So, my friend Kami Noyes of Ranching Tradition Fiber, and I, drank the cool-aide. For all the stress and sweat of hosting our first fiber festival, we decided to do it again. Now, most fiber festivals have committees of multiple people and we can discuss the pros and cons of that, but for Kami and I, it is just us two. Kami's sister who is the owner of the family lambing barn, now made over into an event venue, is making us look good! The barn's yard is so lush and green, I walk around all weekend in my bare feet. Don't judge...you would too! Plus, this was the year that the barn put in two private, outdoor showers for the growing number of campers and tenters that we have attracted to th

So this is when it all began. The year that my friend Kami Noyes of Ranching Tradition Fiber and I rode the crazy train down the tracks to our first fiber festival in Whitehall Montana. From my seat tonight, reflecting back four years ago, I remember it was a hot weekend and it was a horrible fire season summer. I felt so awed by not only all the Montana based fiber artists that signed up to be vendors, teachers and students but the number of out of state vendors and students too. I had just started to venture out of state for shows myself and knew the cost and challenge of traveling, reservations, taking time off work, etc. But we had people from Minnesota and Iowa coming, plus Canada.

That is the question everyone should be asking, especially if selling or buying a full fleece on the internet or when not able to touch the full fleece in person. Let me explain.... "Skirting" is the action of dividing up or separating the bad stuff from the good stuff of the fleece. In alpacas, the "bad" stuff is usually around the edges of the blanket and will be courser, shorter and probably more hairy. This will degrade the "good" stuff that took a whole year to grow. And for many of us alpaca owners, this is our cash crop, the fiber art stash that will help support the animals with their yearly cost. Now, the "bad" stuff can also be pine cones, branches, twigs, shafts of hay/straw,

So, 2020 has been a little odd so far, huh?! Working in Healthcare, everyday I go to work wondering "what new process do we follow today?" Yesterday's rules don't apply today, and today's rules won't apply tomorrow. I know the rest of the country/world is doing the same within their own aspects of daily life. When my friend and fiber festival co-organizer, Kami Noyes of Ranching Tradition Fiber, set a deadline for either cancelling or moving forward with our 2020 Copper K Fiber Fest, I kept positive, but also held my breath. You see, I had the one side of me that had to listen to the information that was presented everyday at the hospital. I saw how the numbers were starting to increase