rhinebeck roundup

Hello, sheep! What a lovely welcome to the 2006 New York State Sheep and Wool Festival. I don't remember the first time that I went to Rhinebeck, but the fest is growing and growing. Knitting is very cool, I take it. My strategy this year was to go through all of the barns and vendors before buying anything, make some decisions, and then start buying. We were there on Sunday, so I knew that it was going to be more relaxed, but I was surprised that I couldn't gete into some booths at first. Pretty wild.


My first purchase was from Jamie Harmon, who has always been at Rhinebeck, but I've never purchased anything from her before. The yarn is angora/wool, and dyed with all-natural elements. With the baby parade, I had to get some stash for hats and booties. It's going to be really fun to knit up.


The next stop was Briar Rose Fibers (sponsor of Cast On). I really liked the colors of the Morehouse/Malabrigo skein, and just got it for a little hat. But the real star was 2500 yards of laceweight something (the fiber content isn't on the tag; interesting). That is more than a mile of yarn, right? Flower Basket shawl?


Of course, there were sock yarn purchases. I've never tried Cherry Tree Hill, and even though I said no more varigated yarn, I couldn't resist. These colors are mild enough that I think even a little pooling won't bother me. The purple is superwash wool from Sliver Moon Farm. I think that it was their first year at the fair, and I really liked the layered color. I think that a nice simple cable and rib will show this off best.


One of my final purchases was 900 yards of a black silk/merino blend. Can you make out the price tag on one of the skeins? That's right; $4.99 each. Wowie... I hope that it's nice to knit with, because the price is certainly right. I believe that this will become the IK Icarus shawl.


Poor Hubby. All that wool and knitting really tuckered him out. He passed out in the corner of the lounge at Sheep's Clothing (Morehouse). I even drove home, because I wasn't sure that his eyes could stay open.