The best broom makers in the USA are mine

This year my partner Shawn and my daughter Lena were invited to send brooms to compete in the Arcola Illinois Broom Corn Festival.  Arcola is the broom corn capitol of the world, where I understand that modern broom corn was developed in 1859. It still is home to several top US broom manufacturers. The first prize for the champion broom was $600.

Shawn Hoefer, reigning champion craft broom maker. See
how he weaves the color twist up into the plait.

Elena Larson's broom won honorable
mention.

So they worked all summer on their ideas for these special brooms. The brooms could be artful, but they had to be a working broom. Shawn went through several prototypes for his winding, twisted plait broom with a swash that he did with autumn colors that he dyed to match the handle that he had polished from a really nice hickory. Lena's showed off her incredible attention to detail with a blend of colors and a fine herringbone plait on a really gorgeous hand finished handle.

Detail of the fine stitching, plaiting and color blending that mark Elena's brooms

They shipped off their brooms a few weeks ago and I didn't hear any more. But yesterday afternoon, we were sitting in a Thai restaurant in Mountain Home when Shawn pulls out his iphone and says, "The broom judging should be finished." He got quiet and handed me the phone. Out of all the broom makers in the nation - Shawn Hoefer was first place. and down the line, Lena was 4th. We have the nations best broom makers right here.

I'm so proud of my broom makers. and this year, for the first time, Shawn will be offering his brooms for sale in his Studio during the Off The Beaten Path Studio Tour. Come by and see the broom maker in his native habitat September 14-16, 2012.

Share your passion for Laffing Horse - a contest!

I was going through my e-mail this morning and found a message from ebay, asking me to review some of my recent purchases. I don't mind writing a quick review of the gardening books and cheesemaking supplies I just bought and I will probably write them up this weekend.

But the e-mail gave me an idea. Shawn occasionally cruises the web, looking for reviews of his Laffing Horse trilooms, crochet hooks and knitting needles. He gets so excited when he finds a review. (He's kinda like a kid that way.)

So, for those of you who use and love our products, (and you can include my soaps, herbal, felted, crocheted and woven items!) I'd like to offer you an incentive to write a review.
You can post a review on your own blog, on Ravelry, on ebay, on Google or probably on a variety of sites that I don't know about. E-mail me a link to your review and I will add a link to it from our website and give you free shipping on your next order from our Common Threads fiber arts and more ebay store, or our Trilooms.com store, our new Commonthreads etsy store, (which is empty at this time!) or any direct phone or e-mail order.
(You will have to send me a note with your order to remind me, our bookkeeping system has room for notes, but they often don't stick where they are supposed to, and my brain is pretty full of holes lately.)

Then, on Feb. 15, we'll have my mom (Hi Mom!) go through all the reviews that have been submitted and pick the best one. The winner of the review contest will get a special, one-of-a-kind, one-foot Laffing Horse Triloom done in cherry & oak and inscribed with their name.

So, crack your knuckles and get ready to type up a quick Laffing Horse review, send me an e-mail with a link to it and know that you'll have Shawn dancing all the way to workshop... well, most of the way, it's a mile to the workshop and mostly up hill!!


Smiles and hugs, Jen