A great weekend at the Elnora show ...

I was lucky enough to get to demonstrate rug hooking this past weekend at the Elnora Antique Steam and Tractor Show.  Sara Jolliff and Beth Cadell are now spinning and weaving in the old log cabin in the southeast corner of the steam demonstration area.  On Friday I sat out on the porch and hooked.  But they talked me into sitting with them so they could talk with me and not about me ... LOL!  We had a great time.  All of us used to be in The Big Green Building, but it is now mostly empty.

It was so busy!  Friday was the day the school children visit and they had LOTS of questions.  Saturday was the busiest I have ever seen it at the Elnora show!  The question people asked me the most was, 'how long does it take to hook one of these (rugs)?'  How do you answer that question?  Actually I had lots of great questions, lots of people closely watching me work, and some kind words about my work.  The weather that day was just perfect.  

In addition to hooking in the a.m. Saturday, I worked a 3-hour shift in one of the ticket booths.  I thought that by 2:00 when I started working it would have slowed down.  NOT!  It was just steady for me and the booth facing me with people coming to the show almost constantly from 2 till 5 p.m. when we stopped charging.  And there are three other places to enter the grounds!  Wow!  This is the second year I've worked the gates and it was much better at this location.  Lots of happy people; happy to be coming and happy as they left.  Just an all-around good experience.

Here's some pictures I took .....
 

Looking northwest from the cabin's front porch ... isn't that sky beautiful!?

Beth Caddell demonstrates weaving on this old "barn" loom.  If it looks smoky in there, sometimes it was, from the steam engines or from the cook house next door!

Sara Jolliff gives pointers to a woman who was interested in seeing if she could learn to spin.  Some of Sara's wonderful products are hanging on the walls.

Some of Beth's yummy looking roving.  Both Beth and Sara have sheep (and other animals as well!).  Doesn't this look like cotton candy?

There was chicken n' noodles for lunch Sunday!  Looks delicious!  We were able to watch the women prepare ham n' beans Friday, beef stew Saturday, and these noodles on Sunday, all over an open fire.  (Oh, to be one of those "threshers"! 

All in all, it was a good weekend.  Wendell and I were both tired and slept late Tuesday a.m.  (Wendell had to go back to Elnora Monday and help with the tear down.)  He works in the sorghum shack and they had a few problems.  But everything turned out well he said.  Tonight we had fresh bread with some of the sorghum on it.  Mmmmmmm......

My number one "job" this week is to prepare for next week's Runaway Quilters retreat.  In addition to that there is grass to mow, clothes to wash, a meeting to attend, and other "stuff".  I am so pumped after spending three days with Sara and Beth that tonight I snuck in some weaving time.  I'm starting a rug made from a white chenille bedspread.  It looks so soft and cushy!  Oh, I sold my first woven rug at the show for $50 ... yeah!  I think I'm going to like this weaving business.  Have a blessed week ...