Edinburgh Yarn Fest Goodies. . .

I suppose the first thing to admit is that I totally blew my yarn budget.  But then you couldn't go all the way to Scotland and attend a really cool yarn festival and not buy wool ?  I had resolved not to buy any yarn this year over my yarn budget (determined by putting every £2 coin I get in my change into a sheepybank and emptying it out the night before a wool show - you'd be surprised how fast this builds up) and for most of the show I stuck to my coinage.  And if I'd only gone to the show, I'd probably have been fine.

But. . . .

Just around the corner from our hotel was a lovely yarn shop called Kathy's Knits.  I highly recommend it if you are visiting Edinburgh. Kathy is just wonderful - very knowledgeable with a great sense of humour and she stocks lots of lovely British and especially Scottish yarns. We went twice; first on Friday night for the book launch of Lucy Hague's Celtic Cable Shawls (we all cast on for one while in Scotland, with Scottish yarn), and then again on Sunday morning as she opened up especially for this weekend. And even though I really didn't need any more wool, how could I resist these heathery colours?  The skein on the left is New Lanark DK in a really deep rusty hue called Autumn.  I bought a sweater's worth; I think I may have found the perfect UK workhorse yarn to replace North America's Cascade 220.   The skein on the right is a saturated purply-red 2ply from Jamieson & Smith just perfect for colourwork.  Kathy's also sells adorable stitch markers recycled from old wellies - I got some bright yellow and orange ones. 

Then it was off to the yarn festival itself.  It was such a wonderful group of vendors; many of whom I had never seen at any other yarn show.  I could have gone really crazy, but limited myself to really unique skeins.  Take a look at these lovelies:

The gold and silver are 50-50 merino/silk from Old Maiden Aunt which was probably the most popular booth at the festival.  I'd been reading about her yarns for some time but the colours really need to be seen in person - just stunning.   The skein on the right is Riverside Studio 4ply and actually hails from Wakefield, Quebec. I bought it at La Maison Tricotee's booth and just love the colourway - Moroccan Spice.

Then there was The Border Tart.  She specializes in hand-dyeing with indigos.  I've not seen yarn like Blue Moon before - deep, deep blue with just a hint of white, similar to Japanese shibori fabrics. I had to buy two skeins of DK and am quite excited to find the perfect project for this.

And speaking of colourwork, how perfect are these J.C. Rennie 10g mini-balls, bought at Wee County Yarns?

Ooooh, and what's in that tote bag??

Yes, I succumbed and bought a foldable loom from Once a Sheep. I couldn't believe how light it was, and I can't wait to set it up and start weaving.  I'm hoping it will be a great stash-buster.

All very special purchases and they will all remind of the fabulous weekend spent in Edinburgh.  Can't wait for next year!