19th June 2016 Post Todmorden Festival

Good evening. Yesterday was the Todmorden Fesitival and although it wasnt a good day for me, the event itself went well.
The craft fair attracted a lot of stallholders and visitors but sadly the number of visitors was no where near what the Agricultural Show would have seen.
Although fine it was quite a cool day so it was nice to be inside. Several stalls seemed to be struggling, myself included but if the craft fair was to be a regular event I would certainly be happy to attend again as it is important to be seen and get to know people.
I am however really excited to have found a possible new addition to my work. I met a lovely lady who breeds sheep and turns the fleeces into wool. She is very local and has supplied me with a sample of wool. Although quite springy I am really hoping it will knot well as it would be fantastic to use such local, natural material.
The wool is produced by both mill and hand spinning. Both are quite expensive to buy, the mill spun being cheaper, but definately worth it. Although there are only 4 colours produced by the mill spun, all between natural and dark brown I was assured that the natural can be dyed at home, which would be brilliant.
As my main focus at the moment is on wall hangings involving trees, I think this could create some wonderful pieces and I cant wait to use my sample on something along those lines.
My next event is the July exhibition at Creative with Nature and although I have my work ready to go, if this wool works well I may include this piece also.
It was good to attend a fair again and I definately want to do more in the future.
Im still working on the online shop and although I know it will be slow going, I love the platform and find it really easy to work with. Promotion is the key and Im leaving my link anywhere I can. Its different to other online shops I have seen, not in the least craft orientated but has a wealth of different shops of fantastic quality.
You can find me at annepearsondesigns.tictail.com
Until next week.
Anne xx