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#1
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Would you believe
I went to the LYS today to buy a set of DPNs so I can start the sleeves of
my sweater...and I bought ONLY what I went in for! I do have to say, the atmosphere in my LYS has changed over the last couple of years. Until about 3 years ago there was another more knitting-oriented store. The owner of that store retired, so the erstwhile weaving store has picked up the slack. Now that handknitting is such a popular hobby she's really gotten uptight about things. The place is stuffed with yarn, most if it nothing I care to knit with -- nasty ribbons, eyelash, hairy mohair (yes, I did buy some last week at a different YS but it was cheap on sale). Today she had a knitting group in the front room blocking access to most of the yarn I was interested in looking at - the sock yarns and the worsted knitting yarns. Couldn't get there from here, which is probably a good thing for my checkbook, but was irritating at the time. I guess its a good thing I know how to spin! |
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#2
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Nah, mostly I just wanted to bitch, er, complain. I had no intention of
buying yarn, but that doesn't mean I didn't want to pet some! "Katherine Burgess" wrote in message ... I was about to say "congratulations", Slinky, but I guess that you are looking more for sympathy. Poor baby! Hope your yarn shop reverts to something more friendly to you. Do you feel better now? g Katherine "SlinkyToy" wrote in message . .. I went to the LYS today to buy a set of DPNs so I can start the sleeves of my sweater...and I bought ONLY what I went in for! I do have to say, the atmosphere in my LYS has changed over the last couple of years. Until about 3 years ago there was another more knitting-oriented store. The owner of that store retired, so the erstwhile weaving store has picked up the slack. Now that handknitting is such a popular hobby she's really gotten uptight about things. The place is stuffed with yarn, most if it nothing I care to knit with -- nasty ribbons, eyelash, hairy mohair (yes, I did buy some last week at a different YS but it was cheap on sale). Today she had a knitting group in the front room blocking access to most of the yarn I was interested in looking at - the sock yarns and the worsted knitting yarns. Couldn't get there from here, which is probably a good thing for my checkbook, but was irritating at the time. I guess its a good thing I know how to spin! |
#3
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| On Thu, 24 Jul 2003 18:52:25 GMT, "SlinkyToy" wrote:
I went to the LYS today to buy a set of DPNs so I can start the sleeves of my sweater...and I bought ONLY what I went in for! Well at that point I was ready to be proud of your will power. I do have to say, the atmosphere in my LYS has changed over the last couple of years. Until about 3 years ago there was another more knitting-oriented store. The owner of that store retired, so the erstwhile weaving store has picked up the slack. Now that handknitting is such a popular hobby she's really gotten uptight about things. The place is stuffed with yarn, most if it nothing I care to knit with -- nasty ribbons, eyelash, hairy mohair (yes, I did buy some last week at a different YS but it was cheap on sale). Ahem, some of us love nasty ribbons and eyelash, if not hairy mohair. For one thing these are things I cannot spin at home. My LYS stays in business because of the popularity of those novelties for scarf knitting. Otherwise she'd be hard up competing with Michael's and Walmart. Today she had a knitting group in the front room blocking access to most of the yarn I was interested in looking at - the sock yarns and the worsted knitting yarns. Couldn't get there from here, which is probably a good thing for my checkbook, but was irritating at the time. Well, that's a bad problem if customers can't get to the displays! But golly, fingering yarn and worsted DK are what I spin best! I do like the commercial sock yarns, though, especially the computer-dyed self-patterning ones made with superwash and that little bit of nylon for strength. I haven't had to darn any socks since I switched to those. I guess its a good thing I know how to spin! It is. It's a joy to make things all the way from fiber to finish, even without such provocation. Helen "Halla" Fleischer, Fantasy & Fiber Artist in Fairland, MD USA http://home.covad.net/~drgandalf/halla/ |
#4
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Gosh, let a girl have a rant
