The Little Yarn Shop Hop on the Prairie consisted of nine stores stretching from Overland Park, Kansas to Lindsborg, Kansas and Minneapolis, Kansas.
I started in the Kansas City area Friday morning since I was already in the area anyway. I actually went to The Studio in Kansas City, Missouri first. It was not on the hop, but it was on the way from the hotel I had stayed at the night before. I had been told they had some stuff on sale, and I like to go there when I am in the area. They did have some sock yarn on sale for 75% off, so I picked up some Opal and Regia that was 75% off, and a hank of Cascade Heritage in teal green. It was not on sale, but I have been wanting to increase my stash of solid color sock yarn.
Next I went to Yarn Shop and More in Overland Park, to officially start the hop. I get the impression that I was the first "hopper" to visit their store, because when I mentioned it to the person working there, there was no real response. It was not until someone else (maybe the owner?) came in that I got my passport, and they had to print that out while I was there. Some of my other friends had similar issues there. I picked up a hank of a lovely merino-alpaca blend by Isager. I have no idea if they were offering any specials or were giving away any free stuff.
I then journeyed on to Knit Wit in Olathe. It was a bit crowded when I got there, but there was a good selection of sock yarns. They offered a 20% discount on yarn. I picked up a couple of hanks of Claudia Handpaint sock yarn in a white, black, and teal colorway.
After that I went to The Yarn Barn in Lawrence. They were offering a 15% discount on needles and yarn, and I received a free pattern for baby booties. The lady who helped me showed me that they had received some new sock yarn, a tweed yarn produced in Missouri (it's name escapes me now). I did not see any sock yarn that struck my fancy, but I did get 3 skeins of Zaol Camelon, which is a blend of camel and merino (20% camel, 80% camel).
I had not been home since Thursday afternoon, but I drove from Lawrence to Manhattan. Wildflower had some new stuff, including Cookie A's Sock Innovations. Kennita told me if I had been there earlier I would have missed it. Ironically, I had missed it at The Yarn Barn. She was offering double stamps, but I already had a full card and used it for a discount on the book.
I ended Friday's part of the hop at Settlers Farm in Wamego. Jennifer had me draw to see what kind of discount I would get, and I ended up with a 30% discount off my purchase. She had received some new yarns, including some solid color sock yarns by Jojoland. I picked up a couple of hanks of Louet Gem's fingering weight in black for a project I have in mind and a couple of balls for Jojoland Ballad in Bay Blue.
The next morning my friend Stepheny picked me up at 7:15 a.m. We headed to a local coffee shop to meet up for the westward leg of the hop. Merry and Stepheny had hit the stores in Overland Park, Olathe, and Lawrence, so we traveled together. Driving west the roads were scary. The first stop we had planned was in Lindsborg, but we decided to go wherever we were at 10:00 a.m. The other car of people who had started out with us made it to Abilene, Kansas and then turned back east, but we made it to Salina. Unfortunately, Yarns Sold and Told was closed. I called Jennifer at Settler's Farm to see if she had known that the store in Salina was closed. She had not heard anything from them by that point. We took a picture to show we had been there, and we got to count it. We did find out later that the store had sent an email saying they would be closed this weekend, but by the time we sent it, we were almost there.
We stopped at a truck stop and asked about the roads. We were told they were not so good to the south but they were okay to the north. Stepheny decided to head to Lindsborg next, which turned out to be a good call even though the roads were not so good. Laura May's Cottage had a drawing for prizes, but all three of us ended up drawing things that said "Sorry better luck next time." I had heard she had done something like that at another yarn shop hop, but it really did not bother me that much. She had a bargain bin that had skeins of Brown Sheep Company Lambs Pride Superwash for $2.55 a skein, and I picked up 12 skeins of teal. I also picked up a skein of Patons Classic Merino in a nice blue for less than it would have been at Michael's or JoAnn. We also received a free pattern for clog socks.
As we drove north, be saw blue skies. Our pushing through the nasty weather earlier meant that we would not be going through it when we started heading back east. I tried calling Yarns Sold and Told again, but there was no answer. We headed to the Yarn Peddler in Minneapolis, Kansas next. I picked up another pair of 40 inch size 1 Addi Turbo knitting needles and a couple of skeins of Laines Du Nord in a teal and white colorway. We received a free pattern for a lacy scarf, and our discount depended on a roll of a dice. Once you were ready to pay for your purchases, you rolled four dice. I rolled two sixes, a three, and a four for a total of 19, so I ended up with a 19% discount.
Once we left Minneapolis, it was on to The Shivering Sheep in Abilene. They offered a 10% discount on regularly priced items, and they had some great deals in the bargain basement. I was very pleased to see they had some Regia Galaxy, because I had been looking for some of that for almost a year now. I picked up two skeins. I also got a little kit with two bulbs for grape hyacinths and a reusable shopping bag. If I understood correctly, each time you return to The Shivering Sheep, you can get the attached card punched, and after 10 uses, you get a $5.00 discount.
