Different groups sponsor local lace fairs from time to time. New York has a lace day and many conventions every year that you could read about in the bulletin. There is a major convention around the first week of August each year called Lace Hog Heaven. I believe it's going to be held in Montreal in 2006. It's the most wonderful thing. It's a week long and is usually held at a hotel convention center. There are tons of classes and seminars. There is a vendor room, which has lace suppliers. Unless you deal with people online, you very rarely see a big collection of supplies like this. Lace making can be either cheap or expensive. You can start out cheap by using Styrofoam blocks and wooden dowels. To many people, dropping $30 on a bobbin or paying $200 for a lace pillow is not a big deal. You could easily spend $30-$40 on a single bobbin with these suppliers and pay potentially hundreds for a pattern. There is always somebody making something more complicated or more beautiful. Conventions are for teaching people new things about lace making.
