Sheep & Wool 2008

I haven't had a chance to post my finds from Maryland Sheep & Wool here yet; I did take pictures of my finds & add them to my Ravelry stash, though. I didn't go too crazy this year, for a few reasons: I'm already at SABLE levels (Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy, meaning I have more yarn than I can reasonably knit given the limited free time I have now) and I didn't find too much stuff that I could only find at the festival. As more and more beautiful yarns and needles find their way online (hello, Etsy!), the uniqueness of festival-only items seems to be diminishing. I'm not complaining, mind you; it's great being able to support smaller-scale artisans year round.

This year, my main focus was on attending meetups rather than on buying yarn. The Ravelry meetup Saturday afternoon was *packed*. It was so great to meet Jess & Casey in person. They were swamped like the rock stars they are! I also got a chance to meet most of the Ravelry helpers who showed me the ropes when I first received my invitation; that was also supercool.

From the Ravelry meetup, I moved on to the Knitter's Review meetup as hosted by the super smart & friendly Clara Parkes. If you're considering working with a new-to-you yarn or want to learn more about yarn in general, Clara's your lady; she's the author of the wonderfully informative book, The Knitter's Book of Yarn. Clara's write-up of the festival can be found here; evidence of my profound non-photogenic-ness (as well as my new cowgirl boots & hot pink socks) made it to the write-up. :)

I was very saddened to learn of the thefts & vandalism at this year's festival. I know crime is everywhere, but come on. Can't there be one little oasis of safety and goodness out there?