Neepawa fibre festival

Last fall, I gave a talk based on my book Fiber Gathering about fiber festivals in the United States to a group of Manitoba knitters. They said, "What's the closest festival in Canada for us?!" I just didn't really know...I'd only been living in Manitoba for a couple of months...

Now I know. The first annual fibre festival (Canadians spell this "fibre") in Neepawa is about 2.5 hours away from Winnipeg. It's being sponsored by the 4H Club and the Manitoba Sheep Association. There will be sheep dog trials, classes, and sheep competitions. There's a wool judging on Saturday and a fleece auction on Sunday. This will be the place to get Manitoba raw wool for spinning and felting, direct from the producers! Plus, it raises money for 4H, which is a great program in both the U.S. and Canada.

Here's the information below--I'm teaching a class for shepherds on how to market their wool and I'll be at the spinning circle. There will also be a felting class, too. If you're free August 13-15, I'm sure there will be a whole lot of sheep and sheep producers looking forward to meeting you in Neepawa!

If you'll miss the festival, but you're interested in spinning wool that comes from Manitoba, consider checking out this list of Manitoba sheep breeders. If you see a kind of wool breed that appeals to you, call that person up or drop them an email. I'm sure that if the farmer has any fleeces on hand, he or she would welcome your call. If the farmer doesn't have any fleeces left from this year, ask to be put on the list for next year's shearing. You just may fall in love with wool from Manitoba...

Please click on the below images and the information will be easier to read. I hope to see you at the festival! (It will be small this year, but if we support it, it will grow!)