a right, green field, park, swat the flies, walk, and there you are.

There is always something new under the sun.  You can often find it at a good fiberfest.

A sampler of what overcame camnesia:

The best fiber license plate I've seen in awhile.

Heidi, caught walking the fairgrounds, trying to act nonchalant.  We (and you) would initially count four fleeces casually transported.   There were SIX.  Two were rotated behind her back.  This unleashed Lynn's passion for Jacob.  We raced back to the Jacob booth. 

Lynn fell in love with a lamb named Smidgen.  The Kisakanari/Earth Haven Farm vendors had a skirting table set up in their booth.  Every fleece was turned out and examined with the customer.  Wow.  And every fleece was beautiful.  The ewe who gave birth to Smidgen is named Morsel.  Of course.  Please note the non-sentient look in Lynn's eyes when in direct contact with fleece.  I think that explains the fact that she brought home 4.5 fleeces that day.  (Yes, I am guilty of owning the other 0.5.  But she suggested it first.)

I love being semi-fibercrazed.  Although in the crazy days, I loved that too.  I was quite restrained this year, based on historical averages.   LongRidge Farms, CVM 80%/silk 20%, sportweight yarn in naturally dyed colorway Wild Grape.  Naturally dyed, windspun yarn from Hope Spinnery in Maine, enough for a pair of colorwork mittens (indigo, cream, brown).  Silk bricks from Robin Russo. 

Nancy Benda, the Spinning Bunny, is calling it quits after this year.  I am sad.  Lynn and I delved deeply into her mixes of merinos, cormos, silks, and angora rovings.  The swatch she had hung up with the bags was irresistible.

We sat on a stone wall, and watched a sweater approach.  "Is that Cobblestone?"  "I don't think so, Cobblestone is all one color.  Can you see if the yoke is garter stitch?"  As the sweater owner moved closer, we saw not only garter stitch, but a beautifully executed Cobblestone, with main body color picked up at the neck.  The yoke was handdyed, handspun BFL by Zarzuela, knit by Zarzuela, and, yes, being worn by Zarzuela at that very moment.  I must blog this.

We left the Festival at 4:40pm.  Almost closed it down, but not quite.  When I got home,  I knit a row on Volt, and died by 9:30pm.  Actually I died well before that, but refused to admit it.  I became like a toddler, hyperstimulating to stay awake, and accomplishing nothing except annoying the people around me.  Poor Mr. Etherknitter.  He goes through this EVERY year.

 

Comments

[Lynn]

I washed Smidgen today. All the best people are spinning Jacob these days, you know.

[Ruth]

I wish I could have gone.

[Judy]

Ha! That plate belongs to Mrs. Paul. Good one, isn't it.

[margene]

.5 fleece(s)...I truly do not believe it.

[Manise]

What a fun day! So glad that you got to meet Jessica (Zarzuela).

[Caroline M]

Half a fleece? Does this mean you have intentions about spinning down the stash?

I hate poking about in fertiliser bags trying to see what it is that I'm about to buy, I think having a table to open the fleece up is a great idea, to see the whole thing rather than a couple of locks would encourage me to buy.

[Mel]

I only came home with a set of Jacob horn buttons. The temptation to bring home more was so great, but I managed to be realistic and as sensible as one can be under the influence of wool fumes.

[Carole]

I can just hear that conversation on the stone wall - so YOU and I'm so sorry I missed it.

[Guinifer]

Hysterical.
Great picture of Zarzuela and her cobblestone.

[Anne]

He is a saint. You knew that tho.

Only 0.5 of a fleece? REMARKABLE restraint. Truly. :)

[Kathy]

Oh, I'm so sad about Nancy Benda -- I am a big fan of her work. I knit the bunny Bunny of her fiber. And a scarf. Sad, sad.

[Marcia]

That IS the best fiber plate ever! And those dolts in DMV didn't get it, which makes it even funnier! A gorgeous Cobblestone, indeed. I have not been to one festival this year and probably won't get to any. I'm fine with that. Anxiously awaiting those scan results....

[Elisa]

I cannot BELIEVE I did not see you. FAIL!

[gayle]

Love that license plate. You'd think someone somewhere at the DMV would have gone "Hey, wait a minute..."
I'm still depressed that I missed the festival. It is now imperative that I go to Vt S&W in October. I don't care if I have to walk. Uphill both ways. In the snow.

[Chris]

I didn't go this year, not as vendor, not as spender. :( Missed it. Enjoyed your fun!

[Melissa G]

I have a shopping list of 3 items for Estes Park in 3 weeks. Will see how I do then; I'm working on considered choices and catching up on WIPs (still). [That sounds so self-congratulatory until you consider that my WIP-list also includes planned projects for which I have the materials and numbers > 10 (probably > 20--am afraid to get exact count).]

[Jessica]

It was very nice to meet you! Thank you for the sweet words about my sweater too. :-)

[claudia]

Thanks for the virtual trip...it was almost like being there!

[Kim]

It was so nice to see you at the fair....I wish we had more time to visit!

[Heidi]

for the record, all six of Heidi's fleeces are washed (including Morsel). I'm currently spinning Emiline's fleece on a drop spindle (all 9 pounds of it...). The Jacobs are getting sorted an drum carded. I won't run out of fiber related projects for a little while....