Pennsylvania Endless Mountains Fiber Festival

10/19/2024

We have 4 people that ordered Festival Merch. during the bulk order that did not pick their orders up at the festival. We have tried contacting them by email with no reply. If you are: Lori J, Loren W, Lisa T, or Rosemary K and ordered merch that you did not get, please message us!!! If you think you know one of these people, please let them know.

10/19/2024

2024 Festival Merchandise is still available on our Bonfire site! Great for Christmas gift giving!! https://www.bonfire.com/store/pennsylvania-endless-mountains-fiber-festival/

** There are 4 people that ordered from the bulk order and did not pick up their merchandise at the festival. We have tried to contact them through their email, but no response. They are: Lisa T., Loren W., Lori J. and Rosemary K. If this is you, please message us!!! **

09/25/2024

Thank you to all of our wonderful vendors, shepherds, and volunteers who made the 2024 Festival a
SUCCESS!!

We have already started planning for 2025- have you?!?

09/07/2024

Are you ready?!? We are!!!!

Come see us today and tomorrow!

Today from 10am-5pm and tomorrow from 10am-4pm!!!

09/07/2024

Getting all set up for tomorrow!!

09/07/2024

09/05/2024

Leicester Longwool Sheep are from Aboundingful Farm & Snyder Family Farm
Aboundingful Farm is a small farm in Lebanon County PA. One of their sheep breeds is the Rare Breed Leicester Longwool Sheep, they will have Natural Color Leicester Longwool Sheep. Snyder Family Farm in Lancaster County PA has a fiber flock of various breeds of sheep, one of which is the Leicester Longwool, they will have the White Leicester Longwool Sheep at the Festival.
The Leicester (pronounced les-ter) Longwool is one of the “luster longwool” breeds, so designated for the sheen and brilliance of their wool. The sheep appear to shine just after shearing, when the clean wool next to their skin catches the sunlight and makes them glisten for a few days before the dust and dirt of their environment catches up to them and the glow is hidden for another year.
The breed was developed in England in the mid 1700s by innovative breeder Robert Bakewell. During the 1800s, the breed lost favor to the Merino and other fine wool breeds. After 1900, the Leicester Longwool fell into decline and was likely extinct in the United States during the 1930s or 1940s. In 1990, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation reestablished the breed in North America by importing sheep from Australia. With the help of dedicated breeders, they have moved from Critical Threatened by the Livestock Conservancy with fewer than 1,000 annual registrations in the United States and an estimated global population of less than 5,000.

09/05/2024

Visit Llamas from Snowy Oaks Llamas & Fibers in Booth 25 -26 in the Cattle Barn
Snowy Oaks is located across from Elk Mountain in Susquehanna County, PA. They have fiber, guard, and companion Llamas.
Llamas are a member of the camelid family, which includes camels, alpacas, vicunas, and guanacos. Historically, in the wild, they were found in the Andes Mountains of South America.
The llama’s under-coat wool is known for its softness, whereas the upper-coat wool (known as “guard hairs”) is a little coarser, and serves to protect llamas from debris and rain. Both coats are used for weaving into fibers. Llamas are social animals and live in herds. Domesticated for hundreds of years for meat, milk, wool, and for use as pack animals. They are now farmed in many countries worldwide Visit Snowy Oaks Llamas in booth 25 -26 in the Cattle Barn to learn more about them
Products offered:
Raw Fleece
Roving
Yarns

09/05/2024

Aboundingful Farm is home to a small flock of Colored Angora Goats in Lebanon County, PA. Angora goats grow silky, soft, curled ringlets or wavy locks of lustrous fiber called “mohair.” Because this beautiful hair grows so fast–about an inch per month–the Angora goat is called the most efficient fiber producer on earth. Our goats are shorn twice a year: spring and fall. Mohair is called the “diamond fiber” because of its unique ability to allow light to pass through its very strong hair shaft, giving an unmatched lustrous shine. The name Angora reflects the breed’s roots in the region around Ankara, today’s capital city of Turkey.
Adult bucks average 125-175 lbs and does 80 -125 lbs. Both sexes have horns, one of the breed standards, contributing to their beauty and graceful appearance. Horns also assist in cooling the animals in hot climates. Angoras are seasonal breeders typically kidding from January through April.
Items Available:
Mohair Locks
Handspun - lock spun, mohair yarn
Breeding stock
# Angoragoats

