Yarn Crawl Part II

Last Friday I had some returns to make in the Western Suburbs, so decided to continue the Yarn Crawl, and hopefully make it to 10 stores, which I succeeded in doing.  It was not as fun going alone however.

A couple of the stores had run out of buttons, not anticipating how popular the totes and buttons would be.  Perhaps they will have a better sense next year. Not sure exactly what I will do with the bag, but it was fun to collect them.

The crawl introduced me to a couple of new stores that I had never been to and will definitely return to.  It also alerted me to a couple that I have no interest in going to again. It was interesting to see all of the different personalities of the stores, and what their target audience is.  While no one store met my requirements for a “dream yarn shop”, there were facets of many that I liked.

Since my recent bout with Chinese fake mink yarn, it has strengthened my resolve to first purchase US or Canadian yarn, preferably with the wool sourced here, and spun and processed here also.  So, it was exciting ot see this yarn, Swans Island at String Theory (I think that they also carried it at Knit 1), all US grown and processed, 100% Rambouillet.

Swans Island yarns are custom-spun in New England and hand-dyed here in Maine. We select only the best certified organic wools and other fine fibers to create all our yarns. Each dye lot is handcrafted by artisans using traditional hand-dyeing techniques. All this care results in incredibly soft yarns with rich colors and uniquely beautiful variegation.

I spent forever looking at the colors and trying to decide what to purchase.  My thought was to make a pair of Fair Isle mitts.  Purple and Green are always a favorite combo of mine.  This is such a nice squishy woolen spun yarn.

Also at Sting Theory, I purchased this super soft Merino from Patagonia, wool folk.   They are working with Sustainable practices in Patagonia:

Woolfolk yarns combine the highest quality wool with ethical, sustainable practices. The fiber we use, Ultimate Merino®, doesn’t happen by chance, but by the innovative efforts of farmers to produce the very best wool fiber while being land stewards of the Patagonian Grasslands. Woolfolk brings this exquisitely soft and lustrous fiber in handknitting yarns that preserves the unique attributes of this luxurious wool.

This yarn is destined to become a pair of Eiffel Tower mittens, a pattern that was gifted to me on my birthday a couple of years ago.

And, while I did not purchase anything from Fiberista this past week, they are now carrying Jared Flood’s Shelter yarn.  I am truly excited to have a local source for this, and will be planning a sweater with that yarn in the fall.  Another US made and produced yarn.

We are passionate about wool, knitting and design. We develop and manufacture breed-specific yarns that support domestic textile production—designing, sourcing, dyeing and spinning our yarns within the USA. Our design team is committed to producing high-quality, sophisticated knitwear patterns for the modern handknitter, especially tailored for the wool yarns we create.

In addition to eating local, I am trying to buy local, and wool is a great place to start.

Last note, I just got an email that I won a book at one of the stores on Yarn Crawl!!!