Local Yarn

Shortly after moving here, I marveled at the number of yarn shops in the area—fifteen when we arrived and eighteen by the end of 2005. Were there that many knitters? Could that many shops really survive?

The internet is both a blessing and a curse. As a consumer, I shop around to find variety and the value. But for small businesses, it can be hard. The overhead of a storefront. That point has been made quite clear Mabel’s Knittery and Café closes the yarn shop this month. They will follow Cozy Ewe in June and Lint last month and sometime in the past year, Knit-In Café. I’m sure the neighborhoods will be a little lost without them, but it can be said that there are still local options, some are storefronts, some are internet, some are both.

Regarding Mabel’s the following was posted to the SNB-Portland list:

Starting this Sunday – August 12th – we will be having a storewide
liquidation. All inventory will be 30% off, and we expect things to
move quickly. We will open from 10AM – 6PM for the first two days,
and will close at 4PM for the remaining 4 or 5 days.

But she also said:

On a happier note, I will be starting a new business in the same
location, and many familiar faces will be right there with me. I
hope you will all stop by at the end of August to check out our new
and expanded coffee house, complete with a children’s area, free wi-
fi, delicious coffee, bagels, treats, milkshakes….all the good
stuff. We hope to carry all of the coziness of Mabel’s along with
us.

It’s always good to end on a happier note.