09/05/2024

Alpacas brought to you by Shepherds Acres Fiber Farm will be in Booth 12 in the Cattle Barn.
The alpaca is a species of South American camelid mammal. It is similar to, and often confused with, the llama. However, alpacas are often noticeably smaller than llamas. The alpaca comes in two breeds, Suri and Huacaya.
Huacaya alpacas are the most commonly found, constituting about 90% of the population. The Huacaya alpaca is thought to have originated in post-colonial Peru. This is due to their thicker fleece which makes them more suited to survive in the higher altitudes of the Andes after being pushed into the highlands of Peru with the arrival of the Spanish.
Suri alpacas represent a smaller portion of the total alpaca population, around 10%. They are thought to have been more prevalent in pre-Columbian Peru since they could be kept at a lower altitude where a thicker fleece was not needed for harsh weather conditions

09/05/2024

Tunis Sheep will be in the breed display from Northwood Farm. This a small first-generation family farm located just outside of Mansfield, PA. The farm began out of a passion for self-sustainability through raising their own food. Their self-sustainability has evolved into a desire to provide local and humanely-raised products for others.
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100080382033610
The name Tunis describes the breed’s connections to foundation stock from Tunisia in North Africa. North African sheep, were imported to the United States as a gift by the Bey of Tunis to George Washington in the late 1700s. References to these sheep appear in letters, journals, and farm records of some of the leading agriculturists and citizens of the day, including John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Richard Peters, Charles Roundtree, and George Washington Custis. Gradually, a uniquely American breed was created from this stock. Tunis sheep were a recognizable breed by the late 18th century to early 19th century making them one of the oldest breeds of livestock developed in America. Tunis have red faces and legs and ivory-colored fleeces. They have clean heads and lop ears, which are distinctive. The sheep weigh 150–275 pounds and both sexes are polled. Lambs are born with a double coat of red fiber on their bodies to protect them from the elements. Their fleece lightens as they mature, but retain red legs, heads, and ears.

09/04/2024

The Texel Sheep is provided by Snyder Family Farm, who is a small farm raising a variety of breeds for their fleeces, one of them is the Texel Sheep.
The Texel breed today is a white-faced breed with no wool on the head or legs. The breed is characterized by a distinctive short, wide face with a black nose and widely placed, short ears with a nearly horizontal carriage. These sheep also have black hooves. The wool is of medium grade (46’s-56’s) with no black fibers. The Texel originated on the Isle of Texel off the coast of The Netherlands early in the nineteenth century. The original Old Texel was probably a short-tailed variety of sheep. Limited importations of Lincoln and Leicester Longwool were crossed with this stock during the mid-1800’s.

Products offered:
Raw Fleece
Washed Fleece or locks
Roving

Raw Fleece
Washed Fleece or locks
Roving

09/04/2024

Our 2nd late addition is Outlying Acres Fiber Farm . This hidden gem in Bucks County, PA offers salvaged rug yarns and other unique rug options as well as yarns, roving and fleeces from their flock. Visit them in booth #65 this weekend at the festival!

09/04/2024

Romeldale/CVM Sheep from Finally Able Farm are back again with their beautiful fleece. Romeldale/CVM (California Variegated Mutant) sheep, are a rare breed listed as Threatened on The Livestock Conservancy’s Conservation Priority List. Romeldale CVM are a dual-purpose, fine fiber breed that comes in a variety of colors including white, rose gray, medium and dark grays, brown (moorit), and black.
They are a multi-purpose sheep breed used for both their fine wool and mild-tasting meat. Romeldale sheep are white and natural colors; their CVM derivatives come in a wide range of natural colors. Romeldale sheep are a composite sheep breed, developed in Ge**er, California in the early 1900s. To create this breed A.T. Spencer crossed New Zealand Marsh Romney rams over Rambouillet ewes. J.K. Sexton and his family further established the Romeldale sheep breed, and it was within their flock that the first CVM (California Variegated Mutant) sheep were born. In subsequent years, Glen Eidman, a partner of the Sexton family, developed the CVM derivative of the Romeldale sheep. Romeldale/CVM sheep are long-lived, have docile and alert personalities, and are an intelligent sheep breed.
Products offered:
Raw Fleece (look for some fleeces in the Fleece Show and Sale)
Roving
Millspun yarn
Felted items
Pelts
Breeding Stock

