The Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival is one of the largest festivals of its kind celebrating all things sheep, from hoof to handwoven.

Schedule of Events

May 1, 2024

9:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Various Fairgrounds Locations
-Triad Dyeing with Peggy Doney
-Exploring the Drum Carder with Henry Clemes
-The Finer Points of Combing! with Kimberly Radcliffe
9:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) HoCo Arts Council
-Fabulous Felt and Nuno Felt Hats with Dawn Edwards
-Shetland Wools: A Breed for All Reasons with Deborah Robson
9:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Gary J. Arthur Comm Ctr
-Start Spinning with Maggie Casey
-Corespinning Plus with Charan Sachar
-Introduction to Multi-shaft Weaving with Beth Truesdale
(first offering)
9:00-12:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Fair Office
-Stranded Colorwork & Latvian Braids 101 with Tanis Gray
9:00-12:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) HoCo Arts Council
-Size & Fit: Why the “Medium” Never Fits Quite Right
with Kate Atherley
-Knitting with Handspun Yarn with Jill Duarte
9:00-12:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Gary J. Arthur Comm Ctr
-Beginner Sculpting with Wool: Needle Felted Sheep
with Elizabeth Whitton
-Spin the Yarn You Need: Understanding Wheel Adjustments with
Meagan Condon
1:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Fair Office
-Steeking 4 Ways with Tanis Gray
1:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) HoCo Arts Council
-Math for Knitters: Solving the Knitters’ Number Puzzles
with Kate Atherley
-Fiber Speed Dating with Jill Duarte
1:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Gary J. Arthur Comm Ctr
-Needle Felted Landscape Painting: Cherry Blossoms
with Elizabeth Whitton
-Why Does Wool Do That? with Meagan Condon

May 2, 2024

9:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Various Fairgrounds Locations
-Tints, Tones, And Shades, Oh My! With Peggy Doney
-Gardening and Foraging Natural Pigments for Dyes & Paint with Pat Brodowski
-Carding for Color: Fractals with Henry Clemes
9:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) HoCo Arts Council
-Fabulous Felt and Nuno Felt Hats with Dawn Edwards (cont'd)
-Mixed-breed Wools: Unpredictable and . . . Fun!
with Deborah Robson
-Spinning for Consistency with Jill Duarte
9:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Gary J. Arthur Comm Ctr
-Start Spinning with Maggie Casey (cont'd)
-Beyond Thick and Thin with Charan Sachar
-Introduction to Multi-shaft Weaving with Beth Truesdale
(second offering)
9:00-12:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Fair Office
-Estonian Inlay with Tanis Gray
9:00-12:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) HoCo Arts Council
-Introduction to Garment Alterations with Kate Atherley
9:00-12:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Gary J. Arthur Comm Ctr
-Beginner Painting with Wool: Needle Felted Coastal
Waters Painting with Elizabeth Whitton
-Drape or Disaster with Meagan Condon
12:00-6:00 Receive Skein & Garment Competition entries MainEx Annex
1:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Fair Office
-2-Color Cables with Tanis Gray
1:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) HoCo Arts Council
-Socks 101: Top Down Socks with Kate Atherley
1:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Gary J. Arthur Comm Ctr
-Beginner Sculpting with Wool: Needle Felted Forest
Toadstools with Elizabeth Whitton
-What the Fluff? All About Loft with Meagan Condon

May 3, 2024

Vendors Are Not Open To The Public

8:00 am: Grounds open to receive sheep; booth setup begins
9:00-2:00pm: Receive Sheep Photo Competition entries MainEx Annex
9:00-2:00pm: Receive Fine Arts Competition entries MainEx Annex