This particular YS was doing fine business as a weaving shop. It was (back then) the only place I could find decent cotton yarn to use for things like baby sweaters and whatnot. With the advent of Helen's Yarn Barn (yes, that was the shop's name) closing and knitting becoming a trendy activity, the remaining, former weaving shop, has turned into a yuppified joint in which her long-time customers (me) feel like outcasts. When the place is full of trendy 30-somethings discussing their Louis Vuitton knock-off bags and their Tods moccasins and shoppers with money in their pockets can't actually shop, something is definitely wrong. IMO. PS -- I *did* buy three sets of DPNs. On the theory that I'll want to work both sleeves at once and probably will need more than four dpns to pick up the sleeves initially. Never hurts to have spares. Ok, I *can* say a nice thing about the "new and improved" LYS - she hasn't raised prices on needles an iota in years. I paid $4 per set for INOX DPNs yesterday. "Helen "Halla" Fleischer" wrote in message ... | On Thu, 24 Jul 2003 18:52:25 GMT, "SlinkyToy" wrote: I went to the LYS today to buy a set of DPNs so I can start the sleeves of my sweater...and I bought ONLY what I went in for! Well at that point I was ready to be proud of your will power. |
#5
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| On Fri, 25 Jul 2003 14:45:49 GMT, "SlinkyToy" wrote:
Gosh, let a girl have a rant But of course! This particular YS was doing fine business as a weaving shop. It was (back then) the only place I could find decent cotton yarn to use for things like baby sweaters and whatnot. With the advent of Helen's Yarn Barn (yes, that was the shop's name) closing and knitting becoming a trendy activity, the remaining, former weaving shop, has turned into a yuppified joint in which her long-time customers (me) feel like outcasts. When the place is full of trendy 30-somethings discussing their Louis Vuitton knock-off bags and their Tods moccasins and shoppers with money in their pockets can't actually shop, something is definitely wrong. IMO. I know the feeling. One of our MD weaving stores did that, too. Now it isn't worth the trip, since it's 90% the same stuff as my LYS and at higher prices. Oh, but I would love to have gone to your shop when it was Helen's Yarn Barn! I used to buy my purses from a shop called Helen's Handbags. I have a soft spot for such names. I guess the desperate hope of yarn shop owners is that by hooking bored yuppies on knitting, they can keep their heads above water, now and in the future if they continue the habit. But never at the expense of making it difficult for anyone to shop! That's a big no-no in my book. PS -- I *did* buy three sets of DPNs. On the theory that I'll want to work both sleeves at once and probably will need more than four dpns to pick up the sleeves initially. Never hurts to have spares. Ok, I *can* say a nice thing about the "new and improved" LYS - she hasn't raised prices on needles an iota in years. I paid $4 per set for INOX DPNs yesterday. I don't think the wholesale on those has gone up in all that time, either, because the same is true at my LYS. I have the same theory on spares and I love to work sleeves at the same time, especially when I'm making them up as I go along. Helen "Halla" Fleischer, Fantasy & Fiber Artist in Fairland, MD USA http://home.covad.net/~drgandalf/halla/ |
#6
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I must admit that I am awfully envious of you guys having so many places
around you that sell yarn. It (knitting) doesn't seem to really have caught on over here (UK) quite as much and finding a small independent yarn shop is like looking for hen's teeth. And even those are more haberdashers than wool shops so have very little choice. My nearest is nearly an hour away which is a nuisance when I find that I don't have the right sized needles or have lost my stitch holder (yet again) or just have the urge to satisfy my wool-obsessed consumerism. Apart from the occasional guilty foray into John Lewis' I've been trying to support small businesses by using the old fashioned wool shops but have had so little luck finding a good one since I moved that today I went to the Hobbycraft superstore and have now been converted to the Dark Side. There was so much choice! (The department store had given over half the wool space to garden furniture so I had to try the big out-of-town shops) I must admit that the experience was all the more enjoyable as I had free rein to indulge my yarn fetish as much as I wanted. I have a really good excuse - for the first time I know in advance what colour to knit the bootees! Pink! Claire (gleefully counting her skeins in many shades of girly pink) "Helen "Halla" Fleischer" wrote in message ... | On Fri, 25 Jul 2003 14:45:49 GMT, "SlinkyToy" wrote: Gosh, let a girl have a rant But of course! This particular YS was doing fine business as a weaving shop. It was (back then) the only place I could find decent cotton yarn to use for things like baby sweaters and whatnot. With the advent of Helen's Yarn Barn (yes, that was the shop's name) closing and knitting becoming a trendy activity, the remaining, former weaving shop, has turned into a yuppified joint in which her long-time customers (me) feel like outcasts. When the place is full of trendy 30-somethings discussing their Louis Vuitton knock-off bags and their Tods moccasins and shoppers with money in their pockets can't actually shop, something is definitely wrong. IMO. I know the feeling. One of our MD weaving stores did that, too. Now it isn't worth the trip, since it's 90% the same stuff as my LYS and at higher prices. Oh, but I would love to have gone to your shop when it was Helen's Yarn Barn! I used to buy my purses from a shop called Helen's Handbags. I have a soft spot for such names. I guess the desperate hope of yarn shop owners is that by hooking bored yuppies on knitting, they can keep their heads above water, now and in the future if they continue the habit. But never at the expense of making it difficult for anyone to shop! That's a big no-no in my book. PS -- I *did* buy three sets of DPNs. On the theory that I'll want to work both sleeves at once and probably will need more than four dpns to pick up the sleeves initially. Never hurts to have spares. Ok, I *can* say a nice thing about the "new and improved" LYS - she hasn't raised prices on needles an iota in years. I paid $4 per set for INOX DPNs yesterday. I don't think the wholesale on those has gone up in all that time, either, because the same is true at my LYS. I have the same theory on spares and I love to work sleeves at the same time, especially when I'm making them up as I go along. Helen "Halla" Fleischer, Fantasy & Fiber Artist in Fairland, MD USA http://home.covad.net/~drgandalf/halla/ |
#7
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"Claire" wrote snip .. Apart from the occasional guilty foray into John Lewis' I've been trying to support small businesses by using the old fashioned wool shops but have had so little luck finding a good one since I moved that today I went to the Hobbycraft superstore and have now been converted to the Dark Side. Welcome to the Dark Side, Claire! We all live here, quite happily. g Katherine |
#8
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"Claire" wrote in message ... I must admit that I am awfully envious of you guys having so many places around you that sell yarn. It (knitting) doesn't seem to really have caught on over here (UK) quite as much and finding a small independent yarn shop is like looking for hen's teeth. I am in Scotland Claire and the only place I can get decent wool is in John Lewis. I always wait for my annual trip down to Yorkshire and stock up then. There is a super wool shop in Thirsk and when I was down there a few weeks ago they had a sale))) And even those are more haberdashers than wool shops so have very little choice. My nearest is nearly an hour away which is a nuisance when I find that I don't have the right sized needles or have lost my stitch holder (yet again) or just have the urge to satisfy my wool-obsessed consumerism. Apart from the occasional guilty foray into John Lewis' I've been trying to support small businesses by using the old fashioned wool shops but have had so little luck finding a good one since I moved that today I went to the Hobbycraft superstore and have now been converted to the Dark Side. There was so much choice! (The department store Where is there a Hobbycraft shop?? I am not sure we get them up here I would love to visit one though next time I am south of the border. had given over half the wool space to garden furniture so I had to try the big out-of-town shops) It is very good to support local shops but you first have to find them Ophelia |
#9
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Ophelia --
