Home > Maryland Sheep & Wool

Maryland Sheep & Wool

I look forward to this annual event every spring. We've made it a "family" roadtrip pretty consistently for about 20 years and every year it is, ironically, both reassuringly "the same" and yet always " new & different"!

The "reassuringly the same" things include the energy and enthusiasm of the vendors and attendees who travel from far and wide to this fair each year. The abundance of quality fleeces in the fleece sale (I know its the largest east of the Mississippi and believe it may be in the nation) and breadth of beautiful fibers, the array of colors, and the excitement of new ideas I can count on every year. Every year its fun to watch part of the Sheep to Shawl contest (see photo), tho' we leave too early on Sunday to ever see the winning shawl! Lines are a given...for the ladies room, for Koigu, and for the T-shirt sales. Running into old acquaintences is expected. Giant eclairs, lamb kebobs and freshly squeezed lemonade & greasy fries are always abundant.

Among the "new and different" this year was the mix of fleeces available for sale. In past years, tho' just about all breeds are available, I've always found a preponderance of Border Leceister, Jacob, Romney, & Lincoln to be had. This year, in addition to the Leceisters, Romneys, Lincolns I expect, it seemed to me there were many more Wensleydale, Karakul (see photo) and Rambioullet fleeces available, yet not a single Finn fleece submitted to the show! And the price of wool has certainly gone up! Last year it seemed relatively easy to find nice fleeces in the $6-$8/lb range and exceptional ones around $12/lb. This year, just about every fleece I grabbed on my first run thru was $12 - $15/lb and the exceptional ones $18-$25/lb! I did go back and find some for less, but the shift was quite noticeable. Keep in mind, for those of you who haven't processed a fleece before that this is the grease weight price. So you pay this price per pound, but.then you lose 25-50% of the fleece weight when it is washed and carded. And then you have to take into account the processing fees (or time if you do it yourself) and very high shipping costs (skyrocketing fuel prices don't help) to get your roving or batts back from the mill, etc.

Koigu didn't make it. That was new and different. So the line that usually forms for their yarn instead formed for a new sock yarn (check back in the store in a few weeks as I hope to have it here for you all).

In addition to the Textile Museum's booth (always good for a drool), this year was a new non-profit vendor selling spectacular tapestries from Peru to raise money to keep the craft cooperative in Peru going. The Peruvian weaver manning the booth was a fourth generation weaver who enthusiastically shared with us the symbolism of the images and motifs in many of the tapestries for sale. The pride with which he conveyed the traditions and culture of his hometown was so wonderful, my sister Joany splurged on an absolutely gorgeous work of his. That was definitely new and different since Joany never indulges for herself!

This year I spent quite a bit of time with the sheep themselves! Watching some of the shows and meandering the many barns early in the morning to the sheep before the crowds (40,000 people attend this show) arrived.. I learned quite a bit listening to the judges reviews and drew a greater appreciation for certain breeds that I'd overlooked before. Here are some photos of sheep getting primped for the competitions, walked to the competitions (I'm glad Chloe is more exuberant for her walk than these little lambs were for theirs!), in the competition ring, and relaxing in their stalls after the events!

For a second year in a row, The Vermont Wheels sold out at Maryland Sheep & Wool. Maybe I should start including this in my "reassuringly the same" column! Wheelright Patrick Russo only makes 12 wheels a year. Each wheel is handcrafted and no two are alike. Some are inlay, some carved, some have a brass filigree inset. Oak, cherry, mahogany. All are incredibly well made and spin like good dark chocolate melts in your mouth. I usually have one of them here in the store for sale so if you're in the market you should be sure to check these wheels out!

Letty Klein was there promoting her new book, Shepherd's Rug, and giving demonstrations on this braiding technique. Using roving, rather than recycled wool strips as was the tradition in early America, these rugs are easier on the hands to make. We'll be offering a class on this technique this winter, so start plannning now where you want your rug to go!

I learned a new way to make a felted flower from the young lady who for 10 out of the 13 years she competed in the Show's "Make It With Wool" competition, won and went on to the national competition. This method is much less time consuming than knitting all the individual petals and is a great way to embellish a hat, felted bag, or to use as a pin. We'll have a free instructional on this method coming up in May, so keep checking the "Events" page for details.

Finally, I touched base with Carol Cypher (author of Felted Flowers and two new books on beading and on felting expected out this summer) about her class here this September. It is not to be missed! She is fun, creative and has lots of great ideas about felting jewelry and beading. I have the 3 classes listed on line and may be adding a Friday night Trunk Show, so be sure to keep checking the Class page for details about the Friday night event. In the meantime, sign up for her classes so you don't miss out!