I had a sad email last week: my local yarn store is closing down. Their lease is coming to an end in September and, after a difficult six months' trading, they have decided not to renew it. Everything in stock is available at 25% discount.
A selection of the sock yarns I bought from the store, together with some knitting accessories. I love the needle stoppers!
I went into to see them on Wednesday. The shop was full of people coming and going, talking about their experiences. So many of the women who came in said they had learned to knit and crochet through classes run by the shop. One of the sad things will be the loss of community that has been built around the store.
I felt overwhelmed by the choice. Just the previous week, I had done my clearance sale run and picked yarn for my next projects. I had finally indulged in some Noro Kureopatora) (colour: Utashinai, no. 1025)- beautiful, handcrafted yarn from Japan. I love the philosophy behind Noro:
Harmonize natural unevenness, asymmetric pattern and complex color to portray the beauty of the nature. Taking sufficient time to dye and yarn natural flavors and tenderness of materials to preserve their original characters and deliver them into the hands of you.
All animal fibers that are used in the yarns come from certified organic farms, from international sources such as Australia, the Falkland Islands and South Africa. Noro is personally involved with inspecting all aspects of production, from visiting the animal farms to checking the machinery used and keeping restrictions on the dye processes to maintain products that are as eco-friendly as possible.
He says "Friction, rubbing and heat during processing weaken the fibers in direct proportion to the length of time they are processed. By dramatically shortening this process, we are preventing damage to the enzymes in the fibers and simultaneously profiting the environment."
BE FREE FROM EXISTING CONCEPTS AND LIMITATION PURSUE THE IMAGE IN OUR MIND Source
However, I had a browse to see what stock they had. Finally, I lit on the sock yarn: I am intending to replace all my commercial winter socks as they wear out with woollen knitted ones, so this was an opportunity to get some stash. I chose colour combinations that I wouldn't normally work with, I thought that would be a good exercise for me.
I'm pleased with the striping on the cuff of the first sock, especially how the colour changes worked around the heel (on the right hand side).
I found a video with three examples of stretchy cast ons for getting an elastic edge for the cuffs of socks and other garments. Each one also has a nice finish at the edge.
I may go back to the yarn shop in a week or two, and see what's left and whether there are any other bargains.
The owner of the shop has some other exciting plans. She has been developing kits in the shop which are very popular. She's going to be selling them through Etsy. Things change and new opportunities arrive.