Well…I made to the Sock Summit in Portland, OR on Saturday. 🙂 I happily recruited 2 of my local loomy buds to travel with me on the 2 hr drive there and to experience something quite amazing first hand. We don’t really get to go to these big fibery events, as most of them are held many states away, so this was an excellent opportunity to check things out. It was BIG! Yarn was everywhere…people (us included) were so excited to be able to fondle all these glorious yarns in person. It was marvelous! Here were a few of the highlights of the day:
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- Spud & Chloe yarns and goodies in person~
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- Very Innovative Socks!
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- Lots of fibery goodness!
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- You’ve heard of shoe trees-how about a Sock Tree??
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- The Knitmore Girls in person!
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- This has to be the cutest knit bunny ever!
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- …at the Sock Museum
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- Baby Booties from before 1900’s
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- Look at that itsy bitsy detail!
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- Baby Booties of 1916
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- Someday I’m going to DO this~
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- Socks knit and donated by Barbara Walker herself!
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- Where else can you catch visions of so many knitters at once??
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- …this says it all, lol!
It was really very fun to be immersed in such a filled to the brim with knitter enthusiasts place for the day…although it was quite exhausting, lol! The only thing was that after the fact, I felt a little down. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it…I mean why could I possibly be disappointed?? I had spent the day in fiber heaven and found my own yarn goodies at great prices…what else could I need or want??
Then I realized it. Yes, I had spent the day with yarn lovers galore, but they were all needle knitters, a craft of which I have learned tons about, but a needle knitter I am not. The few times that I mentioned that I was a loom knitter, I got blank stares and “oooohhhhhhh’s”, but I knew that they really didn’t understand what I was talking about, or care to concede that it is every bit as valuable and innovative as needle knitting…that it even IS knitting! 😛 There are still so many out there that sadly don’t understand this.
So this was my feeling of deflation…there was no place where I, as a loom knitter, could feel truly at home and accepted. I think that in the future, we should try and open the door for there to be classes from this corner of the knitting world included in these large events. Loom vendors could be participants in the market place as well. I know that Isela has been a part of the “Knit Out” before, and this is wonderful…I’d just love to see it at other events as well….after all- we loomers are knitters too! 😉
What do you think? Did you get a chance to attend the Sock Summit? What were your impressions as loom knitters?
Bethany~
Gettin' It Pegged...Loom Knitter's Clique 