I moved to Berea, KY, a town known as the folk arts and crafts capital of Kentucky. I thought that surely there would be an LYS here, or, at the very least, a fiber-related shop. Although there are a couple of stores that sell yarn, there is nothing close to an LYS. Don't get me wrong, I have met great fiber friends, but the closest true LYS is about 45 minutes away. Because I work south of Berea, it would take me about an hour and 15 minutes to get to the nearest LYS during the week coming from work. So, I have had to find other ways to fill my LYS needs. Thus enters The Loopy Ewe.
The Loopy Ewe, run by Sheri, is amazing! (Check our her blog, where she posts about store-related events and random knitting/fiber/life/cooking-related thoughts.) Sheri stocks some incredible yarn, including yarn that you can't buy at an LYS. She is the only American distributor of Wollmeise, apart from buying from the Wollmeise herself (although Sheri doesn't keep it in stock all the time, you can buy it there if you get lucky, and I have!). She also carries lots of other fun, independently-dyed yarns, like dragonfly fibers, the sanguine gryphon, numma numma, etc. So, I have essentially turned to The Loopy Ewe to become my "sort-of LYS." She process her orders so fast that if I place an order on Monday night or even Tuesday morning, I can get it to my house by Thursday! Considering the fact that I can only make it to an LYS on the weekends, I get yarn in my hands faster than I would if I waited to go to the LYS. That's what happened this week! Although I swore I wouldn't buy yarn until Stitches South (which is less than a week away!!!), I folded. Sheri teamed up with Lorna's Laces to offer a special "team spirit" line of sock yarn and, what can I say, I am a sucker for blue and white (gotta support the UK Wildcats!). Plus, I knew I had to by some Cascade 220 to complete my homework for stitches. So, here is what I got in the mail yesterday:
Cascade in Natural, Bluebell, Primavera, and Framboise (the Goldenrod on top was from my stash)
And, of course, my Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Team Spirit #15
Although The Loopy Ewe not close enough for me to just walk in and say hello, I feel like I know Sheri. She writes a note on every order, includes little treats with your first five orders, and a big treat with your sixth order, when you're welcomed into the "loopy groupie" club! She also has other incredible incentives, like $25 back for every $250 you spend. And, she has an incredible five-installment sock club, which I was lucky enough to get to join this year. This week's order just happened to be my 6th, and I got my "Loopy Groupie" welcome package. My jaw dropped at Sheri's generosity! When you're welcomed into the club, you get a very large Loopy Ewe bag, two sock patterns, a stitch marker, the infamous hershey kisses, a sheep calendar, and even a skein of sock yarn! (Mine was Earthly Hues's "seedling" in Acid Wash--I don't know if this is her norm, or just what got stuck in mine.)
Wow, Sheri! Thank you for allowing me to find a replacement for the LYS that I loved dearly in Chicago! Although I can't walk in weekly, I can always try to make one of your special events like Spring Fling, and I can say hello and talk with other Loopy Groupies on Ravelry. For now, this will have to work as my LYS. And, even though I will be moving in a few months to a city where there are lots of LYSs, I think The Loopy Ewe will always have a place in my life! If you haven't shopped there before, you really should think about it! If you follow the link on the sidebar, I even get a referral credit! (Okay, shamless attempt to be able to spend more money on yarn. Who can blame me?)
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