Participants will join us for a fun Saturday evening, where we shop the Marketplace, listen to a special presentation by Rebecca Bayreuther Donahue of the Dirty Blue Shirts and enjoy a ticket/cash bar for beer, wine, and soft drinks, and door prizes. (Of course our Marketplace vendors will be available Friday through Sunday.) Bring your spinning wheels, spindles, knitting and crochet projects or whatever you are working on for a great time with new and old friends. Meet our Vendors below.
“Knit As to Turn Water – The History of New England’s Maritime Knitting”
by Rebecca Bayreuther Donahue
It followed the fish, the flight paths of immigrants, the sea-lanes of war: the knitted clothing of New England reflects maritime cultures the world over. Rich with origin mythology and salty with sailors’ yarns, garments like nippers, half-handers, and the infamous fisherman’s sweater each hold a romantic yet real place in our coastal history. Explore knitting a WWI submariner’s outfit with the Navy League! Imagine learning to knit with a pair of whalebone needles you carved yourself! Join Rebecca Bayreuther Donohue, historian & knitter, for an ode to wool and marvel once again at how the sea connects us all. A PowerPoint chronology comes to life with examples of breed-specific yarns and recreated garments.
Meet our Vendors!
We’ve go some of the best vendors around. Check out their offerings, below.
Dirty Girl Yarns
Meet Dirty Girl Yarns. I could tell you the yarn is handmade, I can tell you it’s one-of-a-kind, I can tell you it’s unique, I can tell you it’s made lovingly, one skein at a time. But it’s more than that. Dirty Girl Yarn is about connecting with the sheep, the farmer, the fiber artist, and the environment. It’s about the process, it’s about passion.
Dragonswool by Deb Quesnette
Specialty spinning fibers and accessories created by Deb.
Forever in Fiber
Luxury fiber and handspun of today for the heirlooms of tomorrow. Check out my Cashgora and new products.
Plies and Hellhounds
Plies and Hellhounds Yarn is a one-woman team, creating hand dyed yarns on a curated collection of bases with a wide variety of fiber content. I am here to bring you a wide range of fantastical, dark, and romantic colors to help you build the handmade wardrobe of your dreams.
Sassy Black Yarns
Sassy Black Yarns is an independent, hand-dyed yarn company based in Manchester, Connecticut, serving knitters and crocheters who love bold, saturated color with personality.
We’re a Black, woman, and veteran-owned yarn business, dyeing small-batch skeins that are ready to ship, road-tested at fiber festivals, and designed to make your projects feel as joyful and unique as you are.
Sheep Shed
I enjoy spinning my own yarns, and dyeing the yarns. I look for the very best spinning fibers I can find from all over the world. I am a artist, spinner, dyer and weaver – starting out at the ground level with sheep first, – next learning to spin, weave, dye and create art – everything fiber.
Stitched by Jessalu
Stitched by JessaLu was founded in 2008 by me, JessaLu, when I was incredibly burned out in my career path at the time and I felt that I needed to have a more creative outlet to make an income. When I was young, my grandmother taught me to sew and gave me the nickname JessaLu – so I decided that I would give a nod to her and the foundation she helped lay which grew into SbJL. I use a bee in my logo, and in each zipper pull, because it is believed by some that bees help pass messages to those who have passed on, and I like to think that every bag that goes on to live at a new home sends a little message to her that I am using the tools she taught me, and that I am grateful to her for them.
The Garden of Yasmin Fibers
The Garden of Yasmin is an indie fiber arts business known for its uniquely elegant, carefully crafted and vibrant artisan yarns and fibers.
