Post-mortem: Manitoba Fibre Festival 2018!

So it's been a week and I've finally managed to snag some chill time, which means I now get to share about how MB Fibre Fest went! Buckle up.

For those of you who don't know, I started There and Back Yarn in November 2017. I have always been a creative person, and I learned how to crochet when I was young, but in the UK I really came into my skills as a knitter, and wanted to do more: pattern design and yarn dyeing, specifically. Once I knew we were moving back to Manitoba, my main business goal was to get into Manitoba Fibre Festival, an event I loved before we moved, and knew had absolutely exploded; so much so, that they moved too, from St. Norbert (a lovely but small venue) to the Red River Exhibition grounds, and their fair hall there. So that was my Big Thing. When they accepted me as a vendor I was so stoked, but also so nervous. The fibrecraft community in Manitoba (and surrounding provinces) has become more and more visible, and likely grown a great deal in the recent past as people get more excited about all the beautiful local goodies, and the amazing yarns and fibres you can get your hands on at Fibre Fest and other festivals and shops. I finished dyeing my last skeins a month before Fibre Fest and then tried to turn my focus to the wood working aspect - I sell a few handmade wooden sundries like nostepinnes and crochet hooks - but I am definitely a novice wood-turner so having my father in-law (who's an award-winning wood carver and MAD skilled) handy to step in when I need help was key for me. Buuuuut he is also a farmer so as most of you know, that means a bonkers schedule in the fall, and though we did manage to find some time, I didn't get to do quite as much wood work as I wanted. No big though, because what we put together is so beautiful and I'm starting to get a much better feel for it on my own!

Enough with the lead-up! How did it go?

I was so pleased with my booth display overall - my parents in-law randomly had a pegboard that was perfect! - and I am so thankful to my volunteer help: my mom, my husband, and of course, Bernice! Having the Metalstitch duo to rock a festival is pretty much the best. I couldn't have done it without my volunteers, and certainly I couldn't carry all that stuff myself :P The Festival itself was mostly well-organised, I felt: I was disappointed our booth was in a corner that got little traffic compared to some of the other areas (I know my neighbours felt the same), but we did get folks down to squish and admire - and buy! - the yarns so we weren't too hidden. The Festival volunteers were super helpful too, and even jumped the queue to bring us lunch on Saturday :D

I loved the energy and the excitement of the shoppers; everyone was so happy to be in amongst all the beautiful things, and I had a lot of good chats with people who stopped by. I was so thankful to be included in the Festival and I hope I get to come back next year!

Now that I've got my first taste of festival, I'm hoping to do more - I'd love to do another one before Christmas so stay tuned :) Once the yardwork winds down, I'll be able to finally turn back to some more pattern design; I've had LOTS of ideas and no time to put them down so I can't wait to start writing up some of the things in my head, especially the design for the sweater I was wearing Friday of Fibre Fest: honeycomb cables and long cuffs, hooray!

School's In: Metalstitch's guide to next level crochet

I hope you all had a great summer! I got to cap mine off with a week of holidays and hitting up an Alice Cooper show with friends - including my Metalstitch partner!

What a great way to say farewell to the summer. Now: time for fall mode, which means tons and tons of indoorsy stuff and yarn craft!

So if you're finding a little more time for your crochet these days, I wanted to pass on some handy tips I've picked up on the internet over the years that have really helped me improve my craft!

1. Chainless foundation stitches. Learning these stitches is handy for a few reasons. First, you no longer have to make long chains that you then need to be careful not to twist. Second, it has a more attractive look than crocheting into the chains. And third, when you work into a chain, that first row won't have the same elasticity as the rest of your work. The chain is just maxed out! Chainless foundation stitches are nice and stretchy, making them a great choice for all types of garment work. 

2. Chainless Starting Double Crochet. If you've ever been unhappy with the way chaining three at the start a row of double crochet causes a gappy look at the beginning of your row, this little trick will really help you out. I use this method exclusively to start my double crochet rows - you can't beat the nice clean look of it!

3. The Invisible Fasten Off. This simple trick allows you to fasten off your work without any unsightly bumps or knots. It makes your final row to look perfect and seamless - a definite benefit for a more professional looking finished product!

BONUS TIP: Double crocheting two rows at a time?!?! Full disclosure: I came across this recently and haven't tried it yet. But the idea of cranking out two rows at a time is super intriguing to me! If you figure it out and give it a try, I'd love to hear about it! It's too cool, I had to share it even though I can't testify personally to it's excellence. 

Alright! Next weekend is the weekend all Manitoba yarnies look forward to all year: Fiber Fest on Friday AND Saturday! I'll be shopping up a storm and helping out Kaeleigh at her There and Back Yarn booth as well. Can't wait!

The most wonderful time of the year!

Happy Friday all! Out here it's grey-blue and gloomy and I love it so hard. Autumn is when I really feel in tune with the weather - I love summer, don't get me wrong, but if my soul has a season, it's autumn. The smell of decaying leaves, the colours all shifting, the beautiful cloudplay, the possibility of being outside all day and not coming in with second-degree sunburns...I'm here for ALL OF IT.
You don't need me to ramble on about how busy summer has been, because obviously we've done that all before, so consider it said. Now that we're into harvest (and believe you me, my canner has been getting SUCH a workout), things are starting to wind down around the yard, but they've never been at a higher pitch for MARKET PREP! Manitoba Fibre Festival 2018 is already NEXT WEEKEND and holy moly I am pumped up! I'm excited for a few reasons actually:

1. It's my first market, duh. That's a pretty big deal for me. This was a major business goal for me and I'm nervous and excited to see how things go.
2. I haven't been to MBFF in four years - since before we moved to England - and I've never seen it in its new glorious venue, so I can't wait to see how things have changed!
3. Vendors, vendors, vendors! There are going to be so many gorgeous things to look at...and maybe buy ;) Buttons, bags, shawl pins, YARN....ah. I love it.

As you might recall, I threw my (metaphorical) hat in the ring for a Make-Along for the Festival this year: my Snowy Path cowl was one of the eligible designs. Well what fun is a MAL if you just do your own design? My husband saw the Wheat City toque (that's a hat for you non-Canadians) and needed to have one, so off I went! We got great mileage out of our Devil's Punch Bowl toques from last year's pattern collection and you can never have too many toques. 

It might be a touch too warm for it now, but you better believe I still found a reason to wear my FO :D

I'm scrambling like a madwoman for the next week (and this week was already bonkers - have I mentioned I hate printers AND desktop computers lately?!) but come MBFF, you can find me cool, calm, and collected at my booth - with yarn, patterns (in a fancy new format!), project bags, and a few handmade wooden goodies. And afterwards we'll have a big ol' gush post about how everything went and all the things we loved, and Bernice and I will share our loot too!