Cowichan Fleece & Fibre Fair 2009

Yesterday was the Cowichan Fleece & Fibre Fair in Duncan, BC. It is a relatively small event but as there are few fibre events on the Island I feel it is important to attend and support our local fibre industry. There were many vendors geared towards spinning which I don't do (..yet) which narrowed my browsing to only a few points of interest. Twist of Fate was there, I always make a point of saying hello to Erynn because she travels all the way from Kamloops to attend and she is always so pleasant and cheerful... also, her yarns are lovely. The highlight of the festival for me was visiting John at the Gulf Islands' Spinning Mill booth...

I fell in love with the colours of their yarns last year and ended up walking away with 2 skeins of mustard yellow wool. Knowing that this yarn was special I dove right into swatching, determined to find the perfect stitch pattern to compliment the yarn which is mill spun but would fool even the most seasoned spinner into thinking it was spun by hand. After many changes in direction the Mustard Scarf was born. This was my very first design and the unique quality of the yarn is what prompted me to design the pattern rather than look for a knitting pattern that might work. I tried to relay this information to John, explaining that his yarn was featured in a scarf design that more than 300 knitters had made and loved on Ravelry... I think the message may have been lost in translation but I was so thrilled to discover that he remembered me because of my unusual choice in colour!

I walked away from the event with a bag full of local fibres, here is what I picked up from the Gulf Islands Spinning Mill...