Ah, another year of the AOA Student Design Competition is coming to a close. The eight finalists will be coming to the AOA National Fleece Show in Denver in a few weeks. It will be great fun to meet them in person, spend some time with a group of 18- to 21-year-old students getting ready to launch their careers in designing fashions and textiles, and hopefully utilize alpaca fiber as they go along. That's the hope.