The Fair!

The county fair is alway a kick!

I don’t eat the chocolate covered bacon or deep fried butter sticks, but I do enter handmade items in the Home Arts area.

I have been entering textile goods in the local county fair for over 8 years. I have also demonstrated the arts of spinning and weaving whenever the opportunity arises. I have participated in the Los Angeles County Fair and, for the last two years, the Orange County Fair has been my Fair of choice.

This year was a real kick because I got invited to an awards ceremony for the Home Arts division. It was a hoot to accept an award with a ton of strangers oohing and aahing over my hand-spun and hand-knit shawl.

Here I am accepting my award with two fair officials. I had not planned on taking a picture but the enthusiasm of the crowd and other award winners was contagious. A lady next me was kind enough to snap this photo with my phone. I had to wait through 40 minutes of other winners’ names before mine was called. It was just plain fun.

This is the award winning shawl. The yarn won a 1st place blue ribbon for hand-spun skeins. The shawl won a first place blue ribbon for hand-spun finished item and it also won the division winner ribbon in Spinning. Hence the awards ceremony.

I don’t always win a ribbon, although I am quite proud when I do. But that’s not really the point. The point is to show what kinds of skills and interests we have as a community. I encourage everyone to enter the local fair, whatever their craft and wherever they may be.