Vendors Are Not Open To The Public

9:00-3:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminar (P) Dining Hall
-Grand and Glorious Gradients with Peggy Doney
9:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminar (P) 4-H Hall
-Carding for Color: Tints and Shades with Henry Clemes
9:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminar (P) HoCo Arts Council
-Same Breed, Different Mills with Deborah Robson
9:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Gary J. Arthur Comm Ctr
-Drop Spindle with Maggie Casey
-Add Ins with Charan Sachar
-Tablet Weaving Through History with Diana Buck
9:00-12:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminar (P) Fair Office
-Exploring the Japanese Knitting Stitch Bible with Gayle Roehm
9:00-12:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) HoCo Arts Council
-Fabulous Felt Flowers with Dawn Edwards
-Long-Lasting Socks with Kate Atherley
-Get Started on a Supported Spindle with Jill Duarte
9:00-12:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Gary J. Arthur Comm Ctr
-Divide and Conquer - Deconstructing Double-Coated
Fleece with Meagan Condon
-Needle Felted Landscape Painting: Grazing Sheep
with Elizabeth Whitton
10:00-4:30 Receive Fleece Show & Sale entries Fleece Show & Sale Bldg
10:30-3:00 Integrated Parasite Management and FAMACHA© Show Ring
Certification Workshop with Susan Schoenian (P)
12:00-4:00pm: Consignments accepted for Auctions (tentative) Auction Tent
1:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminar (P) Fair Office
-Japanese Fingerless Mitts by Hitomi Shida with Gayle Roehm
1:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) HoCo Arts Council
-Fun and Fabulous Felt Bag with Dawn Edwards
-Introduction to Colorwork: Fair Isle, Intarsia and Slip-Stitch
Knitting with Kate Atherley
-Spinning Short Stapled Fibers with Jill Duarte
1:00-4:00pm: Pre-Festival Fiber Arts Seminars (P) Gary J. Arthur Comm Ctr
-Beginner Sculpting with Wool: Needle Felted Succulent
with Elizabeth Whitton
-What to Do with that Braid You Just Bought with Meagan Condon
2:00-5:00 Shirt sales to exhibitors and vendors WITH FESTIVAL ID Bingo Hall
5:00 p.m. Festival Kick-off Celebration Dining Hall
5:30 p.m. Maryland Sheep & Wool Ambassador Competition Fair Office
6:00 p.m. All sheep must be penned

Stroll the grounds of the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival and you will hear music that is indigenous to the shepherd’s life. Weaving songs, airs, jigs, reels, strathspeys, hornpipes, waltzes fill the air. Bagpipes, harps, fiddles, whistles, flutes, mandolins, guitars, banjos, and hammered dulcimers ring throughout the Festival, reminding us that both music and wool have come down to us through the ages. Take time and listen to the music and take some home with you. The official CD "Music from the Sheep & Wool Festival" can be purchased where you buy Festival T-shirts. The musicians themselves have a wide range of recordings that will keep the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival alive for you throughout the year.

May 4, 2024

Pavilion Common Ground Booth on the Midway

9:00am: Probably Whiskey Port Righ
10:00am: Rob & Hannah Caswell Matt Vinson
11:00am: Port Righ Walt Michael & Co.
12:00pm: Slim Harrison Rob & Hannah Caswell
1:00pm: Walt Michael & Co. Port Righ
2:00pm: Caruthers Others Matt Vinson
3:00pm: Slim Harrison Family Hoedown Common Ground Jam
4:00pm: Probably Whiskey Rob & Hannah Caswell
5:00pm: Walt Michael & Co. Port Righ
9:00 to 6:00pm: Caruthers Others at the Caruthers Tent on the Midway
9:00 to 4:30pm: Slim Harrison roving throughout the Festival grounds

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May 5, 2024

Pavilion Common Ground Booth on the Midway

9:00pm: Probably Whiskey Port Righ
10:00pm: Rob & Hannah Caswell Matt Vinson
11:00pm: Martin Family Walt Michael & Co.
12:00pm: Caruthers Others Rob & Hannah Caswell
1:00pm: Walt Michael & Co. Martin Family
2:00pm: Port Righ Common Ground Jam
3:00pm: Probably Whiskey Walt Michael & Co.
4:00pm: Slim Harrison Family Hoedown Rob & Hannah Caswell
9:00 to 5:00pm: Caruthers Others at the Caruthers Tent on the Midway
9:00 to 5:00pm: Slim Harrison roving throughout the Festival grounds

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Date:
May 4-5, 2024

Hours:
8:30am - 6pm: Saturday
8:30am - 5pm: Sunday
Rain or shine!

Location:
Howard County Fairgrounds,
2210 Fairgrounds Road,
West Friendship, MD 21794

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