SoCal Handweavers Guild Weaving and Fiber Festival

My friend, Emily, and I ventured to Torrance on Sunday for the annual Southern California Handweavers' Guild Weaving and Fiber Festival (WeFF). We arrived a bit early and were the second and third people in line when the show opened at 10:00! We really enjoyed looking around at all of the yummy yarns, spinning fibers, drop spindles, books, etc. One of my favorite exhibits featured the art of Vincent Van Gogh translated into spinning, knitting, and weaving. A woven wrap inspired by Van Gogh's "haystacks" was just lovely. Notice how the proportions of color match those in the painting. (Note: I apologize for the poor quality of these photos - I didn't bring my "real" camera, and so had to use my camera phone.)



Another of my favorites was a woven pillow inspired by Van Gogh's "irises". Just wonderful!



Emily and I exercised astronomical levels of self-restraint and managed to stay at the show for four hours and only purchase one item (A book: "Dyeing Wool and Other Protein Fibers: An Introduction to Acid Dyes" by Susan Rex). I am certain that I heard the yarns in my stash let out a collective sigh of relief when I arrived home with no new neighbors for them. You see, they are already experiencing some of the negative effects of crowding, and do not appreciate the lack of breathing room!

This fiber festival also marked the debut of Blarney Yarn niddy noddies. A friend of ours, Lori Lawson of Capistrano Fiber Arts Studio, featured our niddy noddies in her booth at the show. Our niddy noddies are handturned from hardwoods, including walnut, oak, maple, cherry and mahogany, without using automated means of reproduction. The arms are made out of maple. Each one is unique. We are really excited about the reception that they received!