I'm going to say it out loud and proud: I like knitting, crocheting and all other activities where you have to manipulate yarn into a -hopefully- pretty shape. Phew...feels like I just came out for the second time! In fact, back when I was a kind, my Mom taught me all different kinds of needlework: I knitted a scarf, I crocheted a couple pot holders, I knotted a small rug, sewed a pillow case and I even embroidered a few handkerchiefs for my grandmother.
Admittedly, I haven't done any sort of needlework since I was that little kid, but a few weeks ago I was doing a friendship bracelets for my little niece and the steady - almost meditative - rhythm of laying the threads one over another, reminded me again of all these evenings that I spent with my Mom...and so I was hooked again.
I was hooked almost literally: I dug out my crochet hook...but like a junkie who possesses a spoon but no heroin, I was now in desperate need of some sort of yarn. Given that it was Sunday, not all haberdashery shops are open, but Yelp pointed me in the direction of the next available "dealer": Knit With Attitude (fabulous name, by the way). And so, through the rain, I ventured over to Stoke Newington to get my next fix: pure 100% cotton yarn!
Knit With Attitude is a small and cute shop on Stoke Newington High Street (not far away from the lovely independent Stoke Newington Bookshop). What stands out right away is the counter that is covered with crocheted granny squares. (Reminds me of the guerilla knitting where people decorate lampposts or trees with a colourful skirt.) The front of the shop offers yarns and other knitting supplies, while in the back there seems to be a room where people can actually get together and do some work. (I had a quick glance at their website and it looks like they do offer workshops and courses of all sorts - mental bookmark!)
In any case, I found my desperately-needed yarn and I'm now in the process of crocheting my very own beanie hat. read more