Mother's Day Sheep & Wool

As usual, I went with my two daughters to the annual New Hampshire Sheep & Wool Festival. This year we went on Saturday instead of Sunday for a change. It was pouring rain...sigh. But we still had a great time and came home with lots of goodies. Here's what I picked up.

First, this lovely turned wood shawl pin, created by Cynthia Ellis at Wood by C. She had a display of the most gorgeous shawl pins, crochet hooks, knitting needles, pens, thimbles, seam rippers, and just about every kind of little gadget and gizmo you could imagine, all beautifully turned and dyed. This shawl pin is smooth as glass and will make a perfect accent to my hand-knit shawls.

Next is two 600-yard skeins of "All Wool Lace Twist" lace yarn from Ball and Skein in the shade called "Lupine." It's absolutely gorgeous, subtly changing shades of purple and will make a gorgeous shawl. They had so much beautiful lace yarn, it was tough to narrow it down! I bought some of their Arequipa alpaca and silk lace yarn last year, so this year I'm giving their 100% wool a try. Now I just have to find the perfect pattern.

Then came four 300-yard skeins of "Little Breeze," which is silk and merino lace-weight yarn from A Touch of Twist. The colourway is called "Channel." Not sure what that means. But it's a stunning fuchsia shade, which is my absolute favorite color. (I was the kid who always wanted the "magenta" crayon out of the crayon box.) Again, it will make a wonderful shawl, light and warm and colorful!

Last but not least is a huge, 1400-yard hank of 50% merino, 50% tencel gorgeous purple yarn from Ellen's Half Pint Farm. It's not labeled as to weight, but it looks like either heavy lace yarn or perhaps sock/fingering weight. The color is a solid purple, but the tencel gives it a beautiful sheen that makes it look subtly variegated.

My two daughters each bought yarn and other goodies, including pattern books, kits, and a "learn to spin with a spindle" kit, each one choosing colors that suited her best. They know I always head straight for the pinks and purples. ;-) We had a lovely time, despite being constantly wet. We stopped for a late lunch on the way home, then had a celebratory dinner at home with Dan/Dad/Grandpa and the grandchildren. All in all, a marvelous day, despite being duck weather!