09/04/2024

Old English Babydoll Southdown Sheep from Funny Farm Lodgings are new to our breed display this year.
The small family farm was established in 2006. Goats were the focus at the time, After rounding up 40 loose goats over and over again, they deceided sheep were better. They have had many breeds of sheep over the years, but in semi-retired life they have fallen in love with the sweet, docile little smiling sheep. They currently breed “foundation flock” Olde English Southdown Babydoll minature white sheep. They breed for wool and pets although they were originally a meat animal. They do make wonderful companion animals and are a handspinners dream with a 20 micron fiber.
Products offered:
Breeding Stock

09/04/2024

Two new vendors just added to our vendor lineup! GypsyMountainFarm is a one woman farm raising conservation sheep, specialized in hand dyed luxury yarns and farm raised yarns. Visit them in booth # 76 at the fiber festival this weekend!

09/03/2024

Jacob Sheep ~ At Shepherds Acres Fiber Farm Jen always had a great love for animals especially ones with a lot of hair. She always had dogs & cats and an occasional Angora rabbit or two. After visiting the Endless Mountains Fiber Festival one year, she met a woman who had some sheep for sale. She called Hubby from the venue and asked if she could get two sheep. He thought about it a few minutes and said “Yes”. If he said yes to two sheep & God said 5 sheep then 13 sheep it was! She now now raises 13 sheep, 4 Alpaca, 6 Angora Rabbits, meat rabbits, Turkeys and chickens. I had asked God for my farm and in return I named it Shepherds Acres. She spins, felts, and is learning to weave all the fiber from her animals.
Sheep with spots have been described in many cultures throughout history, appearing in works of art from the Far East, Middle East, and Mediterranean regions. Among these accounts is the Biblical story of Jacob who bred spotted sheep and for whom this breed is named. Jacobs are small, horned, black and white sheep Variability is present, but this is characteristic of a primitive breed. Ewes weigh 80-120 lbs. and rams 120-180 lbs. The sheep are more than half white with colored spots or patches. The colored portions of the fleece are usually black, but they can also be brownish, or a lighter color called lilac. The Jacob is a multi-horned or “polycerate” breed. Most animals have two or four horns, though six horns also occur. Both sexes are horned, and the rams can have horns of impressive size and shape. Because North American breeders have been selected primarily for fleece characteristics, the conformation of the sheep has remained very much like its historical description.
Products offered:
Raw Fleece
Roving
Handspun yarn
Felted items
Felt
Handcrafted items
Breeding Stock

09/03/2024

Icelandic Sheep brought to you by Trinity Farm. Overlooking Cayuga Lake in central New York, Trinity Farm is home to Icelandic Sheep with a focus on Icelandic Leadersheep (Forystufé). They have been raising these sheep since 2007, and since 2009 have been using the technique of VAI to produce lambs with the best genetics from Iceland.
https://www.facebook.com/TrinityFarm.net
The Icelandic Sheep are known from the earliest settlement of Iceland and have been isolated there, so are the oldest pure sheep breeds in the world. They are known as triple-purpose animals, providing meat, milk, and wool. Icelandic Leadership, known from the earliest writings of Iceland and recently accepted as a separate breed, have the same milk and fiber characteristics as the “usual” Icelandics. However, these Leadership, historically more valuable than the “usual” Icelandics, were selected and bred for their intelligence, sense of direction, ability to detect imminent weather changes, etc., rather than for a meaty frame.
The fleece is double coated, with a long rather coarse top coat (tog) and fine undercoat (thel); these coats can be separated, thereby producing three types of yarn. Pure thel is soft enough for baby clothing; pure tog makes wonderful strong rug warp, etc., and the combined coats (known as lopi) produce warm and water-resistant clothing. Both the “usual” Icelandic sheep and the Icelandic Leader Sheep have a huge number of fleece color characteristics: two colors, six patterns (some of which may be co-expressed), and the possibility of spotting. A sheep for any taste!
Products offered:
Registered Breeding Stock
Unregistered stock (wethers only)
Raw Fleece
Washed Fleece
White or Natural Colored Locks
Dyed locks
Roving
Handspun Yarn
Felted Items
Handcrafted Items
Sheep Milk Soap
Other: Pelts, “vegetarian” pelts