Stitch 'n Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook (60 page)
Read Stitch 'n Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook Online
Authors: Debbie Stoller
Hill Country Weavers
1701 South Congress
Austin, TX 78767
512-707-7396
Don’t let the country-folk-sounding name scare you off. This is actually a fairly hip little cottage with a decent variety of yarns. I’m from L.A., where there tends to be a little bit of knitting snobbery in some of the shops. You won’t find that here!
Vickie Howell
BOONVILLE, INDIANA
The Village Knitter
8A West Jennings
Newburgh, IN 47630
812-842-2360
Docia, the owner, is very knowledgeable, is always willing to help, will order anything she can get from suppliers, and will even carry lines that you suggest.
Chris Behme
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
A Good Yarn
4 Station Street
Brookline, MA 02446
617-731-4900
A colorful shop with reasonably priced yarns and a welcoming feel. The owner, Beverly, really takes the time to help you with projects and has a big table where people are always working on things.
Amy Corveleyn
Mind’s Eye Yarns
22 White Street
Cambridge, MA 02140
617-354-7253
The owner, Lucy, carries mostly natural-fiber yarns. She even stocks some of her own hand-spun yarns, and she spins in the store. The atmosphere is cozy, and even though the shop is small, it never feels overcrowded. Lucy’s a good teacher and a fabulous enabler!
Dyana Fine
Windsor Button
35 Temple Place
Boston, MA 02111-1305
617-482-4969
Charming in a quirky, anti-yuppie way, Windsor Button has an interesting vibe, and it’s located right off the Common in a forgotten block near wig shops and an antique bookseller. It’s an old button and sewing shop that has expanded its yarn selection by leaps and bounds.
Aimee Dawson
Woolcott and Company
61 JFK Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
617-547-2837
Next door to the Redline Bar (where a Stitch ’n Bitch is held weekly), Woolcott and Company focuses on natural fibers but also carries some novelty yarns. The people who work there are obsessive about knitting, and the wool overflows from the shelves. Knitters like to stop by and show off what they’ve made.
Jessica Marcus
BURLINGTON, VERMONT, AREA
Kaleidoscope Yarns
15 Pearl Street
Essex Junction, VT 05452
802-288-9200
Just outside Burlington, this store is an embarrassment of riches. Beautiful custom yarns and a huge selection of knitting supplies make this a favorite in the area.
Rebecca Schiff
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
Arcadia Knitting
1211 West Balmoral Avenue
Chicago, IL 60640-1308
773-293-1211
In the lovely Andersonville neighborhood on Chicago’s North Side, Arcadia is owned by two delightfully quirky sisters. They have lovely yarn. Also, they spend time with you if you need help or advice trying to figure things out. My favorite part of the store is their clearance bin, where all yarns are only $4.
Jennifer Mindel
Knitting Workshop
2218 North Lincoln Avenue
Chicago, IL 60640
773-929-5776
Knitting Workshop carries lots of designer yarns as well as good old standards. This shop has more books than other city shops and displays projects that inspire you to knit. Shop owner Mary offers classes as well as a weekly knit night.
Michele Cullom
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO
Green Valley Knitters & Weavers Supply
2115 West Colorado Avenue
Colorado Springs, CO 809043305
719-448-9963
800-457-8559
This store is absolutely fabulous! It’s not big, but very cozy. The class schedule is excellent, and the owners are kind and down-to-earth. They even have a shop dog and shop-dog-in-training.
Melanie Wallace
EDMONTON, CANADA
Knit & Purl
10412 124th Street
Edmonton, AB T5N 1R5
780-482-2150
Knit & Purl carries a wide variety of domestic and international yarns in all price ranges and has great novelty yarns. The staff will help you customize your garment so that it is a “one-of-a-kind” piece. Or if a pattern doesn’t fit, they will adjust it for your body type.
Penny Erickson
LAWRENCE, KANSAS
Yarn Barn
930 Massachusetts
Lawrence, KS 66044
785-842-4333
Yarn Barn has a great selection, and the staff are quick to adopt new things. They also stock weaving yarns, fleece, looms, and spinning wheels. I am glad it’s such a ways away from me, or I’d be spending more money there than I already do.
Roberta Bragg
LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA
Alamitos Bay Yarn Company
174 Marina Drive
Long Beach, CA 90803
562-799-8484
This store has a very helpful staff, a beautiful selection, and even a birthday club.
Tina Paredes
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
Knit Cafe
8441 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90069
323-658-5648
Susan Mischner’s brightly colored store is much more than a place to purchase yarn and needles. Knit Cafe is also a cozy hangout, a favorite for those in the entertainment industry who want to knit in the company of others and talk shop.
Julia Rubin
Suss Designs
7354 Beverly Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90036
312-954-9637
Their selection is yummy and still competitively priced, and all the yarns are swatched (which really gives you a taste of what these yarns will do). The finished articles around the store are incredibly inspiring. Suss also has her own line of easy and hip patterns.
