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Adult Workshops
Lectures
And More ...
Adult Workshops Saturday 10-noon Come and learn the basics of drop spindling using the “park and draft method” with spinner Jenny Bannock. Whether you have your own drop spindle, or wish to borrow one from the instructor to experiment before purchasing your own spindle, this is a great opportunity to get a good grasp of spinning, plying and finishing yarn with this low cost alternative to a standard spinning wheel. Participants will receive fiber, handouts, and suggestions for new and experienced spinners. Cost $25. Preregister with Jenny at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
Introduction to Knitting - Jenny Bannock Saturday 1-3 If you’ve always wanted to learn how to knit, now is your chance! Join instructor Jenny Bannock for this class that will teach you to cast on, bind off, knit and purl. Once you’re comfortable with these skills, Jenny will teach you how to increase and decrease, thereby making it possible for you to follow basic knitting patterns. Cost $25. Preregister with Jenny at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
Sunday 10-noon Join Historic Interpreter Norah Kyle of the Plymouth Plantation as she takes you through a hands on tour of the history of natural dyeing, and gives you tips and pointers for presenting natural dyeing in an interpreter’s venue. Participants are encouraged to bring their own skeins of wool yarn to dye, or skeins will be available for purchase. Cost $25. Preregister with Norah at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
Taking Spinning Back to Basics - Joanne Seiff Sunday 1-4 Many spinners rely exclusively on processed wool roving these days. What’s it like to take it back to the basics? This class, designed for spinners with some experience, will cover techniques for processing and spinning raw wool and washed locks. We’ll use a variety of basic tools to create yarns and get back to the way many people around the world used to spin, or still spin. Participants should bring a spindle or spinning wheel and hand cards, combs or flick carders. Cost $35. Preregister with Joanne Seiff by April 15 at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Cost after April 15 $45 payable at the Festival.
Lectures
Saturday 10-11 Thinking about starting your own sheep flock? Come and learn the basics of fencing, nutrition, breed selection and other nuts and bolts for beginning shepherds.
Ag in the Classroom - Lisa Nevins, Ag Educator Saturday 11-noon Come learn about this innovative program for educators, homeschoolers, and others who are interested in getting agricultural topics into schools.
New Hampshire: A Place for Sheep - Lorraine Merrill, Commissioner of Agriculture Saturday noon-1 Come hear Commissioner Merrill’s thoughts on the New Hampshire sheep industry, past, present and future.
Understanding the Scrapies and Premise ID Program - Dr. Steven Crawford Saturday 1-2 Confused about this program? Dr Crawford will explain the importance of this program, how to sign up, and the benefits of the program for both large and small scale shepherds.
Improving Your Pastures: Management Basics - Brandon Smith, NRCS Saturday 2-3 Quality pastures yield quality sheep! Come learn about plant diversity and pasture reseeding methods, plant nutrients, pests and weeds, how to determine soil quality, and how to use grazing sticks. NRCS assistance for farmers will also be discussed.
Your Grazing System: Making It All Work Together - Heidi Konesko, NRCS Saturday 3-4 Fine tune your grazing system by increasing your understanding of paddock size, rotational grazing, fencing options, and watering systems for NH. Learn about the different programs that NRCS has to offer to provide financial assistance for farmers.
Fiber Gathering: Exploring US Fiber Festivals - Joanne Seiff Sunday 11-noon Join author Joanne Seiff as she takes us on a virtual tour of other US fiber festivals. Her tour resulted in a recently published book by the same title, and features the NHSWGA festival. Signed copies of the book will be available for sale after the lecture.
Growing Our Industry Beyond the Convenience Zone: Can We Do It? - Nanney Kennedy Sunday noon-1 Nanney Kennedy, shepherd, fiber artist and entrepreneur, featured in Shear Spirit, will speak to the importance of planning your end product before your choose your sheep breed, and will present her experience with the sheep and wool industry in New England. Copies of Shear Spirit will be available for sale after the lecture.
Harrisville Designs: Continuing the Tradition of Wool and Spinning - Lorna McMaster Sunday 1-2 Learn how this tiny mill town still hosts a thriving tradition of spinning and weaving and how business and historical preservation have partnered to keep a traditional occupation alive and well! Learn about their recently published book, Woolworks: Teaching to the National Standards with Fiber Arts. Author Lorna McMaster will be available to sign books at the end of the lecture.
Dyeing to Live and Living to Dye: History of the Dyeing Profession from 1400 to 1850 - Norah Kyle Sunday 2-3 An industry full of deep secrets and cutthroat competition, the realm of the dyers has seldom gotten the attention it deserves. For nearly five hundred years, the wool dyer was one of the many specialized professionals who moved the textile process along; his work was also shrouded in mystery, as the guilds were very strict about keeping the ways of their trade to themselves. Join Norah Kyle, co owner of the Merry Little Lamb and a historical interpreter at Plimoth Plantation, to explore the intriguing history of the dyers and trace the dying art from its beginnings with the common folk to its peak as a highly specialized trade and back again.
Fencing Options for Sheep - Dave Kennard, Wellscroft Fence Systems Sunday 3-4 Ready to start your own flock? Make sure you join fencing expert Dave Kennard to learn about your fencing options.
New this Year!! Family Fun Make and Take Area - Farm o Rama Join instructor Lauren Hakala for wooly “make and take” workshops for families. Learn new skills that can be continued at home, including needle and wet felting, weaving, braiding, and working with wool roving. Parents are asked to accompany and assist their younger children for each project. There will be a $5 material fee per person for each project, and limited seating on a first come, first served basis.
Joanne Seiff is a writer, knitwear designer, and educator. Her book, Fiber Gathering, published by Wiley, is about U.S. fiber festivals and contains over over 25 projects. Her second book, Knit Green: Twenty Projects and Ideas for Sustainability, will be published in Fall 2009. Joanne enjoys making things from scratch; she has been knitting since she was four or five and spinning since she was 12. In 2007, she was awarded the Kentucky Arts Council's Al Smith Individual Artist Fellowship, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. Joanne holds graduate degrees in both Education and Religious Studies. When Joanne is not working, she is walking Harry and Sally (her dogs), spinning, knitting, gardening, cooking, and spending time outdoors with Jeff, her absent-minded biology professor husband, who studies butterfly genetics.
Nanney Kennedy has a BA from Bowdoin in the Sociology of Art and has been focused on sustainable resource solutions since 1981. She raises 100ish sheep at the source of the Damariscotta watershed in Maine. Her Meadowcroft Farm sells The Maine Blanket, hand dyed Seacolors Yarn and Sweaters at 25+ craft shows and farmers markets in the New England and Northeast area. Nanney and her farm are featured in the new book Shear Spirit, Ten Fiber Farms, Twenty Patterns and Miles of Yarn.
Norah Kyle is an interpreter at Plimoth Plantation in Plymouth, MA, who reluctantly resides in the 21st century. As a museum educator, she has worked at the Higgins Armory Museum in Worcester and at Old Sturbridge Village where she learned many of her textile skills. She is co owner of the Merry Little Lamb, a tiny wool working company that can be found traveling the New England renaissance faire and reenactment circuit, spinning, sewing, knitting, and brewing natural dyes for their authentic open fire wool dyeing demonstrations. Norah holds Masters degrees in social work and education from Boston University. For more information or questions, please email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
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