Monday 11 April 2011

Journey into the unknown...

ooo the suspense... what goodies are in there?
Saturday night I must of woken up 5 times, I was so excited to be visiting Wonderwool Wales the next day.  For anyone who doesnt know, Wonderwool is a HUGE 2 day event featuring all things WOOLY.  After 3 years of not going for one reason or another I was looking forward to it.  Didnt really know what to expect; would it be horrendously crowded?  I dont like crowds at all... but the lure of all the wooly goodness drew me on anyway.  Would Gary and the kids find it interesting.. or be bored stiff?  My lovely hubby suggested we all go as a family daytrip.. I did worry a little that they may regret that.

Well we set out bright and early with a nice picnic lunch packed in the boot.  The weather was amazing and driving through the beautiful countryside (often with fields of sheep and tiny lambs) was extremely pleasant.  Took a couple of hours... but it was such a nice drive it passed quickly.

I was very pleasantly suprised when we got there.  The halls were so spacious that it didnt feel crowded - there was plenty of room to walk around and breathe!  And there was so much to see!  I wanted to look around first THEN go round and buy what I wanted (incase I spent all my pocket money only to find something I wanted even more :)   It took me 4 hours just to get round everything and then I was running round like a mad woman trying to remember where all the stalls were that I wanted to go back to.  

Rachael enjoyed nosing around all of the pretty things.. she inevitably wanted something off each one - got fed up of saying "no". 
 
She even made a friend :)
Gary & Matthew even found a few 'blokes' to talk to about man-ish things.  We had a really nice day (well mine was GREAT, theirs was good :)  I got to meet & chat with lots of lovely people; some that I only know online, others that I dont see very often, and I bumped into Sue (a fellow Woolgatherer) and her parents. 

The journey home was unfortunately very fraught.  First we ended up stuck behind a circus on the move - traveling at half the speed limit for the road, which was mostly single lane & unsuitable for overtaking.  We were behind them for about 20 miles which added a good hour to the journey.  Couple of miles after finally passing the circus the car directly in front of us hit a motorcyclist - absolutely terrifying!  Thank God he seemed to not be badly injured - banged & bruised and a broken wrist.  It was one of those awful slow motion moments when you know what is about to happen - you can see it coming - but cant stop it..  

So yeah that shook us up a bit..  

Anyway, back to something pleasant, my wooly hawl :)

All tipped out
Lots of naturally dyed skeins of BlueFaced Leicester yarn from Alison at Pure Tinctoria
Pretty pencil rovings
Wooden and shell buttons
TOPS: Mauve Falkland wool & black alpaca
I have come back feeling all fired up and inspired.. As the children are home for their Easter hols I may get some spinning and crochet done (once I have sewn and finished off my rabbit & bag!) over the next couple of weeks.  Might indulge in some child labour and get the kids carding batts for me lol. 

We are hoping to get some visiting and days trips in too - although Rachael has come down with tonsilitis and a cold this morning so I think we shall have to take it easy for a few days first.

4 comments:

Heather Woollove said...

What a great haul, Deborah...and how wonderful that it wasn't crowded. Last year at the Maryland S&W festival, it was so HOT and humid and crowded, I could only manage an hour (after driving two to get there!!) Sighhhh.
Looking forward to seeing what you make out of all of your treasures! XXO-

krex said...

Sounds like an interesting day...both good and bad . Isn't it a shame that we have to worry that we are boring our loved ones with our wool obsessions ?

Your "haul" looks lovely , the yarn almost makes me wish I knew how to knit .

Kelly said...

I love all of your goodies! The wooden buttons are wonderful!!!! I think child labor sounds like a fine plan....I might have to try that out too. I cannot wait to see what you spin up!

Tracy Markey said...

ooh, lovely, lovely, lovely! although, sounds like a bit of a fraught journey home. hope the littlies are on the mend soon :)