Maryland Sheep and Wool

Where do I begin? First of all, I was unaware. About a lot of things. It was much bigger than I thought. There were more people there than I thought. There was much, much, much more yarn there than I thought. I didn't go quite prepared enough. Next year I will sell a house and dedicate the commission to that trip alone. (over my husband's dead body) I went with the thought that I would not spend money on yarn similar to that which I could purchase from the LYS locally and I kept my word on that. But I definitely needed more money. I'll dream about that yarn at night that I wanted to buy and didn't. (ok, I'm getting a little carried away here but I'm telling you .... it was truly sensory overload) There was a silk-merino blend to die for at $40.00 a skein. It would have made the most fabulous clapotis.

I was there from 9:30am to 2:30pm and I know I didn't get to see everything. Many of the vendors had small box-like cubicles with their yarns in bins and you couldn't get near it....too many people. So, some of the yarns I really wanted to see, I couldn't. The lines for the bathroom were incredibly long. The lines for the food were even longer. Getting there early, we didn't have to walk far but some people were parked so far away that it was an actual hike for them to get to the fairgrounds. There were cars in that parking lot from every state in the country.

I watched a border collie exhibition that was fun. Those dogs really can herd sheep. And it was interesting to see all the different breeds of sheep and shearing being done. There were people everywhere with huge bags of fleece that they had purchased. I kept thinking, wow, there are more people out there who spin than I thought. That is something I have NO desire to do. Talk about taking time away from knitting!

All in all, it was an excellent "Mother's Day" weekend event. I was in what my kids refer to as "mommy heaven". Next year I vow to take more money, perhaps stay longer, and go with a better plan of what I want to purchase. (I thought I had that one covered until I actually got there) Photos tomorrow.... my camera cord is at the office.