Yarn, Beer, Maple Cotton Candy & Cheese Fest 2010

AKA Rhinebeck Weekend was amazing, a perfect couple of days away!

There was beer,

Sheep,

Cashmere,

Sweater Weather

Guess where I’ll be in just three short days?

The most wonderful place in the world! Yup, it’s that time of the year again: NY Sheep & Wool Festival aka Rhinebeck Weekend!

I am looking forward to so many things: spending time with some of my favorite people, maple cotton candy, the lovely yarn, the Ravelry party, the many, many opportunities to drink local beer, the sheepdog agility displays, the Taconic State Parkway, being surrounded by so many fiber folks *sigh*

I can’t believe that last week at this time…

…I was getting ready to go to the first day of RHINEBECK!  This week, though short, has been awfully long.

My motto this year – go big or go home.  See, I went to Rhinebeck after having been on a yarn diet since SPA in February.  I have a big stash and I’m a slow knitter so I need to knit before I buy.  I know that yarn diets are supposed to be these terrible things, but mine wasn’t too bad – I honestly wasn’t tempted much during the last eight months and only broke the diet twice – once to buy some alpaca in March and once, just a few weeks ago, to buy some Malabrigo lace.  I didn’t feel “bad” about either of these purchases or about breaking my diet – I am not the type of person who places value judgements on things like shopping – I pay my bills, I save, I’m not particularly spendthrift so if I have the money and I want something, well, I buy it.

That was where I was at when I headed out to NY for the weekend – I had a nice amount of money to spend (my savings at work!) but nothing I really needed to buy.  So I decided that I was just going to buy something really fancy – something I probably wouldn’t buy on a regular trip to my LYS.  Maybe some cashmere, maybe some silk, maybe some qiviuk…  Guess what won?

Yes, the qiviuk!  I love it and can’t wait to start knitting with it!  I’ve been knitting like a fiend on my current WIP because I want to finish. it. up. and move on to the fancy.  I have 654 yards and I think it’ll become a longer Alhambra.

The festival was, as always, a lovely time filled with good friends, gorgeous yarn,

cute animals,

lots of good food and beer – but, alas, I did not get a picture of the best food of all – maple cotton candy,

Our outrageous breakfast at the Eveready Diner.

Beer + Baby Knits = How we roll.

a fun Ravelry party (with even more beer!),

We have a winner!

and that blissed out feeling that only a good sheep and wool festival can provide.

The only dark spot on the entire weekend – no fried pickles or fried garlic.  Oh, well there’s always next year – plans are already in the works – yipiee!

Squee!

I’m so excited!  Why?  Because tomorrow at this time I’ll be in the gorgeous Hudson River Valley for RHINEBECK!

It was so much fun last year!  Katy, Yovani and I are heading out tomorrow at 3ish for a fun-filled weekend full of yarn, animals, fried pickles, Ravelry parties, maple! cotton! candy!, fleece, more yarn…  I can’t wait!

You’re here for the sheep* – Part II

Rhinebeck was AMAZING! I know I keep saying that but it really was. I wasn’t really sure of what to expect and, to be honest, I was worried that this whole Rhinebeck adventure might be a little too crowded and overwhelming for me to handle. That was not the case at all – it was great fun!

Leading up to the weekend I had been religiously reading the Ravely forums to prepare myself. I knew I wanted to get some maple sugar cotton candy, that there would be lots and lots of fiber-y goodness and that (some) people dropped lots of dollars over the weekend!

Warning, picture heavy post ahead…

You’re here for the sheep – Part I

Rhinebeck was absolutely freaking amazing but I am exhausted. The whole scoop will follow once I’ve had some sleep : )

In the meantime I have posted a ton of pictures on Flickr.

RHINEBECK!!!!!!!!!!

In just ten and a half short hours I’ll be on my way! I can’t wait – wheeeeeeeeeeee!

I have my dollars, my Knitter’s Handy Guide to Yarn Requirements, trail mix, my camera battery is charging – I just hope I can sleep tonight!

Rhinebeck dilemma!

First – Rhinebeck – YAY! I am soooooooo excited!

But! I can’t decide what to do about my yarn budget – I have many, many projects in the queue and the yarn to knit all of them (and then some) in my stash. I also know that I am going to want to buy yarn while I am there. I don’t want to buy random yarn without a project in mind but I just can’t think of any projects that are lacking yarn – what should I do?