On a weekend in April, I chose three events from Maine Fiberarts’ newsletter to attend: the Fiber Arts Marketplace and The Yarn Sellar in York; Portsmouth Fabric Company in New Hampshire; and the 2025 Book Arts Bazaar at University of Southern Maine.
A beautiful array of fabric, books and fiber!
The Fiber Marketplace organized by The Yarn Sellar brings talented vendors to yarn enthusiasts each year. Vendors bring high end yarns, wooden fiber tools, handmade buttons, and hand-dyed fibers to sell. The event was very well attended! I loved the Fair Isle cowl designed by Gudrun Johnston offered by Healy Heritage Farm. We completed the event with a stop at Yarn Sellar, which was also mobbed with visitors.
Then I learned that my friend, Nina Ruit, an avid quilter, had never been to Portsmouth Fabric Company! Nina spins, knits, sews and quilts, and lately has been paper piecing. PFS had Japanese fabrics, linens, silks, quilting fabrics, cottons, Fatpacs, bundles and Sew Workshop clothing patterns, among others. We had a quick conversation with owner Gretchen Rath, currently celebrating 46 years in business.
Then it was on to the Book Arts Bazaar at USM in Portland. Hand-bound books, handmade papers, marbled papers, letterpress editions, collaged works, stitched items, zines, tomes and written journals filled the room. We immediately found friends we knew and had a wonderful time taking in all the amazing treasures. Photos include work from Meredith Mustard, Two Imagine Studios; papermaker/book artists Gayle Fitzpatrick and Meryl Troop; “rock weaver” Sharon Pattison; publisher/printer Walter Tisdale; Lucky Platt, Bunkhouse Studio; eco-dyer and bookmaker Velma Bolyard; and artist Joelle Webber, Mermaid Bindery. There were many others!Â
The Bazaar is a great place to see new and cutting-edge work by many fine artists.
Meredith Mustard provided icing on the cake by taking everyone’s photo with her new toy camera which spit out a snazzy B&W print on the spot! Rely on Meredith for Major Art-Making Fun; this photographer just upped her game.
—photos and adventures by Christine Macchi
