The drive down to Lexington on Friday was uneventful, except for a pretty hard rain storm between Florence and Lexington along I-75.  It was hard enough to slow the interstate down to about 40 mph and to put the windshield wipers on full blast.  It lasted about 10 minutes and was gone.

Friday night, Sandy and I arrived at Masterson’s Station Park, found our space on the corner (we love being on the corner!!) of the Big Top Tent, unloaded the cars and set up our booth.  This year, we got a 10X20 foot booth – and we could have easily filled a larger one!  With all of the fiber we took… Wow!  Large bags of fiber take up a lot of space.

So, here is what our booth looked like:

See?  Pretty packed, isn’t it?

This is the Fiber Department.

After walking around several times over the weekend, we realized that we were one of few vendors selling fiber this way.  There were lots of raw fleeces, several bags of colors batts, dyed roving, lots and lots of yarn, but very little natural-colored wool in all of the breeds we have.

The price sign I created really was a huge help and we got many very positive compliments on it.  It did make things easier and people could see at a glance what we had, feel samples of the different fibers, see how it spins up, get descriptions on some, and see how much we charged.  I sincerely believe we sold more fiber because of the convenience of that sign.

Remember my telling you that we had a lot of the wool processed into top – especially the fine wools like Corriedale, Cormo, Bond, etc.?

Well, Sandy and I had tested some of the waste from the combing process for wet felting and it worked great.  So, we put what we had up for sale.  A very talented wet felter came by and bought most of the colored wool we had to make bags and such out of.

On Sunday, Kate brought a bag that she had made with some of the Corriedale wool she had purchased from us on Saturday (yes, she stayed up late getting it done) and embellished with wool she had bought from Fiber Optics.  Sandy and I were blown away!  It was incredible!  Good, thick felt, huge with two interior pockets and what a cool image on it.  Please check out her Etsy shop and buy things from her as her work is amazing!

Another lady bought the rest of the waste – mostly white – to use to stuff dolls and toys with, which is an idea that we hadn’t considered.

Back to Saturday.  Sandy and I were busy most of the day.  The people who came in to the booth to introduce themselves were so nice!  One lady came from Arizona! (Hi Sandy O.!!  Thank you for stopping by!)  Seriously, the people in Kentucky could not have been nicer and friendlier.

Then, of course, there was the tie-dye department.

The colors from the tie-dyed clothing caught people’s eyes and drew them in.  The fact that we dye so many varied items impresses people and the tie-dyed undies always crack people up.  One poor man stood looking back and forth between two shirts for a very long time before finally making up his mind and buying one.  I had the feeling we’d see him again, and, sure enough, a bit later he came back and bought the other one.

Also, one young man of about 10 came in with his mom complaining that she had thrown away all of his tie-dyed shirts, to which she had replied that he had out-grown them.  So, he had a wardrobe to replenish and did so with two shirts, a pair of socks and shoe laces.  I told her that rather than throw them away when he outgrows them, she should sew up the bottom of the shirt, cut it off below the arms, hem it, add handles from the rest of the shirt and make bags out of them.  Her eyes lit up and said that was a great idea.  I figured if her son likes his tie-dyed stuff that much, then he would love having bags made from them.

Baby items continue to be a top seller for us, even more than shirts.  Several onsies, burp cloths and baby socks found new homes over the weekend.  Babies always look adorable in colorful tie-dye.

On my breaks, I headed over to where there were sheep, shearing demonstrations and other vendors to look around.  I met some friends there, too.

This is Keebler.

And this is B. Willard.

They live with Sara of Punkin’s Patch and she had some beautiful fleeces for sale.

The weather was on our side for the most part.  Saturday, we had a short rain that brought in a slight breeze, and dropped the humidity and temperatures for us.  Sunday was sunny and hot.

Sunday, the crowd was lower, but people still came to buy.  I was standing and talking with Sandy when a voice came from my immediate left. “I bet you don’t recognize me?” I turned and said “Oh yes I do!”  Remember this man from last year?

Well, he and his wife came back looking for us this year.  Last year, he bought my entire bag of Ulf, a lovely silver Corriedale top and was spinning it in the demo tent almost immediately.  Well, he had loved spinning it so much that he wanted more of what we had for sale.  He and his wife looked at the fiber, looked at the Jacob and several others, and ended up going back to the Corriedale breed that we had.  Bless his heart, he bought over 6 lbs. of Corriedale from us, including all of the white and caramel colored and a pound of a lovely brownish-gray we have.

And they brought samples!

These socks she knitted were spun from Ulf.  There are some stripes here and there that were blended with their Chow’s hair, which made them even more special.  I can hardly wait to see what they make together with what they got from us.  I hope they send us pictures!

