Sew What! - Redding, California

Location: Redding, California
Shop:       Sew What!
Owner:     Lisa
Website:   www.sewwhatquilts.com/

Redding is in northern California along I-5, approximately 100 miles fromt he border of Oregon. 90,000 people live in Redding which is the county seat for Shasta County, and where 1/2 of the county's population live, the other 90,000 are spread out between the county's two other towns, Anderson and Shasta Lake City.

I sell primarily to knitting shops, and I have sold to a few quilt shops in the past year, but this is the first quilting & knitting shop I've sold to. Lisa opened Sew What! as a quilt shop 10 years ago, the yarn came in a year later. When asked if she was a quilter or a knitter, she quickly answered, "Both!"

The yarn is in it's own room inside the quilt shop, but don't let that fool you into thinking they have a limited supply, there was plenty to choose from, you just have to get by the fabric first, good luck. While I visited, there was a class going on in the yarn area. I asked all the gals what the class was, and they all just kinda shrugged their shoulders and said knitting. Each one of them had a completely different project going on and the instructor was there to help address any issues they might have. I really didn't see much instructing going on, I think these gals just come in to "class" to knit together, because they were still there while the instructor had gone on to her next appointment.

I think I found the socks I want to knit. The sample on the right in the picture above (on the left) has beads at the top. I think they're calling my name. Soon my pretties, soon.

Next stop: a bead shop in Redding, California

Two Sisters and Ewe - La Mesa, California

Location: La Mesa, California
Shop:       Two Sisters and Ewe
Owner:    Jane
Website:  http://www.twosistersandewe.com/

La Mesa is the third and final city we're visiting in San Diego County. It's a bustling city with nearly 60,000 people. Another trip I made by myself, luckily I have a Garmin, I took 4 highways to get to La Mesa from Encinitas. Some of these highways had 6 lanes in them. Seattle is lucky to have four in some places, and only two running right through downtown. I would have been lost without GPS.

Two Sisters and Ewe is about to celebrate their 10 year anniversary. Jane and her sister opened the shop in May of 2002 and Jane's 11 year old son came up with the name. Now Jane runs the place on her own, her sister decided to go farm in Arkansas after 3 1/2 years of yarning. Jane seems to be okay with that.

While I was there, a local artist, George Wright, came in to sell his ceramic yarn bowls. One side has two holes and the other side has an angled slit in the side for your yarn. Each one is unique and truly a piece of art. Those are my buttons in the bowl above.

There was also a small girl getting individual lessons while I was there. The gal that was instructing her was really friendly, I happened to overhear her say that she was also a doll maker and some of her dolls have been presented to some pretty famous people, including a previous president's child.

La Mesa is the furthest south we are going on this tour. Now for the quick trip back home. So far seven more shops to visit in four days. My dog, Nina, aka Grandma, is ready to be out of the camper. That's her above, resting her head in the water bowl, she's almost 15, it's easier than standing at this point. It gets pretty tight in here with the two of us and the two medium-sized dogs, not to mention all the dog hair we get to put up with. Our final destination is Polson, Montana, but that doesn't happen until the end of March. So for now, we are cozy and happy.

Yarning For You - San Marcos, California

Location: San Marcos
Shop:       Yarning For You
Owner:     Deb
Website:   http://yarningforyou.com

San Marcos is part of San Diego County and is home to California State University & University of St. Augustine. The town, known for having some of the best restaurants in the north county, has 90,000 people in it, but the county has over 3 million. I visited San Marcos by myself this time, if I'd known that it was known for their restaurants, I would have scheduled things a bit differently. Next time.

Deb opened Yarning For You after suffering through a legal career most of her life. One day she had enough and quit. On her way home, she called her husband, and through the tears explained what she had done. Her husband asked her what she was going to do, and she answered, still crying, that she wanted to open a yarn shop. After a moment of silence, her husband asked her if she was driving, she said yes, and he tells her to pull over because he thinks she's been drinking. That was seven years ago.

 There's a comfy couch to sit on plus two big tables to conduct your craftiness at. There's a crafty person sitting at one of the tables in the center picture below. Tons of samples throughout the store, plus a sale room, that's always a bonus.

There were too many neat things in this shop to take pictures of. If you're in San Diego, you'll get a better appreciation for all the samples if you visit the shop. They offer classes, and the gals I met with were rays of sunshine. This shop just made you happy to be there, one shopper made that obvious by making herself comfortable on the couch while deciding which yarn to get for the afghan she's planning. She didn't know when she was going to start it though, she just wanted to be prepared. I completely understand.

Next Stop: La Mesa, California

Common Thread - Encinitas, California

Location: Encinitas, California
Shop:       Common Thread
Owners:   Nancy & Carol & Coco
website:   http://www.fiberartshop.com/

Encinitas is not a big town, but because it's right on the beach, it is a destination location. There are 60,000 people in the town I bet 85% of the residents own a surf board. If your address says Encinitas, you can walk to the beach. Encinitas is located in northern San Diego county which has over 3 million residents. There's a train track that runs right through town with trains going back and forth all day. Some of these trains are barrelling through town at 40-50 mph, not something I'm used to.

Carol and Nancy are mother and daughter and have owned the shop for 20 years. Carol is the mom, that's a painting of her in the picture above on the left that Nancy painted, and that's Nancy's dad on the right. These two banners are hanging in the front room and looking down at every person that walks in the door. Not pictured is the same type of banner on the lightpost outside her store on the street which pictures her step-dad.

Coco is the shop mascot, but she goes home with the girls every night. Nancy says she'd be pretty mad if she was left behind. Carol has a dog she would love to make the shop dog, but apparently the dog has too much energy for the shop, so it's a no for now. :( Not that I don't like cats, but as you can see, they don't care as much. Coco, was definitely pettable though, and she wouldn't be in the center of the store if she didn't like the attention.

