Coming Full Circle... Stitches South, Maryland Sheep and Wool, and Carolina Fiber Fest

Wow.. I can't believe it's been a year since the first big fiber festival I ever vended.. Carolina Fiber Fest 2010.  SO MUCH has happened in the last year.. and I'm still trying to process it all.. I'm still trying to figure how how i'm going to DO IT all.. but it's all a work in progress.. balancing all the travel and inventory.. and MAKING all the inventory.. it's mindboggling, still to ME!!

Carolina fiber fest is a wonderful festival.. close to home with great friends.. but I had NO idea what I was in store for when it came to Stitches South.  Sure.. a big show I was told.. I expected it with the expo setting... I spun what I thought was 'enough' yarn..  I bought some new fixtures and I was ready to go..  so I thought..    We got to Atlanta and started setting up our booth.. and realized that what I thought was a 'professional' booth had NOTHING on some of these folks.. they used gridwalls like I'd never seen before.  But I was happy with my booth.. and I'm thrilled with how it continues to manifest in new festivals..    but here's the Stitches South set up..

 What a wonderful show!! NEW friends.. new contacts, new new NEW!! It was just fantastic and I look forward to a long relationship with Stitches Events!!

Then less than a month later it was onto Maryland Sheep and Wool festival! I was honored to be a featured artist in the Cloverhill Yarn Shop booth! This is one of the longest running booths in festival history, and one of the most visited! It was PACKED in the booth all weekend and my yarns and fibers were very well received. 

I spent the weekend bouncing between the Cloverhill booth and spending time helping my friend Lexi Boeger (Pluckyfluff) at her educational booth.  We had the new Majacraft Aura spinning wheel available for trying out, as well as a Louet Classic carder out for carding.  There were LOTS of yummy fibers to try for carding and spinning!

It was a wonderful booth full of things to touch and play with!! It was a blast to teach all weekend!
We had kids, adults.. men.. women!! Every shape and size person sat down at a wheel or took their try at carding..

Oh.. I didn't mention that Owen and Glynis Poad, the makers of the amazing Majacraft spinning wheels, were there as well?  Oh. .well they were! They are wonderful folks, and I can't wait to get them to NC for SAFF (thinking 2012...  I'm going to make it happen!!)    We all had a wonderful time spinning and hanging out...

OH.. and fleeces.. DUH!!  I came home with THIRTEEN fleeces.. amazing all of them.. curls and crimp.. crosses and ribbon winners!  I have SO many fun fleeces to play with this summer and fall!! I can't wait to get started!!

Oh.. and speaking of ribbon winners...
I entered some yarn into the skein and garment competition and I WON.. AND I entered a couple of my triangle shawls that I wove on my loom.. and I WON!!

So after a wonderful weekend that Maryland was (we'll talk more about the goodies I came home with in another post- as well as the FANTASTIC nuno class I taught on Friday.. that also deserves it's own post) Only 10 days later was Carolina Fiber Fest 2011..  full circle.

It was a wonderful weekend.. again full of friends and local fun!  I taught some wonderful classes and we were in a large new building, that brought in lots of new people!!

SO.. there was my crazy busy spring...  and now I've started working on the summer and fall!! Next on the schedule is the Asheville Summer Retreat in July.. vending and teaching there..  THEN Stitches Midwest, last weekend in Aug, in Schamburg IL..  THEN a week with Lexi at her hometown workshop.. THEN home to get ready for SAFF in Oct!!

I have a few posts in the works.. had some wonderful workshops I can't wait to tell you about.. but until then..  hope your dyepots are colorful and the yarn on your wheel sparkly!!  The Tour de Fleece is around the corner.. I hope you have dusted off your wheel.  I'll have a big update before so you can stock up.. with a discount code taboot.  watch for the announcement tonight!!

Going to MARYLAND SHEEP and WOOL FESTIVAL!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't believe it myself! I've been floating on a cloud since I found out!!  Jolene, from the wonderful Cloverhill Yarn Shop in Cantonsville, MD asked me yesterday if I would like to be one of the Independent Artists that her booth showcases at Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival! 
This is THE biggest sheep and wool festival in the country! I'm so excited that I have a chance to get a feel what it's like to work in a booth before I have to manage my own. Maryland is SAFF on steroids.. and so getting an idea of what I'm in for before I get my own booth is going to be a huge asset! By being featured in the CloverHill booth I'll get my foot into the door of the festival.. which is known for being one of the most difficult to acquire a booth!
I'm also excited to get to be a 'shopper' in a wool market this large!! I'm really hoping to score some yummy spring fleeces, while meeting people and just general fiber mahyem!  I did promise Lexi that I would help her out in her educational booth for a couple hours one day..  so I'm looking forward to quite a weekend!!
My husband also just reminded me that Columbia MD (where my hotel is) is where Merriweather Post Pavillion is- where we saw Phish on our second wedding anniversary.  We also ate that day at the MOST AMAZING restaurant- Clyde's in Columbia  So not only do I get to go to Sheep and Wool, I get to eat the BEST CRABCAKES in the same weekend!!
Happy Happy me!!

There also may be a 'pre festival fiber party" in the way of a couple workshops the Friday before the festival!! The word on the street is the Funky Nuno Felting workshop paired with the WildCarding...  I'll post more info as details solidify!!

YAY Maryland is going to get JAZZY this year!!