I feel that you were at a disadvantage for the contest. How much would I spend? Usually I don't buy much. In fact, I came home from the Vermont Sheep and Wool having spent nothing on fiber. ZERO. But the New York Sheep and Wool is a bit tougher for me because of 1 booth. Foxfire.
And the little detail that you did not know was that I totally fell in love with the cormo silk yarn used for my Charlotte's scarf and I had pretty much decided that I would buy a sweaters worth of it. Although they did not have the cormo silk this year, they DID have cormo silk ALPACA. I'm all about it.
So, thank you for guessing low. I am usually a bit more frugal than I was this year.
I bought: (each and every purchase boosting the US economy thank you very much)

11 skeins of cormo/silk/alpaca in Natural colorway, Foxfire: $242.oo
3 skeins of fox sox yarn for mittens, Foxfire : $ 14.42
1 Bird in Hand mitten pattern, Foxfire : $ 7.00
1 DPN size 2, Foxfire (very special Grafton Fibers DPNs) : $ 31.00
1 Deerpath Socks pattern, Foxfire : $ 7.00
2 skeins fox socks yarn for blog prize, Foxfire : $ 28.00
1 Ice breaker hat pattern, Green Mountain Spinnery : $ 6.50
4 skeins Green Mountain spinnery Mountain Mohair : $ 50.00
________
$385.92

Grand total is $385.92. My wallet is a bit sore tonight. But as I told my boss today, I don't smoke or drink (much), I don't gamble or do drugs. I knit. Everyone has something.
The winner is KELLY who guessed $378.62. A pretty great guess, huh?

~~~
By the way, yesterday's story was full of CRAP. It's true. Apparently, there were a certain group of people, I'm not going to name any names but these certain people had a bit of a navigation accident with a luggage cart, bottles of beer and chocolate covered espresso beans.
Now. I have seen chocolate covered espresso beans before and they never looked like deer scat. Perhaps rabbit poo but not deer. These espresso beans were quite large for their kind.
So, if anyone ever asks? Spilled beer and chocolate covered espresso beans CAN indeed look like a deer public bathroom.
When I got that email I almost laughed until I cried. Honestly! If you could have seen Norma, Leigh, Jen and I marveling over nature right there in the doorway of the hotel! What kind of deer would do that? We pictured the deer and everything.
Is my face red!
Well, at least Kelly can now think of the contest yarn as espresso beans and beer yarn instead of poo yarn. That would be the silver lining I suppose.
This would be the place in the blog entry that I planned to put in a picture of the ribbing of my new fancy schmancy knitting, the sweater named Town and Country from A Fine Fleece in that natural colored Foxfire yarn. A picture of ribbing. And a comment something like this:
I'm ready for my ribbing now.
And everyone could proceed to laugh and generally poke fun at me/us for thinking beer and coffee beans are deer poo.
But? I forgot to take a picture of the ribbing.
You can picture it though, right?