Lisa, who up until recently managed the Morgantown Farmers Market, let me tag along with her to the 2014 Preston County Fiber Artist Holiday Open House. A few of her vendors from the market put it on - mostly those who are in the Preston County area and have some "fiber" connection. Fiber is, I've learned, kind of this generic term for natural wool, cotton, etc. So, for example, folks who raise sheep, and make hats or Christmas ornaments from their wool or milk.

Anyway, this was perfect because I'm always looking for good stories and was interested in learning more about the individual vendors at the market. And a good handful of them were there. AND the lady whose house we went to, Kelly Anderson, she had Karakachan guard dog puppies, and they were the cutest things I've ever seen.



Kelly has the her farm "Hopping Acres," where she has rare breeds of sheep, dogs and rabbits. "Lady Baa Baa." She collects wool from the sheep and rabbits, spins it into yarn and creates ornaments and other cute hats or mittens. In addition to her farm, she bakes under the "Lady Baa Baa" label. She has these tasty pizza crusts, which I just used to make a pizza recently. So tasty.



Another vendor is Moonlight Milk Soaps, which was previously named Two Cousins Soap, by Kim Sheets. These soaps are so great! I had to buy one - the raspberry & lilac scent was my favorite. But they also had lavender, orange, rose, sea kelp, creamsicle and more.

Kim's husband, AJ, also had a hand in the show with Midnight Maple Syrup and maple cream. I had to get one of each because after trying a sample of the maple cream, I was hooked. When I'm not just nibbling on the maple cream plain, it's great on toast or would be perfect for cinnamon buns or bread pudding.

Fiddlehead Woodworking makes really cool, handmade wooden spoons, cutting boards, butter knives, bookends and more. I was really wanting a cool wooden spoon, so my splurge of the day was on that one right in the middle of the bowl there. But I can't wait to use it for soups and stews.



The Sheepherders Kitchen, by Joan Henry, has so many goodies: baked goods, preserves, jams and jellies, plus fiber/woolen items and more.  During this trip, I got some banana nut bread and Amish butter top bread for sandwiches. The banana nut bread was perfect for breakfast.







Evans Knob Farm had some jams I could just not pass up. Strawberry peach jam? Sign me up. This goes perfectly on toasted Amish Butter Top bread. They sell vegetables, poultry, eggs, lamb and other wool products. Plus they have their own CSA if you're a big fan.


So there's a little bit on some of the vendors who frequent the market - plus this super cool event they have yearly during the first weekend of December. Definitely a good time to pick up some gifts for the holidays, meet the artisans and put some money back into the local economy.

Did anyone go? Anybody get anything great?