Hilda Erb
MIDDLETOWN, RHODE ISLAND
Knitting Traditions and More
1077 Aquidneck Avenue
Middletown, RI 02842
401-847-2373
Recently redesigned, with a big sign boasting “the largest scarf bar in New England,” this yarn and bead shop is owned by a handful of women who really love to knit. They encourage you to come in and touch everything.
Rubi McGrory
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA
Needlework Unlimited
3006 West 50th Street
Minneapolis, MN 55410
612-925-2454
888-925-2454
The staff in this cozy shop is quintessential Minnesota Nice. They are widely respected for their fiber and stitching expertise as well as for their willingness to aid and teach knitters of all levels. Their wonderful selection of knitting inventory also includes supplies for crocheting and tatting (a Scandinavian tradition). They have a frequent buyer program that makes me feel a bit less guilty about indulging my knitting obsession.
Susan Devoe
MONTREAL, CANADA
Magasin de Fibre L. B. Inc.: La Bobineuse de Laine
2270 Mont-Royal East
Montreal, QC H2H 1K6
514-521-9000
Here they sell yarn by the pound and they’ll spool together a selection of different fibers from their vast assortment for you. The staff is really warm and the prices are super-cheap.
Alanna Lynch
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
Downtown Yarns
45 Avenue A
New York, NY 10009
212-995-5991
This shop is like a little piece of western Massachusetts snuggled up in the East Village. They don’t have a compost heap out back, but they do have a terrific selection of yarns in different price ranges and an adorable dog who will wag his tail for free.
Susanna Goldfinger
Knitting Hands
398 Atlantic Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11217
718-858-5648
This place
rocks!
It’s one of the many reasons to go to Brooklyn. They have both high- and low-end yarns—
and
good karma.
Kathleen Woodberry
Knitting Salon
8 Windsor Place
Brooklyn, NY 11218
718-499-0135
718-499-2782
This store offers a touch of the spiritual: The owner, Prophet, hosts silent meditation and needlework sessions as well as unraveling parties. After all, as the true knitter knows, it’s the process, not the product.
RS
P&S Fabrics Corps
355 Broadway
New York, NY 10013
212-226-1534
866-740-0316
Not just a knitting store, but a cheap-yarn bonanza. Lots of Lion Brand (some of the best prices around), Red Heart, and other brands. They also stock Patons booklets, books, needles, and supplies.
Olugbemisola Amusashonubi-Perkovich
Purl
137 Sullivan Street
New York, NY 10012
212-420-8796
The walls are painted a soothing mint green and the floor-to-ceiling shelves hold a rainbow assortment of mostly luxury yarns. Purl’s SoHo location makes it the prime destination for crafty fashionistas, and the women who work there are hip and friendly.
Susanna Goldfinger
School Products Co., Inc.
1201 Broadway
New York, NY 10001
212-679-3516
If you’re from out of town, this should be the first yarn store you visit in NYC. In addition to some of the usual suspects, you’ll find cheap cones of mohair, angora, cashmere, and other specialty yarns left over from designer knitwear factories. Only in New York, kids, only in New York.
DS
Seaport Yarn
135 William Street, near Fulton
New York, NY 10038
212-608-3100
It might not look like much from the outside, but once inside the store, you won’t be disappointed. There are several rooms of yarn, everything from Artful Yarns to Adrienne Vittadini, and the prices are the lowest in the city.
Elaine Hamilton
The Yarn Company
2274 Broadway, 2nd floor
New York, NY 10024
212-787-7878
888-YARNCO1
The Yarn Company carries a wide selection of imported and hand-dyed yarns and a large variety of patterns. The staff are very helpful and welcome you to come in, take a seat, and knit, knit, knit.
Kathleen Woodberry
Unique Knitkraft
257 West 39th Street
New York, NY 10018
212-840-6950
Unique Knitkraft carries lots of European and Asian yarns and some Patons at great prices. You’ll be able to pick up a nice surprise every time you visit.
Olugbemisola Amusashonubi-Perkovich
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA
Sophie’s Yarns
918 Pine Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
215-925-KNIT
Sophie’s Yarns recently moved to a sunny, roomy shop with gorgeous yarns and books, all beautifully displayed. They host regular classes and knitting circles. I always feel welcome, even if I’m just browsing.
Kitty Schmidt
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
ImagiKnit
3897 18th Street
San Francisco, CA 94114
415-621-6642
A cozy, well-stocked, and very inviting shop. ImagiKnit is the kind of place that you want to visit just because the atmosphere is so nice. One can get lost just handling the yarns, flipping through the books and patterns, or sitting in the back and working out the latest trouble spot with a friendly staff member.
Michael Cooper
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON
Hilltop Yarn
2224 Queen Anne Avenue North
Seattle, WA 98109
206-282-1332
Beautiful yarn, personal service, and expert instruction and advice can be found in this warm, elegantly restored Craftsman-style home in the Queen Anne shopping district.
Jennifer Hill
WASHINGTON, D.C., AREA
Knit and Stitch=Bliss
4706 Bethesda Avenue
Bethesda, MD 20814
301-652-7194