Happy Thanksgiving, and On Snobby Knitting Shops

Today, I am thankful for the friends who have stood by me, even when I was at my craziest (and let's face it, I made batshit look sane), my family for always helping me when I need it (and Lord do I need it), and for having "snobby" knitting shops that are less than an hour's drive away.

Now, I say "snobby" (and yes, I used air quotes while I was thinking out this post), but that's just because saying "Local" isn't always true. In San Jose, there is ONE local yarn shop (lys for short). And the people there are nice, but it is a little scary how much Cascade yarn varieties and colors they have (and now I think I've lost both of the two people who informed me that they actually read this. Crap.)

On the off chance you are still here, I will continue my information sharing. Back to the shop: They do not, however, carry my favorite maker of yarn: the elusive Malabrigo. Anyone who has met Malabrigo knows how amazing it is. If sex were a yarn...okay, that's a bad analogy, I appologise. The problem is, the company is very sporadic as to when it ships yarn out and what it ships to each store. If you find a color you like, buy it now, because there is no guarantee you will EVER find it again.

That was a bit of a tangent, and I appologise, again. So the next closest shop that carries my beloved is in Los Gatos. Not too far away, but to get there, I have to take the 17, and should I miss my exit (which, let's face it, I am more than likely to do) I am stuck on the 17 until I get to...a lot further away than I wanted to go. The shop is smaller than the one in SJ, but the staff is uber friendly and willing to help you find what you need, even if you don't plan to buy it from them just yet.

The next closest, and likely the one I'll go to should I miss my exit to the one in LG, is a small shop in Santa Cruz. I almost never buy from them, because their stash is pretty limited, but I love the atmosphere there so much that I sometimes just go to sit and chat with the store owners. And it is right down the cliff from the wharf, so I can pop in and get myself some chocolate covered bacon and chocolate covered gummy bears when I am done knitting/chatting. Btw - DO NOT KNOCK THE BACON UNTIL YOU"VE TRIED IT! I love it, and I don't actually like pork, or anything that comes off of a pig for that matter.

Now the BEST lys I have gone to is all the way up in SF, in the Mission District. The GOOD part of the district (yes, it does exist. There are many nice houses and cars to prove it.) They have all the Malabrigo a knitter in the bay could ever hope to find in one location. Which is not saying much considering how few Bay lys actually carry any Malabrigo....but I digress. Once again, there is the chatty, friendly atmosphere that has actually led to this long tangent that was supposed to be summed up in one short phrase: Snobby yarn shops actually are not snobby.

I think I will end this now, before I lose what ever audience I might have left. As a parting gift, I will leave you with the links to the shops I discussed above.

San Jose - The Knitting Room
Los Gatos - YarnDogs
Santa Cruz - The Swift Stitch
San Francisco - ImagiKnit