Kentucky Sheep & Fiber Festival Makes a Remarkable Return to Lexington
LEXINGTON, Ky. – This past weekend saw a flock of fiber enthusiasts journeying from across the nation to Lexington’s popular Masterson Station Park, welcoming the return of the beloved yearly tradition, the Kentucky Sheep and Fiber Festival. For fifteen years, this festival has proven to be a vibrant platform for sheep and fiber craft enthusiasts, thereby promoting and celebrating the production and use of natural fibers.
A Festival Offering Knowledge & Craftsmanship
The event had plenty to offer for everyone. The Director of the Kentucky Sheep and Fiber Festival, Sarabeth Parido, conveyed immense excitement about the array of activities across the park. “We have live animals, we have yarn, we have fiber. All the way literally from sheep to shawl, right here in the park,” Parido conveyed with enthusiasm.
Long before her directorship, Parido ventured to the festival as a passionate patron. Her own engagement with the festival evolved over the years, igniting a love for the craft that led her to raise her own sheep and dive into knitting and spinning. Parido regarded the festival as a springboard for her own self-expansion and aims for other attendees to experience the same, especially within the festival’s comprehensive roster of workshops.
From beginners learning the basics of knitting or crocheting, to experts honing their skills on specialized stitches and techniques for crafting wearable items, the event was an opportunity for both learning and exchange of expertise.
Enthusiasm Carrying Beyond Borders
Among the over sixty vendors attending the festival was Helena Bristow from Oink Pigments, who journeyed to Lexington for the festival all the way from Indianapolis. For Bristow and many other vendors, making profits from selling products was not the sole purpose of participating in the festival. The festival served to bring together ‘their tribe’, contributing to a rich sense of community and shared passion.
From shearing sheep to processing and dying the wool, the festival enabled visitors to appreciate every stage of the process behind the products they enjoyed.
Contributing To The Community With ‘Destash for Good’
This year’s festival charted a new initiative, the ‘Destash for Good’ program. Under this initiative, the festival solicited donations of additional fibers and new or gently used knitting needles and crochet hooks, intending to pass them on to afterschool programs and memory care facilities. By providing these materials a second life, the festival had found a novel way to connect with the broader community and lever their shared passion for a greater good.
The Kentucky Sheep and Fiber Festival has consistently proven to be more than a celebration of fiber artistry. It is a dynamic platform fostering a sense of community within and beyond the bounds of Lexington. This year’s festival has not just continued this legacy, but has found new ways to deepen its impact on the people and the community. As the event concluded on a high note, enthusiasts and participants eagerly look forward to the next installment of this unique festival.
