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| A darling little Navajo Churro sheep waiting to be sheared. |
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| Great book on crochet by talented and sweet Yumiko Alexander. |
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| Kind and thoughtful Jacque Howell had some lovely mohair, angora, and llama fiber for sale. |
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| This gentle shearer learned the trade at the age of 8 from watching his grandmother. He shared his wonderful stories with the crowd while taking small breaks from his hard work. |
Photos © Mike Buchheit
This year was truly an exceptional one for
Flagstaff's Fiber & Wool Festival. We spent a few hours and lots of dollars at the event: beautiful fiber artist,
Yumiko Alexander, autographed her book of original crochet designs for us — and we gobbled up bags of gorgeous mohair roving from Jacque Howell (
Arivaca Angora Goats) including some of her award-winning curly mohair locks. My husband and I look forward to this event every year not only to purchase local fiber, but also to meet the wonderful people who work with fiber at various stages in the process: from sheep, llama, alpaca, and goat herders to spinners, weavers, and other artisans. Loretta Flatrock and Vanessa Begay-Lee were just two of the amazing weavers we chatted with, and two artists who may be collaborating with me on future fiber workshops (felting and weaving) — so stay tuned!
