All You Knit Is Love........

  This summer, I was lucky enough to fly to Europe to visit my fiance who was working on a cruise ship.  We went to many amazing places (someday I'll have to write about Croatia which knocked my socks off).  But our best day was spent in Barcelona.  We had only a day and still managed to fit in sight seeing, farmers market food eating, beach bathing, AND YARN SHOPPING.  For some reason the shop that we went to keeps popping up in my head and heart so... here's some info and some pics from their website.

   

THESE ARE FROM THEIR BLOG.  The artist is Daniela Edburg.

I wish I could read the blog.... but it's all in Spanish.  I do love the pics tho!

No explanation needed for this amazingness.

And this.... which might have been my favorite part of the shop.  Is the bag my yarn came in!!!  I mean come on!! How happy is this bag?

    I can't say enough about how much I loved this shop.  It is by far the happiest LYS I have ever visited. And... I took home a few very nice skeins. Do yourself a favor, check out their shop and read their lovely story.  www.allyouknitislove.com

   

           AND..... They were very crochet and needle felt friendly too!

Boston

We were scheduled to take a bus from Dayton, Ohio to Hunstville, Alabama. The day before our trip, I convinced three of the girls on tour to go in on a rental car so that we could drive ourselves to Alabama.  I must've had some sort of psychic premonition because the bus BROKE DOWN! Boy, were we lucky!   The poor group was stuck at a gas station for three hours.  We, on the other hand, slept in and had a fantastic southern meal at The Loveless Cafe just outside of Nashville and arrived in Alabama around the same time as the rest of the company.  Crazy!

    I was unable to keep the car for the rest of the week. So, a yarn shop was out of the question. I did manage to take a cab to an Anthropologie at a nearby mall, but that's a whole 'nother addiction. 

    A week later we flew from Hunstville to Boston.  I can't tell you how great it was to hear loud buses on dirty streets.  And... there was a great shop only a few blocks from our hotel!  Windsor Button had a large varied selection of yarn, a HUGE book selection, and an even BIGGER selection of notions and needles.  I bought several skeins ( ahhhh) but my most favorite is definitely the Brown Sheep Burly Spun.  I made a cowl (at the top of the page) the next day and I still have over half of the skein left!  I was generally happy with the selection at this shop, but it didn't have the warmth of other yarn shops I've visited.  It felt more like a large chain store that happened to have high end yarn in addition to more generic brands.  The woman was very helpful, but also very cold. I guess I'm just used to the warm and fuzzy feeling that comes along with a local shop.  

    

    In addition to the yarn I purchased I also bought a book I had been looking for called "The Sweater Workshop."  I'm still a new knitter and while I can read all sorts of crocheting patterns, so I think this will the perfect trick for getting me into sweater making.  If I find the time and the patience.   

  

    It's been a few weeks since we were in Boston, and I recently came across a blog and podcast called It's a Purl, Man. It is filled with great info on knitting/wooly goodness in the Boston area and wooly goodness in general.   From what I've read on his blog I am most sad that I missed the Boston Handmade Downtown.  According to their map, I must've passed it on my way to Windsor Button! Boo! I love supporting other artists.   Oh well... at least I know it's there for the next time I'm in Boston.

   The next stop on our tour is San Antonio! I'm sure I will be very happy with the warm weather and the RIVER WALK, but I've yet to find a yarn shop near my hotel.

    Happy Crafting

Dayton, Ohio

I've been very bad at updating this poor little blog!  Things have been crazy on the road.  Most importantly......... I'M ENGAGED! My wonderful bass playing man proposed in Chicago on February 8th.  He put the ring in this amazing star shaped box and painted the inside with blue sparkly paint so it looks like the stage from the first show we did together.  We couldn't be happier.  Our dreams of someday opening a dance/music/acting studio with a yarn store/coffee shop/performance space attached continue to grow. He even has a knitting machine which he is slowly learning to use! Life is good.

    Now.... yarn stores.  I was very excited when I saw that google had a yarn shop listed in downtown Dayton Ohio.  It's called the Yarn and Needle and it's on Main street.  UNFORTUNATELY I walked back and forth in front of what I thought would be 49 S Main Street about 100 times and could not find the shop.  I eventually called and learned that google was wrong.  This shop was actually in a suburb of Dayton, and about a 15 minute drive.  We are not provided with cars on this tour, so I never made it to the Yarn and Needle.  The theatre itself was lovely, but Downtown Dayton itself really didn't have too much to offer. 

    I, however, did find two great vintage clothing stores.  One (Feathers Vintage Clothing) was in the Oregon District and the other (The Look) was a short cab ride away near the University.

    It's probably a good thing I didn't make it to a LYS, my suitcase is packed with yarn.