The shop is pretty extensive. It's almost a maze to get to throu everything, a pretty wonderful maze of shelves full of yarn and inspiring examples. There's a small table in the front of the storer where a couple of customers set some of there things while shopping or getting help. One gal came in to get help on an Afghan she was knitting and Nancy was able to see immediately some twisted stitches and was able to explain quite quearly in a matter of minutes what had been perplexing this lady all night.

There's also a great sitting area in the back as well as another table, a great spot for classes, still close to the yarn but not too close. And the books were in this are which made it a great refernce are, too.

I definitely have some competition in the button department, as you can see they have a gigantic selection. There's more corners in this shop than I even have room to picture in this blog. If you're in San Diego, Encinitas is not that far, and worth the drive.

Next stop: San Marcos, California

Location: Bakersfield, California
Shop:       Bead & Yarn Studio
Owner:    Lisa
Website:  http://beadandyarnstudio.weebly.com/

Bakersfield, aka Buckersfield, is California's 9th largest city with over 300,000 people and home to some good country music. You can drive on Merle Haggard Ave or Buck Owens Drive, I'm sure there's more, but those stood out to me. Also home to Buck Owen's Crystal Palace which has one of the best chicken friend steak dinners I've ever had, speaking from experience.

Two things really stand out in this shop; first of all, they have beads, and second, all of their yarn is 40% off. The shop originally opened as a rock and gem shop over 20 years ago. Lisa's parents were the rock hounds, digging up a lot of what the shop sold. Slowly, they started to get more female customers and their bead business expanded. With the many woman the rock shop was now selling to, the yarn just seemed like a good idea to add.

Lisa's able to offer all of her yarn at 40% off because of the lots she purchases. They're usually lots that were made not to the original specifications, or that the company might have had too much of, or that a store simply didn't want anymore. She gets the lots at discounted rates and passes the savings on to her customers. Pretty sweet deal, I think.

Classes a plenty, whether you're interested in beads, crochet or knitting. There's also plenty of room for you to hang out and knit or bead anything. Need help on something? Just ask, the store is full of friendly & crafty people.

Next stop: Bakersfield, CA  (again)

Location:  Ferndale, California
Shop:        Foggy Bottoms
Owner:     Jacque

Ferndale is our last stop in Humboldt county. There's around 1500 folks who call this place home. It's probably the cutest town I've been to so far. The bridge leading in to town over the Eel River is over 100 years old. One of the only bridges in the area to withstand some devestating floods and earthquakes. It is narrow, I'd hate to see a couple of 18-wheelers meet in the middle. Heck, I'd hate to meet an 18-wheeler in the middle. There's a reason my husband does most of the driving, he takes everything nice and slow, and I sit back and relax and enjoy the views. It works out.

Back to the cutest town I've been in. The first thing I thought was 'Wow, there's a lot of painting going on in this town'. Of course, my husband being a retired house painter, that's what I think about. But there is. A lot of the houses, and most of the buildings on their main street have a Victorian look to them.

Jacque has had Foggy Bottoms for over 20 years. She's open six days a week, closed on Tuesdays. This is a pretty decent sized shop, and Jacque is the only employee. She needs to have one day each week to maintain her sanity. She chose Tuesday because that's the one day during the week she had things going on, including her knitting group.

Foggy Bottoms is the only store I've visited (so far) with a pellet burning stove as the only heat source. Plus, they have a wide range of yarns & needles and a back room filled with clearance or sale items.

Not seen in other stores, is the Yarn Spinner, made by Jacque's son. You wind the yarn on yourself by spinning the disc, then it unravels as you use it, no tugging. I'm not sure if he's marketing this anywhere else, but it is nicely made.

Foggy Bottoms was our last stop in Humboldt County. I will miss this place. I have a couple of good friends here, the redwood forest, the Ave of the Giants, the Pacific Ocean, and another thing, but I can't seem to remember.

Next stop:  Medocino, CA

Location: Eureka, CA
Shop:       Yarn
Owner:     Sunni
website:    www.yarn-fun.com

Home to about 27,000, Eureka is the county seat for Humboldt County, which holds 7 incorporated towns, plus 40 unincorporated towns. That's a lot of towns. There are over 44,000 square miles of Humboldt County, located in the top western part of California.

Yarn is in what's considered Old Town Eureka. The shop itself is about as cute as a button, no pun intended.

Once, past the cute worn welcome mat, you'll find that it's probably the tiniest yarn shop you've ever been in. But Sunni made great use with this tiny space. There's absolutely no backstock, the place is too tiny to have a back room. Everything she has is right there in your face, and she has some cool stuff. They tend to focus on natural fibers and locally dyed yarn, which came in some fabulous colors.

One wall of yarn, and I'm serious about the wall. Every nook is filled with some great stuff. The ladder shown in the above picture gets you to some out of reach spots, but not climbable by customers. If you see something you can't reach, just ask Sunni, or one of her 3 part time gals, they will most likely point out where you can find it at a lower level.

Yarn has been in business for four years. They have classes and every Sunday is Sit & Knit. They also carry locally made things, including knitted items, chocolates, jewelry & yarn sacks, just to list a few. And, just like any great yarn shop, they've got a nice selection of books and patterns. I'm amazed that with as tiny as the shop is, they've manage to strategically place some really cute samples.

If you plan on visiting Eureka, you should know there are three yarn shops in town. I did not visit the other two, but this one had everything I would need, plus as I said before, it's about as cute as a button.

Next stop: Ferndale, California