Kentuck Festival 2008

If you live anywhere in or near Tuscaloosa, Alabama and you have any interest what so ever in the arts and the local color...during the third weekend in October you will be at the Kentuck Festival. It has been that way as long as I can possibly remember. And I have been there so many times that I cannot even count them on two hands. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I would be showing and selling my work there this year, after all I just learned how to spin on December 27, 2007. Still, October 18th and 19th, as part of the West Alabama Fiber Guild, WhorlingTides exhibited and sold tons handspun yarns, knitting kits, and drop spindle kits. I made new friends and got some amazing invitations to participate in future events and even join an art gallery.

Carol T, President, West Alabama Fiber Guild

Sister Carol Drum Carding Dog Hair

About exhibiting at Kentuck...One can hope. One can wish. One can imagine. But being there so far surpasses all of those cognitions that instead of rambling the reader into obvlion I borrowed the image that you see to the above right...."Heaven is a Kentuck of a place." Truly, I was in fiber heaven. I took off from work on Friday so that I could help with the setup. Then on Saturday, Carol T., the Guild President showed Deirdre and I how to prep the flax for the linen demonstration. Immediately, however, I became very busy with sales so I had to focus on that. A few other Guild members wandered in during the day as you will see in the pics. Some were knitters, some spinners, one lace maker, and Sister Carol who really is a nun was drum carding her dog hair which Carol T. was spinning into yarn.

Deidre at Her Amazing Weaving Loom

The next three images were taken at my booth. These yarns were all handspun and handdyed by me at WhorlingTides. I sold so many skeins on Saturday that I had to raid my fiber stash just to have enough to set up the display again on Sunday. SAFF was the very next weekend so I had little time between shows to re-stock. I hope not to do two shows so close together again unless I really have substantial prep time.

WhorlingTides' New BFL Monochromes

More of WhorlingTides' Monochromes

A Variety of Handdyed Handspun Yarns

A new handspinner was born at Kentuck. She learned quickly how to use the spindle and is still making yarns according to her mom. I know that it takes a long time to make enough yarn for a project and certainly she is not quite ready just to enjoy spinning for the sake of spinning. In time K. That will come in time.

Another Etsy Fiber Artist. She's from Florida.

This fiber piece is one of many that the above artist displayed at Kentuck. She also has a shop on Etsy, which I will post here as soon as I locate her business card. I love the way she is influenced by the tattoo world. Her work is highly detailed and spider-web-ish. Layers of thread are sewn to more threads until it becomes an image. I would like to watch one being made.

Kentuck Heaven. It was a wonderful event. I hope to be there again next year. It was a great time to get to know other fiber artists, the members of my own guild, and to experience people looking at my fibers. I like to watch their faces and to hear what they have to say when the whisper to their companion "so soft," "oh...look at the color," "I wish I could knit" and so many more. Even if they just smile, I am happy they stopped by to touch WhorlingTides.