After a grand Woolfest 2014, meeting lots of people and having a great time seeing all the wonderfully inspirational woolly exhibitions and stands, it's time to look forward to July and where I'm going to be this month.  Now this year I didn't get a chance to take any photos of my stall, so if anyone did and would like to send me one, then I'll post it up here....thankyou!

July is a very busy month for us, with lots of markets and summer shows, so here goes:
(As usual, click on the coloured text for links to websites...)

Tuesday 1st July - a new venue for the ST Abbs Market traders is the Glendale Hall in Wooler, there will be 10 of the regular traders coming along between 10am and 4pm to see what we have on offer. I have been replenishing my empty boxes of buttons, beads, wool and patterns so my stall will once again be stacked full of woolly loveliness to squish, squash and take home!

Friday 4th July between 10am and 4pm is the usual St Abbs Market at the Ebba Centre in St Abbs village.

Saturday 5th July between 9am and 4pm I'll be at the Buttermarket in Berwick upon Tweed - I've got a wonderful new line in spinning and felting fibres (see previous post for photos), so if that's what you after, come along and see me.

Wednesday 9th July between 9am and 4pm at the Buttermarket in Berwick upon Tweed - we have decided to come out to play during the week for the whole of July and August as we know there will be lots of tourists and holiday makers around, so we want to show that Berwick is a great place to be with lots to see and do.


Friday 11th July again at St Abbs between 10am and 4pm


Sunday 13th July sees us at a new event in Greenhead - the monthly Hadrian's Wall farmers market (with tasty local produce....) joins forces with the Penine Wool Group to host "Wool on the Wall" - celebrating British woolcraft and produce.  The event takes place between 10am and 4pm at the Greenhead Hotel.


Wednesday 16th July - Berwick upon Tweed Buttermarket between 9am and 4pm


Friday 18th July - St Abbs market in St Abbs Village between 10am and 4pm


Saturday 19th July - Berwick upon Tweed Buttermarket  between 9am and 4pm


Sunday 20th July - another new venue for Skybluepink-designs is the Glendale Festival in Wooler, Northumberland - betweeen 10am and 4pm in the Glendale Hall.  Lots of fibre artists and local producer/makers showing their craftsmanship with sales and demonstrations.  There is also lots of other stuff going on around Wooler, so it makes for a great day out in the beautiful Cheviot Hills.

Wednesday 23rd July - at Berwick upon Tweed Buttermarket between 9am and 4pm


Friday and Saturday, 25th & 26th July - we are back at the Border Union Agricultural Show in Kelso.  Following the success of the Wool Marquee at last year's show, we have been invited back to showcase the many and varied fabulous things that you can do with wool.  There will be sales,  demonstrations and exhibitions of all things woolly, so do come along and join what is one of the biggest agricultural shows in the country.


Final date for July is Wednesday 30th at Berwick upon Tweed Buttermarket between 9am and 4pm, then I'll put my feet up for a day or so before August starts!

Well, I've been busy getting everything ready (like that ever happens) for Woolfest so here's a list of what I'll have available on my stand this coming weekend:
I have been spinning like a mad thing and have plenty different breeds of sheeps wool ready to make that special something, starting from £5 a 25g hank of something nice, all the way to luxury cashmere and silk blends.... just for starters - Shetland, Gotland, Merino, Norwegian, Finnish, Jacob, Masham, Cheviot the list goes on!
There are lots of lovely new buttons either presented on cards - easy to grab from a busy stand - or buy individually from the huge selection on the table.  Ranging from 5p to £1 per button, there is surely a button for every project!  
If you are looking for something ready made, then look no further, I have lots of hats, scarves, shawls, crocheted bowls, knitted teddies, some items made from my own hand spun yarns, others from good quality commercial yarns.
I've got patterns for all my designs too - either paper copies or downloadable pdf versions.
If you want a kit putting together for a gift, then we can combine yarn, pattern and needles or hooks and of course any buttons you might need to embellish!
You will find bamboo knitting needles - both straight and circular in all kinds of sizes and lengths of cables from £2 up to £3.50 for really chunky ones.
Also available, colourful aluminium crochet hooks in sizes from 2mm to 10mm, from £1 each or a full set of 12 for just £9, you can have a hook for every occasion.
New on my stand this year will be beautiful coloured glass beads for knitting or crocheting with - all size 6 (4mm) and costing £4 for 50grams.
Also new on my stand are the following spinning and felting fibres, all blended together ready to roll onto your bobbins and spindles - or indeed felting mats!  Created from a range of fibres including Shetland, Bluefaced Leicester, Merino, Polwarth, Silk and Bamboo.  Priced at £6 per 100g, I think they might go quickly, so if you want to pre-order any, then please use the contact form here to let me know what you want and I'll have it ready for you to collect at Woolfest!  I will also have some other fibres of more unusual sheep breeds, so do drop by to have a look-see..

After a great time in the Highlands at the Highland Wool Festival last weekend, it's time to start thinking about next month and where we are going.  The main event for all woolly folk I'm sure you will agree is Woolfest at Cockermouth on the 27th & 28th June, we are going to be there, camping I'm sure (!) - let's hope we get good weather....

It's the 10th anniversary of the event and one focus of the event is the great Herdwick sheep - brought to the Lake District by the Vikings themselves such a long time ago, but still grazing the fells and looking all picaresque!  I've been designing a few things in Herdwick wool, so check out my pattern page and see if you can be tempted to knit or crochet something up in this sturdy yarn.  I will have a supply of hand spun and hand dyed Herdwick yarns on my stand, but you'll have to be quick to catch it!

But before that on the calendar are some other dates to fulfill, thankfully not so many this month as Woolfest will hopefully be as busy as last year.  

Wednesday 4th June - a bit unusual I know but there is this event - the NSA Scotsheep 2014 - that's being held just up the road from us near Grantshouse in the Scottish Borders - and a few of us are getting together to do some demonstration spinning, weaving, wool prep and sales of hand spun yarns.  There will be other crafting demonstrations, lots of sheep to see, a farmers' market and loads of other stands, including talks by the Wool Marketing Board.  So if you are in the area and fancy a day out on a farm do come along and say hello.  There are maps and more details on the link above.

Friday 13th June, between 10am and 4pm at the Ebba Centre in St Abbs for the regular Friday market, lots of lovely local produce and crafts on sale and a link here to the market page where you can find out who's selling what.  

Saturday 14th June between 9am and 4pm at the Buttermarket in Berwick upon Tweed, other 
stallholders include Slightly Foxed second hand books, Lowrie prints - yes he painted Berwick -  and original movie poster store, Mike and Melissa selling their views of Berwick upon Tweed - as you've probably not seen it before, available as cards, framed prints and fabulous canvas banners, Masarnen selling her wonderful handmade lotions, potions, ointments, tinctures, perfumes, teas and herb blends and not forgetting Robert and his ever so cakey cakes.  Here's a little link to the Visit Berwick facebook page so that you can see what else is happening in this oft forgot but busy northern town.

Friday 27th June (10am to 6pm) and Saturday 28th June (10am to 5pm) it's Woolfest time, at the Auction mart in Cockermouth, where you will be amazed and amused at all the woolly things on display there.  It's always busy - if you are short on time then check out the listings of who's coming on the Woolfest website, then visit their websites and make a note of what you'd like to squish, squash and take home with you - it's worth a visit towards the end of either day, things generally calm down and you can get to see everything more easily than at opening time when it's a bit of a bun fight!