Homespun Yarn Party

Spring has finally sprung here in Maryland and it was the PERFECT weekend! Today I went to the Homespun Yarn Party in Savage at historic Savage Mill. Not only did I get to fondle all the beautiful yarn from local vendors but there were also a bunch of unique little shops to check out as well.

Parking was limited so I had to park on the street but I didn’t mind because I got to walk across this neat bridge.

It was so refreshing to see flowers rather than huge, gray piles of snow!

I went straight into the great room where they were hosting the event and visited almost every booth. I found so many gorgeous yarns and walked away with several skeins. My first go round I didn’t even bother taking pictures because I was on a mission. I brought several patterns with me to find yarn for and I now have quite a few projects to tackle in the next few months. After taking a look at all the yarn I needed to step out because it was HOT in that room! So I checked out the stores in the rest of the mall (not a typical mall, but I can’t think of a better word).

I’m not into the whole decorate for every holiday thing but this Easter tree caught my eye. I just like the bright colors.

After my detour I wanted to go back so I could take pictures of all the gorgeous yarn. I was in serious sensory overload. Between the colors and the textures my mind was going a mile a minute trying to come up with a reason to buy everything I touched!

This farm had pictures of the sheep where the yarn came from. Such a cute idea!

I almost bought a skein of that gorgeous teal sock yarn in the upper left hand corner (I think it was called Riptide), but I was strong and put it back.

Besides, I already bought 4 skeins of sock yarn.

I didn’t get anything from this vendor but again, it was hard not to because of all the delicious colors!

There was a lot of roving to choose from but seeing as how I do not know how to spin I didn’t really spend much time looking at it. It was definitely tempting to learn though.

I eyed a few things at this booth but ended up not getting anything. There was an abundance of sock yarn and I’ve never done socks before so I just bought what I needed for the two patterns I picked to start with. Perhaps next year I will indulge in sock yarn a bit more.

This booth was just so colorful. I (again) almost bought a skein of sock yarn that was a yellow/white/gray colorway but I fought the urge and put it back.

If you look in the top left shelf you can see all the yellows. You may be able to see the one I put back. Although I loved the colors in the skein I wasn’t sure it would knit up in a pattern I liked so I put it back.

How can you not want to learn how to spin after seeing this?

After I finished I decided to grab a bite to eat before I headed home. There was a French patisserie that was calling my name so I had to go in.

This is what was calling my name. And when something this delectable, this irresistible calls out to you, you just can’t say no. Oh.my.god it was good. Diet? What diet? Ha!

At least I did a lot of walking around. That counts for something, right?

So after it was all said and done, I came home with the following:

~ This pattern booklet for three different sized carpet bags. I found this adorable little shop that was full of amazing felted purses. I CANNOT wait to make one!

~ This DK weight superwash merino to make a hat with.

~ This superwash merino/cashmere/nylon blend to make a neckwarmer (or several).

~ This was an impulse buy. I don’t have any plans for this yarn yet. But it was so soft and pretty, I just couldn’t leave it there! It is 100% alpaca.

~ This sock yarn which came from a lady whose colorways were all Harry Potter related! I had to buy something from her as I LOVE Harry Potter. Although there were colorways that I liked better than this one, I picked this one because of the name. Sirius Black. I have a thing for Sirius Black.

~ This bulky weight yarn for a cowl. The colors aren’t showing up as I had hoped but they are yummy shades of green and gray. Can’t wait to see how this knits up.

~ And last but definitely not least, this sock yarn for a pair of socks called “My Vampire Boyfriend.” I admit it. I am addicted to Twilight. Shoot me. I didn’t want to be. At all. But I read the books and then I read them again. And again. And maybe one more time. I’ve lost count as to how many times I watched the first movie. And I need to drag my butt into Wal-Mart (I HATE Wal-Mart) to pick up the special copy of New Moon. So when I found this sock pattern I knew it was time to learn how to knit socks. I looked at several sock yarns today that were red but they weren’t the perfect shade of blood-red yarn. Until I found this yarn. One skein was just a little under what the pattern called for so I had to buy two. It was not cheap. But I have a feeling these will become my favorite pair of socks. I also had to stand in line for 15 minutes to pay for these suckers. The color was exactly what I had in mind so it was worth it.

All in all, a perfect day. Now I just need to figure out which bill is not getting paid due to my over indulgence in yarn today….