Greetings from Perth, Scotland, Home of the Scottish Wool Producers Showcase! As you can see, it was all about the wonderful sheep here, many of them scarcely known to knitters outside the UK. The issues here are pretty much the same as those I found in Sweden — keeping sheep is expensive and hard work, and the “rewards” from selling fleece often don’t cover the costs of raising them. Still, and to a person, I heard the crofters and yarn sellers say they would continue to try and make it work. It really matters to them, and I’m very happy to be a cheerleader for these magnificent and interesting animals.
Many of you are probably familiar with the September Perth Yarn Festival. It’s a huge event and well-attended prior to Covid. Everyone is looking forward to that event, but meanwhile, this smaller event, the Showcase, was a bit like a trial run to see how visitors would negotiate the remaining mask mandates. Well, the minute the doors opened it was packed. It thinned out now and again, but most of the time the room was pretty full. Based on the number of bags departing the venue, I’m hoping that all of the vendors had a good day. You couldn’t have met a more fun and enthusiastic crowd.
The first lecture of the day was given by Suzi Vestri of Lammermuir Wool, who with her partner, keeps a registered flock of Shetland Sheep. They made a conscious decision to raise sheep, and spent a lot of time deciding just what kind of sheep they would acquire. You could tell from her photos that these are very happy and healthy sheep, and the wool they produce is truly excellent and really soft.
Do visit the website (and order yarn). Some of what Suzi talked about can be found in her discussion “The Shepherd’s Year” which is full of fascinating information. She is a great story-teller.
One thing she talked about was how to tell a good Shetland from their bright and attentive eyes. There always are a couple of sheep who act a little like guard dogs — are watchful for animals of prey, and probably are pretty suspicious of strangers. While the other sheep might be quite friendly, the “guard sheep” are fairly stand-offish. Since the guards are always present in the flock, a friendly sheep may eventually become a guard if one is needed. A very interesting change of temperament that helps keep the flock safe.
A unique yarn from The Border Mill is Rose Alpaca. Made from rose fiber (truly!) blended with alpaca, the ultra soft and shiny fiber might literally make you drool. It comes in a truly wide range of colors that I had a hard time deciding upon. I think this group pictured here is destined to be something worn around my neck. Unfortunately, this photo doesn’t do it justice. When I start knitting with it I’ll post again.
The mill representatives at the Showcase were enthusiastic in inviting visitors to the spinning mill. They are located in Duns, southeast of Edinburgh, and I hope to make it there on a future trip to see more of the range of fibers they produce.
There are many more vendors to talk about and more wool to review in upcoming posts, but I shouldn’t go without saying a few things about my trip to Edinburgh yesterday to visit a few of the places I missed the last time.
The train trip between Perth and Edinburgh was quiet and reasonably slow with multiple stops, getting ever more full as we worked our way south. The fields are just beginning to green, and the buds are opening on a few of the trees. Crocus season is passed, and daffodils are everywhere. I saw many fields with grazing horses, and others with sheep and a few lambs. It’s still a bit early in the lambing department, but there should be more daily and into May. I’ve been warned that a number of crofts I plan to visit next month are apt to be really busy, but I’ve been welcomed anyway.
I was surprised at how cold it was — the damp kind that seeps through your skin and into your bones. Flying in on Friday there was still snow on hills in the Highlands.
I had forgotten that everything in Edinburgh is uphill. I did eventually get to walk in the other direction, but by then my shins were screaming. A fun stop for lunch was at Deacon Brodie‘s Tavern where I had a lovely lentil and sweet potato pie (vegetarian food is very easy to find). Deacon Brodie was the inspiration for Robert Lewis Stevenson’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. A pious and kind man during the day, and a gambler and thief by night.
So until the next post, knit and spin, and dream about sheep.