Australian Sheep and Wool Show

My favourite time of year!  Three days of fibre yumminess, you just can't beat it.  I have the privilege of working at my friends stall.  She's the one from SA that we visited earlier in the year.  I meet many friends at this show.  Some I have only written to, some I have met at previous shows.  SO, I suppose I had better share some photos..

The Stall

And the People...

Jane, me, Jane's girl and my wee spinner/knitter.

I sent the wee one off with my camera and a friend of mine, she took a lot of photos like this.....

And these.....

I did a fair bit of this.....

Oddly enough it's a good sales technique as most people can't resist a spinning wheel.  Men and kids just flock to it and I did the Majacraft name a huge trade.  I know of at least 4 purchases of this wheel at the show, two of which were told to me by the owner of the company who had heard the people saying that they bought the wheel because they saw it me on it working.

Over the 3 days I was spinning up this...

English Leicester from Moseley Park

I finished it yesterday, the blue boucle was done at the show and I had started on the silk binding thread.

It now looks like this..

262g 216 metres

Couldn't quite get it all on one bobbin so I have another mini skein of 59g

I met the lovely Joanne and Otto Strauch from Strauch Fibre Products(sorry, no link as I haven't been able to get it to work at all) at the show too.

They were plugging their carding equipment.  I was very interested in this and Otto put down the challenge of bringing some of my usual fibre along for carding. 

Which I did.

I took some of the English Leicester, pictured above and some EL/Merino cross I had washed.

Here are the outcomes, compared to the same job done on my Ashford carder.

This was done on the medium sized Strauch carder (Otto pulled the batt out into a more of a roving strand), and below is the Ashford equivalent.

The EL/Merino off the Strauch

Joanne demonstrated, diz'ing it off the carder

Here is the Ashford batt.

I kept an open mind when I was comparing the two carders.  If I had of seen a marked difference in the Strauch outcome, I would have bought one.  But there wasn't enough of a difference to consider changing what I have now.  Strauch is a nicely made machine and if I wasn't having to pay import duties it would be on my list.  But, the price is more than other machines so I, like most people, have to take that into account and as I said above, it's not so outstanding as to over-ride budget constraints.

Another very interesting person I met at the show as Nicola Bota from Ashford NZ.

A couple of years ago I suggested to Richard Ashford that he needed to make a new sized standard bobbin as the normal one was losing him sales.

He listened and the result was the new 90cm bobbin that fits his new sliding hook flyer and the new wild flyer for the portable Joy spinning wheel.

It was nice to have my observations listened to and acted upon.

It was a real pleasure meeting Nicola and she goes back to NZ with another problem to fix up that Jenny from Virginia Farms Woolworks, pointed out when I was buying the double heddle kit for my Ashford Knitters Loom.

I did do a bit of shopping at the show, although the only fibre I bought home, I haven't got here or was a gift.

Clothes from Wrapt Ya

I got a new plying bobbin for my Majacraft wheels , a Double Heddle kit for my Ashford Knitters Loom,  Lovely bunny fibre from Ixchel Bunny , a pair of Knit Pick 3.25mm interchangeable needles, oh and I lied, I did get some Corriedale in natural colours from Wirraworra Wool.

And my helping out gifts..some EL fleece and sock yarn.

I had such a great time, I think I should be paying Jane..

Next year I am going to be having a stall with a wood working friend from SA.  It's a double edged sword as I will miss the time spent with Jane but I do think it's about time Woolz'N'yarnZ had it's own stall.