Wonderful wool

I don't consider myself crafty (in the material sense) but I love craft fairs. It was a wonderful torture yesterday afternoon to visit the Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn, and I was especially happy to visit my friend Betsy's booth. She actually gets raw wool at wool markets, and spins/dyes it by hand, then sells the beautiful yarn at events such as this, and on Etsy. Since I don't knit, I have to admit my favorite thing she makes are these buckwheat-filled pillows covered in vintage kimono fabric--absolutely gorgeous! (be sure to keep away from cat claws!)

Since I'm scarcely employed these days (which explains the daily blog posts) I had to keep one hand clamped tight over my wallet while I was there. But my plan for next year is to spend all day browsing the beautiful, creative, crafty offerings and get all my Christmas-gift shopping done six months early. They have clothes, handmade soap, artwork, housewares, etc...but for me, the hardest things to resist were all the original, amazing jewelry and accessories. I am practically breaking my arm patting myself on the back for not buying anything.

Renegade sets up shop in other cities as well--L.A., San Fran, Chicago--and it's definitely worth checking out if you can make it.

Wistfully browsing tempting wares was not the only thing I did yesterday--I also participated in a fantastically lopsided softball game--but I may need to lick my wounds a bit more before writing about that...