Forays into Welsh Yarn

So even though I spent six weeks in the UK, I managed to restrict myself to only buying four skeins of yarn. (Having a strict budget also helped) Even though I bought 2 skeins in Edinburgh and Whitby, both yarns turned out to be Welsh. If it came down to yarn over food, I think that there could have been a couple of times on this trip where I would have been happy to go hungry.

The first place I found beautiful yarn was in a shop in Whitby, on the north-east coast. Whitby is a great little seaside town itself, and its claim to fame is, if you have read Dracula, the town where Dracula's boat ran aground in the novel. Ontop one of the cliffs is a ruined abby, which gives Whitby a great deal of spooky charm. Add in all the Dracula fans and gothic kids who make pilgrimmages there, great fish'n'chips, and you have a good day on your hands. On the side of the town where the abby is, there is the knitting shop. It looks like it was a church hall at one point, and right on the outside was a sign that said "Knitter's Paradise" I of course, entered to test this assumption. The store itself is actually called Bobbins, but it is indeed a knitter's paradise. Inside, it was just one giant room full of yarn, books, and some of the most intricate sweaters I've ever seen. Instead of having neatly organized shelves, yarn was inside great wooden seacheasts, and I wants to dive right in and roll around in the yarn. The ladies there were really fun, helpful, and great to talk to. I found this great wrinkley yarn in all my favorite shades of blue and green there. I could have bought every colorway, but that would have meant living in a cardboard box for the rest of the trip. This is one of the yarns that I think will have to go on the shelf just for me, and I'm thinking a delighfully snuggly shawl or scarf. The pictures I've taken don't do justice to the range of blue and green in this yarn, but if you know me, its every color that I love to wear and work with. This yarn is the Colinette Zanzibia in the Velvet 114 colorway. It feels so soft on the skin and slick to the touch, so I cannot wait to make it into something lovely and cozy. Now I just have to find the perfect pattern.......

The next skeins of yarn I purchased were found in Edinburgh, Scotland, on a street just off the Royal Mile. I really loved the time I spent in Edinburgh, and it was topped off with find this great shop, k1 Knitting Boutique. The vibe of this shop is liking being in an old 1950s ice cream palor, because its filled with bright colors and comfy couches to sit and knit on. The lady there was one of the nicest women I have encountered from all the yarn shops that I have been into. She took a great deal of time to help me find the perfect yarn, and also just spent a lot of time making small talk, If you ever go to Edinburgh, you must go here! The yarn I picked up here was Fyberspates Scrumptious, in this great green/grey/bronze wool and silk blend. Once again, pictures do not do this yarn justice. Even just in the skein, it shimmers. This is definitly going on the shelf until my skills improve and I find the perfect pattern. I am going to be selfish and keep this one for my own, but I feel like it deserves to be made into something spectacular. For now, I will be content with occansionally petting it, and sighing. I do think that I am in love with this yarn.

Even though that is all the yarn I bought on my travels, I did encounter a cute shop while staying in York, down the Shambles. I believe that it is the last yarn shop in York, and the staff there were great. If I had a little more time and money, I probably could have bought a lot more, but then I did have to think about suitcase space. All-in-all, yarn shopping in the UK was a huge sucess!