My grandmother taught me how to knit when I was 8 years old— a common story for many knitters. But the fiber arts became a serious part of my life when I began college in Bellingham, Washington 7 years ago.
In that sleepy coastal town, I spent my time at the local yarn store—Northwest Yarns. The quaint shop was a wonderland to enter: natural wools, hand-spun yarns, spunky shawls, plush chairs, and the gentle creak of the wooden yarn winder spinning a skein into a ball. This environment invited me to knit on those damp days. I knitted my first sweater there, an oatmeal wool cardigan, with pockets and a hood.
During those years, my knitting needles joined me in political science lectures. I kept my eyes fixed on the professor, while the fingers worked mindless knits and purls. Knitting gave me the time to ponder writing projects and to reflect on each subject I was learning.
Northwest Yarns when I visited in January 2023. They remodeled and expanded into a beautiful knitting, sewing, and fiber arts shop! I highly recommend a visit if you’re in the Seattle area.
My years at the Twisted Ewe Yarn Shop
When I moved back to Boise in 2018, I started working at the Twisted Ewe—the shop we all well know and love. I began as a yarn seller, helping knitters pick out the perfect yarn and the correct yardage for their dream projects. These consultations were a rewarding process: from the planning stages on Ravelry, to scooping up dropped stitches together, to admiring the finished shawl, and witnessing the knitter’s satisfied smile of pride.
Soon after I joined the shop I started teaching knitting classes. Later I managed the social media pages, created the current website, and wrote weekly newsletters.
After 4 years of teaching at the shop, I’ve come to know the community, and I have met many of you readers! I crunched the numbers the other day and since 2021, I’ve taught 23 Beginning Knitting classes to 137 people. Many of those people continued on to hat class and other project based classes.
It’s surreal to think the Twisted Ewe is at the end of its life. The “Women of Wool” shop on Chinden will soon be emptied of soft wool and vibrant colors, with just metal to remain. For me, it will be a little emotional to think of all the time I have spent there, of the time we have ALL spent there.
The many hands of felted soap makers.
What’s next for me? I will continue to teach.
For knitters early in their knitting journey, you must feel a bit robbed of your chance to know the Twisted Ewe. I remember working on my first sweater at Northwest Yarns, and feeling so uncertain at times. If I didn’t have advice at the shop, perhaps I wouldn’t have finished that sweater.
I want to continue being a resource in the Treasure Valley for knitting education.
We all have our knitting goals, and it takes some guidance (and a TON of encouragement!) to get us there. Knitting is so much easier when you have people around you.
This winter I’m putting together a teaching plan, and I would love your feedback! I want to design knitting classes that meet the needs of our community. I invite you to fill out this 5-minute survey in as much detail as you can. This will tremendously help me in designing classes that will help you reach your goals.
In addition, I have this blog page! I would like to use this page, Knit Boise, as a way to connect with fiber artists in the Treasure Valley, to broadcast classes (from other shops too), and to share some knitting knowledge.
To finish off this newsletter, I want to spotlight the project I’m working on. I saw the Ixchel Star and Moon sweater in a magazine back in 2018 when I started at the Twisted Ewe. As it happens with knitters, I immediately knew I would make that sweater one day.
And the day has come! I’ll finish this sweater, using Alexandra’s yarn, this spring—a symbolic finish to the shop’s closing.
But as we know about spring, it’s the time for new growth. Shoots will soon erupt from the soil, crocus bulbs will greet us, and the buds on trees will wake up.
We can still grow in this knitting community. We can still grow our sweaters, and shawls, and skills to make things with our hands.
Thank you for reading, and if you’d like to continue receiving knitting content and class updates, subscribe to this newsletter, Knit Boise!
Warmly,
Natalia
Comments