Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival 2012 - part 2

I did pretty well in the skein contest:

It's interesting to me that the yarn I thought would do well, didn't.

My spindle-spun skein didn't win the prize for the best spindle-spun skein.  This is actually a good thing because it shows me that I'm not the only one entering.  I'll just have to spin better so I win next year.

The shopping, as you might imagine, was lots of fun.  The first thing I bought was the replacement for the spindle I dropped and shattered.  The next day I bought a Bosworth spindle:

The Bosworth spindle, on the left, is made from Bird's Eye Maple and spins really well.  The Spin-a-Bit spindle on the right is an identical replacement for the broken one.  I really need to find a good way to store and display my spindles.  I'd be grateful for some suggestions.

Next I bought a couple of gorgeous batts:

Unfortunately, this picture doesn't really show how beautiful these batts are.  Once they're spun up, I plan on using the yarn for weaving scarves.

Thanks to Sheri and Rhonda, I bought a 24" Kromski Harp Rigid Heddle loom.  The girls sat through the auction held on Saturday and bought my loom for me.  They bought stuff for themselves, too.  It was just so hot there was no way I could have sat outside for 3 hours while the auction was under way. 

Okay, it's a crappy picture.  Sorry.  The Harp folds up for easier storage and transportation.  It'll hold 5 yards of cloth up to 24" wide.  I'll be weaving scarves and probably a table runner or two.

To play with my drumcarder, I bought some dyed Merino roving, sparkly fiber and some Merino/silk roving.  I should get 2 or 3 batts out of what I bought.  Playing will likely commence this weekend.

That's red Angelina on the left and Firestar sparkle on the right.  One of the things I was looking for in Maryland were things to add to batts to make them more fun to spin.

So that's the last of the trip photos.  We had a great time this year.  Part of the fun was my sister joined us for the weekend.  Fortunately for her, she missed the thunderstorm and the rain since she didn't arrive until Friday.  A good time was had by all.

Comments

[penny]

very nice! i pet a 24" harp for a long time on sunday trying to entice it to follow me home. while it stood, it didn't follow (yet). may you enjoy each other in good health.

[Helen]

Congratulations on how your skeins did in the contest. As to storing/displaying your spindles, try a nice/decorative pitcher about medium size? I've got knitting needles in one and spindles in another. The pitchers are heavy enough to keep from tipping over. Just an idea.