5/21/2017
This is a guest post by Abbey
Don’t fret. Life won’t end if you don’t live close to a yarn store. But have you ever found a project you simply LOVED and wanted to try, hightailed it over to Michaels or Joann’s or Hobby Lobby, only to find out that they don’t even REMOTELY have anything close to what the pattern calls for? Hands up, because I’m sure we’ve all been there before. I know I sure have…. Almost 90% of the time. I sit back and look at the patterns, and have gotten pretty good at eyeballing them and passing them up realizing that I’ll never find yarn worthy of that prettiness.
I’ll admit. I’m a quite a newby to different yarn types (weights, worsted, etc….)…. Seriously? Yes. And to think that I’ve been crocheting since I was 4, but that’s another story. When someone asks if it’s a 4-ply or 5-ply or worsted yarn, or talks to me about sock yarn, I secretly cringe inside and probably look like I’m giving them a deer-in-a-headlight look.
I fall back on the typical RedHeart or Vanna White yarn, that can be purchased at Michaels or Joann’s, and hope and pray that that yarn will be just as pretty as a substitute. Sometimes, but not all the time does that happen.
Last summer we took a trip to Chicago, and Sarah graciously took me into Andersonville and exposed me to my first (and only since then) yarn shop. I fell in LOVE with everything that I saw and touched, and am jealous of all the fun places and things that she gets to do when it comes to yarn these days. I live in Florida, in a yarn desert. Admittedly, I hate it and sometimes wish there were more places for me to venture to. I’ve considered the whole “let’s open a business since I’m a single woman, and the government LOVES small, women business owners,” but have cautioned my tone undoubtedly because of what is actually going on in the government right now, which plain and simple is uncertainty.
So, I’ve compiled a little list of things that you can do to survive being in a yarn desert:
1. Take a trip. Take a trip like I did last year, meet someone new, someone who shares the same creativeness that you do, and hope and pray that he/she has some places up their sleeves that they can show you around too. If you find that AWESOME friend, when you’re in that store, grab a business card from them, ask them if they have other places they could recommend locally, and ask them about their shipping options. Is it better to ship in bulk? Economical to have it shipped to somewhere close to you where you could pick it up (if they have partner stores, you know…) Like how Home Depot does it: buy it online, and ship to a store near you.
2. Look online for yarn or craft stores near you, and go in there and ask if they have any recommendations of places you can go locally, or if they know someone who knows someone who knows someone…. You all know how word of mouth is typically the best for off the beaten path. You might just be surprised that someone has a favorite “shop” that they fall back on, and can get you some “first time shopper” perks (like free shipping on your first order).
3. Etsy. Though Etsy is the “go to” place now for things that are creative and homemade, I’d caution with this one. Littler “shops” typically mean higher prices. I’ll just leave that one there.
4. Blogs-Instagram-Facebook-Raverly. They are right now the best places (if you’re in a desert) to connect to people all over, and find out where they are buying their stuff. There are support groups and if you can catch the attention of someone (on a larger blog or posting where you might get lost in the shuffle), I’m sure the poster would be happy to answer your questions, or just start a dialogue of your own. People seriously are nice these days, don’t let anyone tell you elsewise.
5. Link up with the patterns. Find out what type of yarn and where the yarn came from in the patterns. Most of the time the patterns give their recommendations for the yarn (mostly whomever sponsored the pattern like Caron or something along those lines). It’s ok to use their yarns until you find something that you can substitute it for, or until you feel comfortable trying a new yarn.
Well, there are 5 ways in which you can survive a yarn desert. The main commonality between all of these is making new connections. Step out of your comfort zone, make new friends, and explore the world.
But most importantly, keep stitching!!!