Yarn (Store) Pr0n: The Knitting Nest

Last Friday, I was all excited about the grand opening of the The Knitting Nest. After work I ran home for a shower, got my things together and fought the Friday afternoon traffic to South Austin.

When I finally got there, I took this picture of the sign. Then I walked up to the door. And it was locked.

I pressed my face against the window, wondering what happened. Maybe I was too late? Or too early? Was it an afternoon event?

I went back to my car, and tried to figure it out. I was so sure it was Sept 22.

Then I realized Sept. 22 was on Saturday. I was a day early.

So I had some dinner, visited my parents, went home and got up the next morning to attend the grand opening.

When I arrived, I discovered that the grand opening had been moved to October 13. But this time I didn't mind, because at least they were open. I would have gone on Saturday either way.

I spoke with Stacy the owner, and she had decided to push back the grand opening to wait for some new shipments of yarn, including some Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock (including colors from my Alma Mater, the school formerly known as SWT, and St. Edward's University) and, the one I've been waiting for, Hill Country Yarns.

Here is the store.






Here is one of the cool sitting areas. They're having knit-outs on Monday nights.














Here is the other sitting area.

Stacy talked to other knitters before opening shop, and one of the things they said was they didn't want a lot of novelty yarns or super-expensive yarn. The result is a true Elizabeth Zimmerman style shop with lots of affordable, sensible, versatile wools and wool blends. It's the kind of store where you can buy a sweater's worth of yarn at a reasonable price.

And the number one yarn that the knitters requested was...

CASCADE!

I don't think I've ever seen so much Cascade 220 in one place, and in so many different colors. I don't think I even got the whole wall in this picture. From what I've heard, "The Great Wall of Cascade" has already become a favorite for photo shoots. And there is more that's not in the wall.





Here is some Quatro. I think they also had some Superwash on another shelf.

























Here is some Queensland Kathmandu, which I thought would be scratchy, but it's actually very soft. A little bit of silk and cashmere make a big difference.











The store also has a lot of Elsebeth Lavold, including some I hadn't seen before. This is Baby Llama. It's so soft, and I'm looking for a reason to use it.











Chunky Al is another one I want to try. It's half wool and half alpaca.














This wall is mostly Farmhouse Yarns. It's a very sturdy wool.

Speaking of sturdy...
















They have Peace Fleece, and a very nice selection. They have some of the company's patterns and other items.
















I love these little "Learn to Knit" kits from Peace Fleece.

















They've been raving about O-Wool Balance on Stash and Burn.



















I had to try the O-Wool Balance. I picked up a skein, along with some dpns. I'll probably swatch it. It may be a Morrigan candidate.













They have a lot of other little treasures. I love these sock monkey project bags. And the little guy with the little hat. (The tiny hat is made of O-Wool Balance, the same colorway I bought.)











They have a good button collection as well.














I have to get one of these shirts.














Stacy really likes Tom Hanks. Really, really likes him. She named her dog after him.















Finally, this is Stacy, the owner. She's originally from the Houston area, but she and her husband spent a lot of time in Austin attending Longhorn games. (BTW - they wanted to get Lorna's Laces in Longhorn colors, but a shop in Houston has already claimed that colorway.) So they decided to move here and set up shop.

Ok, so Saturday, October 13 is now the big grand opening. Hopefully the third time's a charm and I'll get it right. I didn't make Monday's knit out (I was too tired.) I'm going to try to make it next week.