Sandy and I are still newbies at this whole fiber fair vending thing.  Last year, the Kentucky Sheep & Fiber Festival was our initiation, and we loved it so much that we decided that we are doing the right thing.  We spent the year searching for just the right fleeces to buy, making sure the quality of what we get is the best we can get, having them processed professionally, and getting them ready to sell.  We are very picky fleece buyers, and it shows and has paid off for us.  Having return customers, special orders, and requests for more mean so much to Sandy and I.

Someone called us “fleece brokers” yesterday, and that felt very good, because that is exactly what Sandy and I want to be.  Starting with the Fiber Binder Club to introduce people to high quality natural fibers, then providing more to take people beyond the education stage into the production stage means a lot to us.  Helping to support local and regional shepherds also means a lot to us.  We know so many farmers and shepherds who have troubles selling their wool, and that is a shame.  Mind you, having good wool to sell is important, and more and more breeders are culling for wool production.  That makes a better quality clip for sale, and that is a win-win for both the breeder and the hand-spinner.  Sandy’s and my job is to make sure that high quality wool gets in the hands of those who want it.

And, of course, Sandy made a new friend!

This is a baby miniature llama.  We had never heard of miniature llamas before.

Will we do the Kentucky Sheep & Fiber Festival again next year?  Definitely!  And we are talking about getting an ever bigger booth.  All that fiber takes up a lot of room!

And come back tomorrow.  I’ll take you with me on a tour of the festival.

We even have our two mannequins in it along with all of the tie-dye, 3 6-foot tables, a smaller, table, light fixtures, two garment racks (one a double-height one), our rolling office, a chair, signs, a small spinner rack, two large bags of wool, a case of water, and my luggage.

At noon, we will be on our way to the Kentucky Sheep & Fiber Festival.

For those of you coming to the Kentucky Sheep & Fiber Festival, please stop by the Dyed in the Wool booth, browse around, buy something and introduce yourself.  I love putting faces with names.

What we will have in the booth this year are several types of fiber all ready to spin as follows:

Shetland lamb fleeces in black, gray and white

Shetland – double coated fleece in light gray

Lincoln – one black lamb fleece and two different shades of gray adult fleeces including a national champion fleece

East Fresian – black

Corriedale in several sades of gray, white, brown and a sweet caramel color.

Columbia – white – 1st place IN State Fair Winner

Jacob – blended to a lovely warm gray

Romney – medium gray

Cormo – two batches in top form, one of which is the 2012 Indiana State Fair Reserve Grand Champion

A lovely mixed-breed sheep named Charlotte with a dark brown color

Bond in a nice brown

Texel – white – 2nd place 2011 KY Sheep & Fiber Festival winner

Also, we will have some blended batts in several colors and types of wool – a couple have silk blended in – and some balls of yarn that are naturally dyed in wool and silk.

We will have as many tie-dyed items as you can imagine.  There are shirts, of course, but we also have lots of baby onsies, burp cloths, socks from 0-3 months all the way up to men’s sizes, towels, table cloth, purses, tote bags, draw-string bags, hats, sports bras, PJ’s, tank tops, boxer shorts, panties (sizes 7-9), aprons, scrunchies, shoe strings, and several items with part of the proceeds going to breast cancer research.  Also, if you don’t see something you want whether it be in your size or in the colors you want, or just something that is cotton that we don’t carry, we do custom orders and can easily make it for you.

And, of course, we will have a Fiber Binder Club binder there with examples of what club members get as well as examples of what can be done with each month’s package for you to look at.  We will be accepting new members as well as taking renewals for those members wishing to continue receiving monthly natural fibers to test and play with.  Since we are getting ready to ship out the 30th sample, there are lots and lots of fibers to be explored.  Remember, if you are a new member, you start with month 1 so you don’t miss out on any of the lovely fibers and can get the same as those who have been members since the beginning.

We are so looking forward to seeing all of you!!!

I had Brenda test spinning about 10 different fibers from several breeds of sheep – everything from coarse East Fresian to baby-soft Cormo.  She even learned how to spin from the fold on some extra long Teeswater locks.  Brenda also has about 2 pounds of Merino to spin up for a couple of different projects.

Caeli is now spinning long-draw with some very colorful BFL that she will Navajo ply for a sweater vest.

Lori, who likes artsy yarns, is now spinning some Crosspatch Creations batts for some really interesting, nubby textured yarn.

And Debbie is doing very well spinning up her Pomeranian fur into a soft yarn with lots of halo to it.

It was such a fun time, all of us talking, me helping them out and the time passing far too fast, as usual.

Tonight, I will get the car packed for the trip to Kentucky this weekend.  That will just leave packing clothes and food, and getting the price signs for the spinning fibers finished tomorrow night.  We are getting there.

Tonight, I’ll start packing the car.  Tomorrow night, I have a spinning class to teach, then Wednesday night, the real packing will begin.  Boy, oh boy, do we have a lot to get into Bettie!  At least, this year, Sandy is taking all of the spinning fiber down in her car, and the rest of the items can go down in mine.  With our having a 10 X 20 booth to fill, there will be a lot of stuff to pack.