Jamieson&Smith Woolbrokers in Lerwick on Shetland do mail order and their stuff is to die for. Order a color card and a single hank of say, natural white jumper weight. Then you'll know the hand of the yarn AND have the entire color line at your disposal. Michelle Who has an entire bin of J&S at UK prices thanks to a friend near Reading and who needs to start knitting it up one of these years PS -- the one "wool shop" I found in the Hampshire/Reading area when I was there a few years ago was populated largely by tacky handicrafts and a huge woman who smoked like a chimney. All the wool were wee DK skeins in two bins directly under the worst of the smog. I bought one at 30p so that I could say I had some British yarn. Then I heard about J&S... "Ophelia" wrote in message ... "Claire" wrote in message ... I must admit that I am awfully envious of you guys having so many places around you that sell yarn. It (knitting) doesn't seem to really have caught on over here (UK) quite as much and finding a small independent yarn shop is like looking for hen's teeth. I am in Scotland Claire and the only place I can get decent wool is in John Lewis. I always wait for my annual trip down to Yorkshire and stock up then. There is a super wool shop in Thirsk and when I was down there a few weeks ago they had a sale))) And even those are more haberdashers than wool shops so have very little choice. My nearest is nearly an hour away which is a nuisance when I find that I don't have the right sized needles or have lost my stitch holder (yet again) or just have the urge to satisfy my wool-obsessed consumerism. Apart from the occasional guilty foray into John Lewis' I've been trying to support small businesses by using the old fashioned wool shops but have had so little luck finding a good one since I moved that today I went to the Hobbycraft superstore and have now been converted to the Dark Side. There was so much choice! (The department store Where is there a Hobbycraft shop?? I am not sure we get them up here I would love to visit one though next time I am south of the border. had given over half the wool space to garden furniture so I had to try the big out-of-town shops) It is very good to support local shops but you first have to find them Ophelia |
#10
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http://www.shetland-wool-brokers.zetnet.co.uk/
Just between you, me, and the 3k other readers of this list, J&S is thought to be the supplier for VY yarns (ie, AS yarns). "Ophelia" wrote in message ... Thank you Slinky) I shall investigate further Is there a website or phone number please? O Jamieson&Smith Woolbrokers in Lerwick on Shetland do mail order and their stuff is to die for. Order a color card and a single hank of say, natural white jumper weight. Then you'll know the hand of the yarn AND have the entire color line at your disposal. Michelle Who has an entire bin of J&S at UK prices thanks to a friend near Reading and who needs to start knitting it up one of these years PS -- the one "wool shop" I found in the Hampshire/Reading area when I was there a few years ago was populated largely by tacky handicrafts and a huge woman who smoked like a chimney. All the wool were wee DK skeins in two bins directly under the worst of the smog. I bought one at 30p so that I could say I had some British yarn. Then I heard about J&S... "Ophelia" wrote in message ... "Claire" wrote in message ... I must admit that I am awfully envious of you guys having so many places around you that sell yarn. It (knitting) doesn't seem to really have caught on over here (UK) quite as much and finding a small independent yarn shop is like looking for hen's teeth. I am in Scotland Claire and the only place I can get decent wool is in John Lewis. I always wait for my annual trip down to Yorkshire and stock up then. There is a super wool shop in Thirsk and when I was down there a few weeks ago they had a sale))) And even those are more haberdashers than wool shops so have very little choice. My nearest is nearly an hour away which is a nuisance when I find that I don't have the right sized needles or have lost my stitch holder (yet again) or just have the urge to satisfy my wool-obsessed consumerism. Apart from the occasional guilty foray into John Lewis' I've been trying to support small businesses by using the old fashioned wool shops but have had so little luck finding a good one since I moved that today I went to the Hobbycraft superstore and have now been converted to the Dark Side. There was so much choice! (The department store Where is there a Hobbycraft shop?? I am not sure we get them up here I would love to visit one though next time I am south of the border. had given over half the wool space to garden furniture so I had to try the big out-of-town shops) It is very good to support local shops but you first have to find them Ophelia |
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