Kolache Festival

Hi Knitters,

The Kolache Festival was everything I had hoped it would be.  We had a beautiful sunny day in Oklahoma, not too windy, which is something rare this time of year.  It was a bit hot but we were in a lovely shaded area for a good part of the day.

Yes, the kolaches were fresh and yummy and sweet and yeasty.  Did I tell you my son-in-law's father was in charge of the judging committee to determine the ribbon winners for best home-made beer, home-made wine, kielbasa, yeast breads, and kolaches?  Tough job.  Here are the entries waiting to be sampled.  My hubby was invited to help taste which he was happy to do.

The judges discuss their plan of attack.

Yes, the judges did work their way down the entire line-up over the course of the morning, but as several had a long drive home, did not swallow many.  I am happy to say that, although I am completely incapable of judging a good wine or beer from a not-as-good one, I was happy to sample both the first-place winning kolaches and I even got to bring home what was left of the first-place winning yeast bread.  We have had the yummiest toast the last two mornings.  Pays to know people in high places.

My favorite part of the day was watching the young girls (and a few boys as well) in their  traditional Czech dress.  The colors, the lovely lace, the embroidered ribbon and sashes, the beautiful bows and flowered hair wreaths captivated me and I spent most of my time in the pavilion watching all the participants chattering away happily as they waited to do the traditional dance in the street just before the parade.

The backs of their dresses were just as beautiful as the fronts:

The children were precious.  As soon as I asked to take their picture, they would place their hands in the traditional before the dance stance and smile for the camera.  They seemed to be really enjoying themselves.  The moms were all nearby checking their bows, hair and make-up before they went out to dance.

The embroidery on the dress on the left was extraordinary.  Many of their dresses are hand-sewn by mothers, grandmothers, aunts, etc.  Love the little blonde on the right with her missing teeth:

These two pretty young girls are last year's Kolache Queen and Jr. Kolache Queen.  Each of the past Queens wore their sashes and I think the earliest one I saw was from 1992.

Time to dance:

I really loved the embroidered fabric used for this dress:

It was very hot by this time and I am sure their layered dresses were not to comfy at this point but they all looked wonderful and kept up the pace through several traditional dances:

This little one was so charming, so tiny, but knew all the steps as well as any of the dancers.  I am sure there is a sash in her future.

Most of the dresses were in the red/black fabrics with colored embroidery, so this color combination really stood out.  I think it's beautiful.

There was an import pavilion with beautiful glassware and jewelry, and some of the Czech ribbons and fabrics -- really high quality.

And, of course, I loved the quilt samplers:

This was one of my favorites:

All-in-all a wonderful day.  I can see why so many people make it a tradition to attend every year.  And I did get a little knitting done on the way to Prague.  One more sleeve to go on my sweater.

Happy Knitting, Josey