Fair Duty Stuff

I'm still alive. No, really!

Fair entries are way down in building 3 for everyone, except Sewing. They have more than normal. Did sewing get popular again? Perhaps it's a regional thing. I'm just glad someone had an increase this year.

I had Wednesday off, but I wasn't home. I was running all over tarnation doing errands like grocery shopping, going to the drug store, etc so there will be supplies during the days I don't have off.

Thursday was judging day. On judging day it is my task to take each entry to the judges, and get them back when they are done. Then I pin any ribbons awarded on the entries and make sure things get recorded into the computer. I don't do any judging myself. In fact, I'm very careful not to say anything about the entries unless asked by the judges, and then it's facts. No opinions from me. I don't want to do anything that might influence them. I really like our judges. They are very good at what they do. They both have taken courses to become fair judges. It was interesting watching them go over every knit item entered, inside and out, inspecting seams, looking for dropped stitches, ends not woven in (more of those than I care to think about) and things that make each entry special. The two top winners surprised me.

One is a vest knit by a woman who split 4ply yarn in half so she'd have 2ply yarn for the project (a fact that totally blew the judges away). The vest is almost knee length. The thought of splitting all that yarn makes my eyes glaze over. She really loved the color and wanted it that bad for her vest. She also did a beautiful job of knitting it.

The other big winner is a charcoal gray shell done in stockinette stitch with fingering weight yarn. The stitches are so perfect the judges were wondering if it was machine knit. It wasn't. I know the girl who made it. She used two sticks.

I really am amazed at what can be done with those sticks and a bit of string. I'll try to get some pictures to post here.

Friday we set everything up for display. It was a somewhat frustrating day for me. As with every other human endeavor, there is politics and personality conflict to deal with which I refuse to partake of, so certain people got a bit upset with me (no, the quilting dept is not the be all and end all of the fair. It's the Needlework building, not the quilting building). And then there's the people who don't have the authority but lord it over everyone and if you don't bow down they get upset. (I'm really good at doing that-getting them upset, that is.) I was constantly being scolded for wanting to use mannequins by people not in the sewing dept. even though I'd already discussed the matter with the head of that department and we both knew what I was doing (I ignored them.). Despite all this, we got the job done early. The quilters weren't done hanging quilts on the wall when I left, but they made it abundantly clear they didn't want my help, so I gladly went home.

Saturday I had to recover from Thurs. and Fri. I was very tired. I didn't do much. Laundry was about it. I slept a lot too.

Sunday my husband left early to go on a day bike trip. He rode 105 miles and was actually still functioning afterwards. Quite different from the 100 mile trip he did last May (where I was wondering if he'd live to tell about it), I am so proud of him. He will definitely be in shape and ready for his big ride in September. He's going on a 5 day 350 mile ride on the Selkirk trail which basically starts in Sandpoint, ID, goes up north into Canada, then west and down into eastern Washington eventually coming east back to Sandpoint. He's wanted to do one of these rides for years.

While hubby was gone I did more laundry (urg) and spent some time out on the deck beading.

That is half a flower which will be a pendant when I'm done with it. I wasn't real confident about my color choices, but seeing it in a photo, I'm quite pleased. That yellow was definitely a good idea.

I have been knitting some. I've been taking a sock with me for those times when I've had to sit and wait while doing fair stuff. I'm creating a new pattern. This one is from the toe up.

You have no idea how many times I frogged before I finally got the stitch pattern to look right. The only way to make it work is from the toe up. This is a mens sock right now, but the pattern will be unisex.

The fair starts Wednesday. I can hardly wait.

Live long and prosper. \\//