Stepheny and Merry had not been to Wildflower or Settlers Farm yet, so we headed to Manhattan next and ended in Wamego.
I started in the Kansas City area Friday morning since I was already in the area anyway. I actually went to The Studio in Kansas City, Missouri first. It was not on the hop, but it was on the way from the hotel I had stayed at the night before. I had been told they had some stuff on sale, and I like to go there when I am in the area. They did have some sock yarn on sale for 75% off, so I picked up some Opal and Regia that was 75% off, and a hank of Cascade Heritage in teal green. It was not on sale, but I have been wanting to increase my stash of solid color sock yarn.
Next I went to Yarn Shop and More in Overland Park, to officially start the hop. I get the impression that I was the first "hopper" to visit their store, because when I mentioned it to the person working there, there was no real response. It was not until someone else (maybe the owner?) came in that I got my passport, and they had to print that out while I was there. Some of my other friends had similar issues there. I picked up a hank of a lovely merino-alpaca blend by Isager. I have no idea if they were offering any specials or were giving away any free stuff.
I then journeyed on to Knit Wit in Olathe. It was a bit crowded when I got there, but there was a good selection of sock yarns. They offered a 20% discount on yarn. I picked up a couple of hanks of Claudia Handpaint sock yarn in a white, black, and teal colorway.
After that I went to The Yarn Barn in Lawrence. They were offering a 15% discount on needles and yarn, and I received a free pattern for baby booties. The lady who helped me showed me that they had received some new sock yarn, a tweed yarn produced in Missouri (it's name escapes me now). I did not see any sock yarn that struck my fancy, but I did get 3 skeins of Zaol Camelon, which is a blend of camel and merino (20% camel, 80% camel).
I had not been home since Thursday afternoon, but I drove from Lawrence to Manhattan. Wildflower had some new stuff, including Cookie A's Sock Innovations. Kennita told me if I had been there earlier I would have missed it. Ironically, I had missed it at The Yarn Barn. She was offering double stamps, but I already had a full card and used it for a discount on the book.
I ended Friday's part of the hop at Settlers Farm in Wamego. Jennifer had me draw to see what kind of discount I would get, and I ended up with a 30% discount off my purchase. She had received some new yarns, including some solid color sock yarns by Jojoland. I picked up a couple of hanks of Louet Gem's fingering weight in black for a project I have in mind and a couple of balls for Jojoland Ballad in Bay Blue.
The next morning my friend Stepheny picked me up at 7:15 a.m. We headed to a local coffee shop to meet up for the westward leg of the hop. Merry and Stepheny had hit the stores in Overland Park, Olathe, and Lawrence, so we traveled together. Driving west the roads were scary. The first stop we had planned was in Lindsborg, but we decided to go wherever we were at 10:00 a.m. The other car of people who had started out with us made it to Abilene, Kansas and then turned back east, but we made it to Salina. Unfortunately, Yarns Sold and Told was closed. I called Jennifer at Settler's Farm to see if she had known that the store in Salina was closed. She had not heard anything from them by that point. We took a picture to show we had been there, and we got to count it. We did find out later that the store had sent an email saying they would be closed this weekend, but by the time we sent it, we were almost there.
We stopped at a truck stop and asked about the roads. We were told they were not so good to the south but they were okay to the north. Stepheny decided to head to Lindsborg next, which turned out to be a good call even though the roads were not so good. Laura May's Cottage had a drawing for prizes, but all three of us ended up drawing things that said "Sorry better luck next time." I had heard she had done something like that at another yarn shop hop, but it really did not bother me that much. She had a bargain bin that had skeins of Brown Sheep Company Lambs Pride Superwash for $2.55 a skein, and I picked up 12 skeins of teal. I also picked up a skein of Patons Classic Merino in a nice blue for less than it would have been at Michael's or JoAnn. We also received a free pattern for clog socks.
As we drove north, be saw blue skies. Our pushing through the nasty weather earlier meant that we would not be going through it when we started heading back east. I tried calling Yarns Sold and Told again, but there was no answer. We headed to the Yarn Peddler in Minneapolis, Kansas next. I picked up another pair of 40 inch size 1 Addi Turbo knitting needles and a couple of skeins of Laines Du Nord in a teal and white colorway. We received a free pattern for a lacy scarf, and our discount depended on a roll of a dice. Once you were ready to pay for your purchases, you rolled four dice. I rolled two sixes, a three, and a four for a total of 19, so I ended up with a 19% discount.
Once we left Minneapolis, it was on to The Shivering Sheep in Abilene. They offered a 10% discount on regularly priced items, and they had some great deals in the bargain basement. I was very pleased to see they had some Regia Galaxy, because I had been looking for some of that for almost a year now. I picked up two skeins. I also got a little kit with two bulbs for grape hyacinths and a reusable shopping bag. If I understood correctly, each time you return to The Shivering Sheep, you can get the attached card punched, and after 10 uses, you get a $5.00 discount.
Stepheny and Merry had not been to Wildflower or Settlers Farm yet, so we headed to Manhattan next and ended in Wamego.
