Where does the time go??

Bad blogger, no cookie! Sorry for the lapse...

OFFF was a blast!! The energy and creativity and visual/tactile feast that is a fiber festival is just more fun than I can describe. Everybody is in a happy mood, color and texture is everywhere. I LOVE seeing how perfect strangers become fast friends through fiber. It's that extra language we all speak, the language of creativity and possibility, and we're able to express it fully at a place like OFFF and Black Sheep. We gather as a tribe and we know each other before we've even met, and we LIKE each other. We help strangers by telling them our experiences, by showing each other how to use unfamiliar tools, we teach, we share, we laugh, we dream.

There was a wonderful woman who spent a lot of time spinning on the different wheels, and some children came along who seemed unfamiliar with the craft, and she soon had one on her lap, teaching the ways of the wheel. It was beautiful! I thanked her for showing the child how to spin and she just laughed and said "how could I not?" That's what I love about fiber people, the spontaneous sharing. Generosity of spirit.

I only wish I could clone myself so I could spend the whole time in the booth (okay, I did that), I could go around to the entire show and see everything, every booth, every display, every demonstration, every sheep, every baby camel (baby camels!!), I could sit under the trees and spin or knit the day away while chatting with my tribe, I could take every class.... ahhhh.

I did get to see the baby camels. Who knew they were so friendly and charming?? Alpacas are simply adorable, but most of them act like they're perfectly disgusted if you venture to touch them (UGH, a HUMAN! cooties!!). I wonder, are camels typically like this, or were these guys unusual? Maybe they've been used more by man throughout the ages, so we've selected for dispositions that are more personable, and we just let alpacas get away with it cuz they're cute?? I don't know. I just know that if alpacas acted like they liked you, there'd be a couple in every home in the country. Mine, anyway.

The catalog is ALMOST done! It should go to the printer tomorrow, touch wood. Tim is a wizard, you're going to LOVE this catalog. I can't wait to get it out there and get your response!

Can you call it a knit-along if you don't all work on the same thing? We were talking about making some felted bags (okay okay, knitted and fulled!!), but we don't all want the same design. Can we still call it a knit-along if we each pick a different pattern? Deb and Karen are leaning towards the same one, but I want something with a little fold over flap so I can add this cool beaded fringe that we have - it's on satin bias tape, and I don't want that part to show, thus the flap. I'm not sure what Jennifer wants to do. Cathy and Paula and Wanda weren't here today to say if they wanted in on this or not...

Pictures?? sorry - bad blogger, no cookie.

Diane