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Portland, Oregon: Yarn Heaven

Portland, Oregon, is the city of roses, sure. But in my mind it will always be the city of yarn.

I went to college in PDX, right at the end of the 90s (though we know the dream is still alive), and back then I knew of one, maybe two go-to yarn stores. I’ve since moved to Los Angeles, but every time I return to Portland for a visit, I swear another yarn store has popped up.

During my last trip, I visited two stores for the first time. The first was Happy Knits on SE Hawthorne, where I was welcomed with such warmth and surrounded by fiber goodness.

It also happens to be directly across the street from a McMenamins Pub, where you can go get some local brews and admire your new skeins.

Then I visited Yarnia on SE Division, which is definitely the most unique yarn store I’ve ever visited. Instead of carrying commercial yarn, Yarnia has cones of single-ply fibers that you can blend into your own custom yarns. Pricing varies by fiber, but I got 820 yards of an alpaca/lurex blend for about $22!

Here’s a Vine I made of the process:

And some more video of the winding:

I highly recommend visiting if you find yourself in PDX. Just make sure you wax your handlebar mustache and work on your ice-picking skills before flying in — you don’t want to stand out too much! 🙂

Categorized in: Musings