Most of you probably know that my husband has this three year UK job assignment - and because the Yarn Bar isn't moving across the pond, I'm traveling over there about every 4 - 6 weeks. We knew that this could be an opportunity to get a sense of what's happening in the great big yarn world that Instagram cannot fully convey . . . so when I saw Oslo Strikkefestival dates, the September trip planning revolved around that and a long weekend in Oslo for Mike and me.
The festival was held at the Norsk Folkemuseum, which was impressive, but would have been slightly better without rain.
And rain it did, from mid-morning til we left the island around 5pm. The rain didn't dampen the spirits of the festival-goers, although it likely brought lots into the café who may otherwise have been able to spread around outside with their knitting (understandably irksome to my husband when we were trying to find a place to sit with our lunch).
The yarn? It was all beautiful, of course. If we can squeeze any more into the shop, I discovered some yarns that would compliment our "intoxicating fibers" very well! The people attending, plus the volunteers, organizers, and vendors were happy and friendly, which isn't surprising given what we experience within our Yarn Bar community. I'm most happy to have the festival magazine, with its thoughtful and informative articles, great illustrations, and several patterns ~ I'm very tempted by the sweaters...
Huge thanks to my assistant for the day. He was a good sport about it all, and here's what he said after a few minutes of wandering around with me: "Um, there's no yarn here. Only garn."
We explored Oslo beyond the festival as well, deciding that it's a very walkable city and a place we would come back to; and this little taste makes us want to spend more time in other parts of Norway for sure!