The closer it gets to time, the better I am feeling about it.  I still have several things to finish up before they can be packed, but, as of right now, I am pretty sure I can get it all done in time.

Today is not going to be an easy day on any of us.  I know I miss my Mom very much and just knowing I cannot talk to her today and hear her voice is very hard for me.  I know that where she is that she knows how much I love and miss her.  I know my brother’s wife, Lori, is standing right next to her and that they are loving all of us from Heaven.  Still, the tears that are running down my cheeks and the ache in my heart are real and it almost feels like I am losing them all over again.

Happy Mother’s Day Mom and Lori.  Your family left behind here on Earth have you in our hearts today and we honor you as God wished us to, and more.  Without your influences in our lives, we would not be the people we are today.  The love you shared with us during your lives have been reflected back to you thousands and thousands over.  You are sorely missed.  I love you!

So, while it is cool and rainy outside, it’s going to be hot and steamy in the studio. 

Nearly everything that we dyed last weekend has been washed out and the dyes set.  The next thing for them, then, it get them all pressed and the clothing on hangers with price tags and ready for inventory.  That part will come tomorrow for this batch.  Sunday morning will see the final batch of clothing dyed and that will be that until later this summer.  Next week will be the final washing out, pressing, tagging and packing.  Just one more week to get everything done.

Items are being gathered and purchased and being made ready to pack.  Thank heavens we made a list!

For the most part, our plan seems to work well, but, of course, there will be some alterations once we get there.  Finding room for three 6-foot tables, two clothes racks, two mannequins and our cash table means being very careful where everything goes.  And where do we hang the price and sample cards for the bags of processed wool?  What about the shoe laces and the Fiber Binder Club information?  And we have to have room to put the scale up so the fiber can be weighed.  What should the mannequins wear?  There are lots of things to consider.

And  then there is The List of things we need to take with us and who is responsible for which item.  That was done yesterday, too, and we are hoping that everything has been remembered.  There are so many little things for unexpected contingencies that need to be covered, like binder clip and tape and extra pens and scrap paper and safety pins, because you never know when one of these will be needed and if you don’t take them, you will be left scrambling for a substitute that doesn’t work nearly as well.  We know this from experience.

Getting ready for a show is time consuming and being away from home means taking everything but the kitchen sink with you.  But we are looking forward to seeing our friends again, making new friends, talking fiber and yarn and knitting and weaving and other creative projects with everyone.

And I do hope the vendor who makes the home-made root beer and red cream soda is there again this year.  I don’t eat sugar anymore, but I will break that for one of his red cream sodas.  Once a year I deserve a sugary treat, right?

I love looking at the patterns and colors of what Sandy and I do.  We get bored with the traditional “swirl” type of folds, so we tend to experiment quite a bit.  Some of the odder folds have produced some of the neatest patterns.

This time, we had fun with the colors.  Oh, we used some of the typical turquoise, lemon yellow and fuchsia dyes, but we had some fun playing around with different greens (bright green, forest green and teal), plus violet, bright orange, coral pink, hot pink, red carmine, an intense blue, and rose brown.  Whenever we would run out of a dye, we’d chose another out of the stash and give it a try.  This is how we find other colors we like and eliminate certain colors we aren’t interested in using again.  The intense blue is a keeper, but the rose brown… meh.

Also, this time I tried a different technique of dyeing than anything I’ve done yet – parfait dyeing.  I used plastic Folger’s Coffee containers and layered in socks with dyes.  They came out very cool, looking marbley with the way the colors blended.  And this time, rather than just do women’s socks with a few mens thrown in for good measure, this batch of socks were baby and young children’s socks (from size 0 to 4), girl’s socks (size 10 – 4) and men’s socks.  We’ve sold the men’s socks quite well and only had one or two pairs left so more was needed.  I definitely will do more dyes with this technique.

And we are almost done with the dyeing.  This Friday, I will finish up the remaining T-shirts, as well as get all those that are finished pressed, tagged, in inventory and on hangers.  We will have enough tie-dyed items to warrant a second clothes rack at the fiber shows.

In fact, yesterday, Sandy and I sat down and worked out the layout of our booth for the Kentucky Sheep & Fiber Festival.  And, it’s a good thing we did, too, because we went through several permutations before we landed on something that worked with what we are taking.  I still need to do a “scale” drawing to make sure everything fits.

Friday also will be the last day of dyeing until later this summer, and I have taken it off work to finish things up.  It’s hard work getting ready for these shows, but it is very worth it.  The people we get to meet alone make these shows worth while.

If you are going to be at the Kentucky Sheep & Fiber Festival on either the 18th or the 19th, please come by our booth and say hi.  Remember, we are Dyed in the Wool, and just look for the tie-dyed clothing and accessories – we are hard to miss!