And you're a reader! I just stumbled on your post and I'm thrilled.
One of my like/dislike determinations of a novel is: Do I want to have lunch with any of the characters ie get to know better. Sharing coffee so-so, lunch is good and sharing dinner a definate plus. After reading this piece you're in the dinner slot!
Sandi, I love your idea of treating yarn buying as one might treat dating. It makes so much sense. I haven’t had much in the way of bad experiences when buying “blind” online, but I really miss having a yarn shop nearby where I can sample yarns with my hands. Tallahassee had a few good shops but, one by one, they closed up until there were none.
Having once owned a yarn shop, I know it's not an easy way to make a living. The margins are just too thin, and there is too much competition from online shops.
And these shops I used to frequent were often bustling with customers and classes and were engaged with the community. I was perplexed every time one of them closed because they never seemed to lack for customers. I do fault my particular area: people are cheap around here. Oh, here’s a “funny” story: So there is a yarn shop in Thomasville, GA called The Fuzzy Goat. It’s a cute shop, been around for a while and also sells online. It’s about 30 miles from where I live so I’ve only been there a couple of times. Anyway, a friend went there recently to buy yarn for a couple shawls she wanted to knit for Christmas presents. I don’t how many skeins she bought, but she was shocked when the total came to $260. I was shocked too … shocked that she hadn’t looked at the price per skein and done the math before having it all rung up. I’ve been to the shop, I know their yarns are $$$, and I buy (or don’t buy) accordingly. But then my friend complains that yarn has just gotten too expensive. Sigh. We’ve had this conversation before. Her granddaughter is a sewer and has made a bit of $ selling her very nice, very skilled work. My friend thinks her granddaughter sells her work too high. So I gave my friend a quick lesson in all the costs that go into making a product, whether it be a skein of yarn or a handsewn purse, at an absolute minimum materials and LABOR (that would be her granddaughter’s case since she lives with my friend and doesn’t have employees). But that’s the minimum. I believe in one of your posts, you delineate the costs of making and selling yarn, which go way beyond materials and labor. It really grates one me when people want to skimp on labor costs. Anyway, I reminded my friend of our previous “lesson” regarding pricing of her granddaugther’s work, and then we dropped the subject 🙂 Perhaps I’m being unfair to my friend, but my feeling is, if you don’t like the cost, find something cheaper and shut up.
It will be interesting to see what happens to the price of "cheap" yarn if/when new tariffs go into effect. The vast majority of synthetic "craft store" yarn, along with a significant amount of higher-end "yarn store" yarn, is manufactured in China. Tariffs are paid by the company who imports the product into the country, not by the country where the products are manufactured. You can bet those costs will be passed on to the consumer.
I’m glad I have such a huge stash of yarn. I can keep myself busy for a long time. Yup, cheap yarn might not be so cheap if the tariffs go through. That might be good for U.S. yarn makers, but we’ll see. I’d rather people just have more respect for yarn producers.
I don't know how much the tariffs will boost US yarn production. We've lost much of our textile manufacturing capacity over the last 40 years. Even if/when machinery and raw materials are available, most of the knowledge and expertise required is not. When older workers retire without having the opportunity to pass on their skills to a new generation, those skills are lost.
What a helpful article...I wish I'd seen it earlier! I recently purchased many skeins of a yarn for a blanket. My on-line research went kaput when I found that in use it felt like I was knitting limp string! From now on, my research will be hand-on!
My first thought was the Second Date hat
I love it!
I love this idea of evaluating a new yarn!
And you're a reader! I just stumbled on your post and I'm thrilled.
One of my like/dislike determinations of a novel is: Do I want to have lunch with any of the characters ie get to know better. Sharing coffee so-so, lunch is good and sharing dinner a definate plus. After reading this piece you're in the dinner slot!
Welcome to the party!
Hat name : decreasing diamonds
Sandi, I love your idea of treating yarn buying as one might treat dating. It makes so much sense. I haven’t had much in the way of bad experiences when buying “blind” online, but I really miss having a yarn shop nearby where I can sample yarns with my hands. Tallahassee had a few good shops but, one by one, they closed up until there were none.
Having once owned a yarn shop, I know it's not an easy way to make a living. The margins are just too thin, and there is too much competition from online shops.
And these shops I used to frequent were often bustling with customers and classes and were engaged with the community. I was perplexed every time one of them closed because they never seemed to lack for customers. I do fault my particular area: people are cheap around here. Oh, here’s a “funny” story: So there is a yarn shop in Thomasville, GA called The Fuzzy Goat. It’s a cute shop, been around for a while and also sells online. It’s about 30 miles from where I live so I’ve only been there a couple of times. Anyway, a friend went there recently to buy yarn for a couple shawls she wanted to knit for Christmas presents. I don’t how many skeins she bought, but she was shocked when the total came to $260. I was shocked too … shocked that she hadn’t looked at the price per skein and done the math before having it all rung up. I’ve been to the shop, I know their yarns are $$$, and I buy (or don’t buy) accordingly. But then my friend complains that yarn has just gotten too expensive. Sigh. We’ve had this conversation before. Her granddaughter is a sewer and has made a bit of $ selling her very nice, very skilled work. My friend thinks her granddaughter sells her work too high. So I gave my friend a quick lesson in all the costs that go into making a product, whether it be a skein of yarn or a handsewn purse, at an absolute minimum materials and LABOR (that would be her granddaughter’s case since she lives with my friend and doesn’t have employees). But that’s the minimum. I believe in one of your posts, you delineate the costs of making and selling yarn, which go way beyond materials and labor. It really grates one me when people want to skimp on labor costs. Anyway, I reminded my friend of our previous “lesson” regarding pricing of her granddaugther’s work, and then we dropped the subject 🙂 Perhaps I’m being unfair to my friend, but my feeling is, if you don’t like the cost, find something cheaper and shut up.
It will be interesting to see what happens to the price of "cheap" yarn if/when new tariffs go into effect. The vast majority of synthetic "craft store" yarn, along with a significant amount of higher-end "yarn store" yarn, is manufactured in China. Tariffs are paid by the company who imports the product into the country, not by the country where the products are manufactured. You can bet those costs will be passed on to the consumer.
I’m glad I have such a huge stash of yarn. I can keep myself busy for a long time. Yup, cheap yarn might not be so cheap if the tariffs go through. That might be good for U.S. yarn makers, but we’ll see. I’d rather people just have more respect for yarn producers.
I don't know how much the tariffs will boost US yarn production. We've lost much of our textile manufacturing capacity over the last 40 years. Even if/when machinery and raw materials are available, most of the knowledge and expertise required is not. When older workers retire without having the opportunity to pass on their skills to a new generation, those skills are lost.
If I’ve subscribed since this was originally posted, can I still get a copy of the pattern for the hat? Thank you!
The pattern is available here: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/parquet-hat
I would call it Versailles because that’s the parquet pattern it resembles. 🍊. Hi Cutie!!!
Hello Cutie! How wonderful to hear from you. I hope you're doing well.🩷
Just wunnerful!
What a helpful article...I wish I'd seen it earlier! I recently purchased many skeins of a yarn for a blanket. My on-line research went kaput when I found that in use it felt like I was knitting limp string! From now on, my research will be hand-on!
I'm so pleased you found it helpful.