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renegade

even though i work weekends forevermore (hooray for the service industry), i was able to drop by the renegade craft fair on my way home last night.  i allowed myself to spend any tips i made the day of however i wanted to, and was fortunate to have a very busy and profitable day.  what better way to pay it forward than to support other independent artists and crafters?

left: deep sea sock!  right: barn owl BFL
as always, there was almost too much to take in - a lot of great inspiration - and even some yarn!  i ended up buying some ridiculously squishy merino/silk sock yarn AND some handpainted BFL roving from rhinofluff, a vendor from austin, tx.  (as though my startitis weren't bad enough!)  i was immediately drawn to the beautiful turquoisey blue of the sock yarn - the subtle variegation of 'deep sea' will make some beautiful socks - or perhaps a triangle scarf! - for me.  and the roving is right up my alley, what with the neutral colors and BFL-y goodness - but the color name, 'barn owl', totally pushed me over the edge. me want.

i also ran into some pals of mine who make amazing posters here in chicago, which was fortuitous for many reason:  a) it was nice to say 'hi' and catch up.  b)  i could give them their baby gift (left:  a giant squirrel pillow knit with lorna's shepherd worsted in a custom color dubbed "anna's eyeballs,"  pattern is ysolda teague's nathaniel.)  c)  i could finally snag the snow leopard print i've been coveting for the last year!

diana's snow leopard print!
i met jay and diana during my days at lorna's, and have been fortunate to get to know them a little better in the last few years as we dog/cat/house-sat for them when they were traveling the world, selling their posters and such.  diana was even nice enough to create the awesome 'handmade by stefanie' banners which grace this blog, my etsy shop, and all of my patterns (and all for the price of some home-made cupcakes!)  i was excited for them both when i heard they were expecting, and excited for me, because a baby on the way gives me an excuse to knit even more cute things...not that i need one.

at any rate, if you weren't able to make it to renegade this year, you can find posters, fine art prints and more at diana's etsy shop - and while you're at it, check out the bird machine, which houses all of jay's rad posters and other handprinted items.

my final purchase at renegade this year is from a mystery vendor - i neglected to grab their business card, and there is no tag or means of attribution anywhere that i can find - so whoever made this necklace, i love it! and i wish i could link to your website or etsy shop, but unfortunately, i got distracted and have no idea who you are.  if anyone's wandering around renegade today and notices someone who is selling necklaces that look like this, please give me a shout so i can amend this post to give a link!
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