Dear Ann,
Well, it’s not a Mrs. Claus ornament, but perhaps this little Tale of the City will put you in a holiday mood.
Yesterday, I ducked into one of those snooty Upper East Side yarn stores I usually avoid like the plague. I needed a couple of skeins of Crystal Palace Cotton Chenille for teacher presents, and I was in the neighborhood. So I went in, bracing for the usual ‘how dare you come in off the street and look at our yarn? what do you think this is, a yarn store?’ treatment.
(Once inside, I managed to pick up some Manos for the Next Great Rosie Project, but more about that later.)
While I was waiting for the lady to wind my skeins, a friendly, slightly harried young woman came breezing in. (Obviously, Not From Around Here, for she was quite pleasant.) She asked the 3 salesclerks, who were standing there sullenly (there were no other customers), ‘Do you carry Noro yarn?’
Stunned silence.
Being me, and having been there for 15 minutes looking over the shelves, I chimed in, ‘Yes, they do. Not a lot, but they have some over there.’
The woman, let’s call her Amy (since that is her name), looks and then asks, ‘Do you have any ‘Lotus’?’
Again, it seemed that the assembled yarn ladies had sworn an oath of silence.
Me: ‘I haven’t seen any!’
As one salesclerk ran off to ask somebody in the back, I eavesdropped on Amy as she told the others that she was knitting a sweater in some Lotus she had bought a while back, and that she was almost finished with the sleeves when she realized she did not have enough to finish. She was a ball short, the place she bought it from did not have any more, and she couldn’t find it anywhere.
‘What color was it?’ I asked, just to be sociable.
That is always a trick question, with Noro. ‘Well, it’s got red and hot pink in it.’
‘Does it have a metallic thread and maybe some brown, too?’ I asked.
‘Yes–that’s the one.’
‘I have a ball of that, ‘ I said. ‘Do you want it?’
Oh no, she couldn’t possibly, she lived downtown, it would be too much trouble, etc.
‘I live downtown, ‘ I said.
‘Whereabouts?’ she asked.
It turns out we live a few blocks from each other. It turns out we bought the Noro Lotus from the same wonderful store, Downtown Yarns, six months ago, so it’s likely the same dye lot.
That evening, Amy stopped by and picked up her Lotus. (You will recall that I had left for dead an experimental scarf I had started with it.)
Here is Amy, holding the Ziploc bag that saved her sweater:
Isn’t that a nice story?
Love, Kay
26 Comments
Didn’t realize you were a sweater-saving superhero, didya, Kay? Nice goin’! The flip side of this throw-a-jacket-down-over-a-puddle-for-a-stranger story is this: when will the clerks/management/ownership of these snooty yarn stores finally GET IT–that they’d make lots more $ALES if they were freakin’ NICE and/or HELPful for a change! No difference in one of my LYS down here. You’d think they were God’s gift to the knitting world or something. Sheesh! Now that you’ve made a new friend, can we see the finished object’d’art too?
Does Xenobia Bailey figure into this?
Kay, I swear. How do you do it? You have a little silver cloud following you around town. A little cloud of goodwill and God-bless-us-every-one. I love this story.
What a great story!!! The only yarn stores I have been to in my area have been the snooty type. As someone who has walked into those stores feeling completely stupid for asking questions, thanks for answering them, especially since you didn’t work there. 🙂
I’m a world-class busybody, ain’t that the truth.
I must also admit that I was showing off a little bit for the yarn store people: i.e., “See, THIS is how knitters behave. We’re so damn nice you can’t stand it. Mi Noro es su Noro!”
At least that’s what I told Xenobia on the subway. (KIDDING!!!)
Amy said she’d show me the finished work, so stay tuned.
Love, Kay
Had a horrible trip to work .. took me 1 hour 45 to get to my desk this morning and it was pouring with rain… nice story to warm the soul and it certainly made me smile. As for the snotty girls in the *other* yarnshop (our first meeting venue), I’m going to have to confess that I know them, I went to school with them. Now the Upper East side one shop… it wouldn’t happen to be in the 80’s would it?
A heart-warming story for Christmas – well done Kay, we wouldn’t have expected anything less.
Oh, thank you for putting me in the Christmas spirit!
Kay, savior of sweaters and knitters worldwide!
Proud to call you a fellow Rowanette :sniffle:
That’s the kind of story that brings a catch in the throat and a tear to the eye of any knitter. Fantastic save and a brand new knitting friend!
Oh, thank you! What a wonderful way to start my day.
yes, kay, it is a good story. a wonderful story….it shows your good spirit and kindness. the knitting fairies are blessing you right now!
The knitting goddess will save a special space on their alter for you and one the faries will come from above and finish off one UFO ~ but you will have to go through the lot of them to figure out which one.
Kay,
That story actually makes me want to move back to NYC!
Sheila
Polly, I will not hold your high school connections against you. The Upper East Side store was in the 90s. It has a cozy, sweet name that it does not live up to. The only reason I’m not naming it is I’m hoping it was an off day for them and I don’t want to discourage others from going there. (Yet!).
Glad people enjoyed the story. Share the knitting love, people!!!! xox Kay
We didn’t enjoy the story, we LOVED the story!! How wonderful. Little did the snooty store realize they were snubbing a soon-to-be-friend of Mason Dixon!! My LYS has plenty of attitude, too (the High Priestesses of Knitting, is what I call them) which is why even though I live in big city (where we should be swimming in lovely yarns) I am willing to drive 150 miles to get to a good LYS in another state!
Kay,
That is a great story and clearly the moral is: Kay is a wonderful, generous person.
I have been on my own yarn store crusade when it comes to Noro yarn. I am trying to teach everyone to pronounce Kureyon correctly. It’s koo-ray-on (Japanese for crayon) not curry-on (which is how everyone around here says it. So when I say “Do you have Kureyon?” people look puzzled and then say, “Oh, you mean Curry-on!” Sigh…whatever.
Awwwww, what a great story! Especially after dealing with a testosteroni driver that put a damper on my day. You definitely cheered me up… The secret knitting elf that saved Christmas.
Love the story.
Love you. x
Ok, I am hormonal and/or that was a great story, because I am tearing up LOL. (((hugs))) for you ♥
How very UN-like A**** S********! You are the BEST, Kay.
I used to have a LYS in the high 60s on the UES, and they were lovely women, really, as in, “Are you sure you don’t want me to cast that on for you?” But that was in another life and another decade. I wonder if they are still there? Probably went out of business.
Mary Neal, I’m glad Ann wasn’t there because she would have finished Amy’s sweater, cooked her some dinner, and thrown in a bag of Magpie–which probably would have freaked poor Amy out. lol xox, Kay
THAT is a great story! Serendipity!
Oh, I love that story! Oh, I hate that store! (if it’s the one I think it is). Amy is one lucky gal to have run into you!
Hi,
this is the Amy of the Lotus Yarn- sorry it’s taken me so long to check in, it was a crazy week. Kay is my new knitting hero!
I was havaing an awful day, and the whole experience just turned things around. Not only did I find my yarn, but also an amazing woman, and a wonderful web site.
The sweater is coming along slowly because I have to knit two scarves for my nieces by the middle of next week. Eeek- must knit now- luckily the snow is keeping my inside and knitting
happy holidays everyone!
Hello Amy !
Welcome to the ‘family’ !
Greetings from one of the U.K. branch. :0)
Okay, I think you’re all just spinning yarns here… (friend of Amy’s, and being hit in the arm by her as we speak)