I love the start of June as for me it begins the countdown to one of the biggest craft events in the country and a truly authentic celebration of natural fibres – Woolfest.
The last Friday of this month we will be making the annual pilgrimage to Cockermouth Auction Mart to join people not only from across the country but from all four corners of the world, who come to see everything from the animals which produce the yarns through to avant-guard designs and EVERYTHING in between.
Last year I bought my first sock knitting kit from Sheepfold, which has led to new, handcrafted bedsocks for me, my daughter and one sock so far for Mr C – as a knitting injury has stopped play for the moment.
When I finally got round to opening the kit, the excitement of being able to knit a pair of socks in 7 evenings led me to go for creating socks for all the family – which inturn led to my left-hand thumb joint becoming inflamed, so I’ve been on knitting rest of three weeks now. I can’t wait to pick up the stitches again and finish off that last sock.
It is hard to believe that after 30 years of typing every day I’ve never had RSI or anything like it, but three weeks solid knitting on four needles got me. But that hasn’t dampened my enthusiasm for knitting, crocheting and stitching. I hope to be back knitting before Woolfest where I hope to find new wool based techniques and skills to try out.
Woolfest really is a day trip out, as you can watch the world’s leading artisan makers sharing techniques from hand/arm knitting, spinning to a Rare Breeds Parade each afternoon, demonstrations of hand-clipping shearing and even an auction of sheep-themed crafts in the main ring on the Saturday.
And you don’t have to worry about lunch, as there are several local caterers offering a good range of quality food – and the curry is always my favourite. My mouth is watering now thinking about it.
Every year I go thinking I have seen everything – and every year I discover something new – and it has even shaped my summer holiday activities.
New to Woolfest last year was the Iona Craft Shop – a tiny, independent shop on the small island just off Mull.
When you live in a county as beautiful as Cumbria it is difficult to find a holiday destination which competes with home, and Mull is one of those special places.
It was lovely to have a chat with Michael Gordon who owns the little whitewashed, single store traditional Scottish shop, which is one of the first buildings you see as you leave the ferry.
Michael and his wife Kate had been trying to get a place at Woolfest for a number of years, and 2018 was their lucky year – except one of them had to stay behind to manage the shop.
We chatted about how beautiful Mull and especially Iona is, and I said we had booked our ferry for our holiday later in the year. I could have bought the walking socks for my husband there and then – however, what I did do was promise to take a trip from Tobermory in the north east of Mull and travel the whole way down and across the island to take the ferry to Iona to buy these beautiful item in the place they were created. Let’s call this extreme destination shopping!
The visit to Iona was a highlight of the holiday. We picked a perfect sunny day in the middle of the 2018 heat-wave. Iona is famous for the perfect blue skies and fabulous light which has attracted artists to this remote area of Scotland, in the same way as impressionists when to the south of France.
Meeting Michael and finally, Kate in their natural habitat, finding the perfect walking socks and building our holiday plans around Iona was all thanks to Woolfest – and we had such a great time. And yes I did buy those walking socks, and the t-shirt – so I can honestly say: “Been there, done that and bought the t-shirt.”
So who will I meet this year at Woolfest and what adventures will that lead to?
What are your happy memories of Woolfest? We’d love to hear about them, please share in the comment box below.
Check our other posts about Woolfest 2019:
Woolfest 2019 28-29 June at Cockermouth Auction Mart to book tickets and find out more visit their website https://www.woolfest.co.uk
