5 Reasons to Visit Your LYS on Local Yarn Shop Day

April 17, 2021 is Local Yarn Store Day! This holiday was created by The National NeedleArts Association to drive traffic to local yarn stores. This Saturday, you should visit your local yarn shop! (If you’re worried about crowds, check for online ordering options.)

Local yarn stores (AKA local yarn shops or LYS) are independently-owned shops that specialize in fiber arts. They are stocked with yarn, needles, hooks, and notions. Many also carry supplies for sewing, needlepoint, weaving, and other fiber arts.

If the name alone isn’t enough to get you excited, here are the reasons you should visit your local yarn shop this Saturday!

1. Support a Small Business

COVID-19 has been exceptionally difficult for local yarn shops and many are part of the 53% of small businesses that don’t expect to survive 2021. Since most yarn is still purchased in a brick-and-mortar store, why not spend your yarn dollars on a local shop to help ensure its odds of survival?

2. Learn Something New

The real beauty of the local yarn shop isn’t in its supplies (though they are fabulous); it’s in its staff! Local yarn shops are owned and staffed by knowledgeable stitchers of all kinds. They can speak to how a yarn works up, which needle works best with it, and why your wrist is hurting when you purl. They can teach you how to knit, crochet, spin, and anything else (with fiber) that you can think of!

3. Find Something Unique

A shop that specializes can carry an array of goodies that you aren’t able to find anywhere else. Knitting magazines and books may not be readily available at your favorite superstore, but they’re staples at local yarn shops. You’ll likely find yarn from local dyers, which is often available in limited colorways. I’ve even been to shops that feature hand-carved yarn bowls and sewn project bags made by local artisans!

4. Find Your People

Yarn shops are staffed by fellow yarn lovers who know exactly what you need. There are samples of yarns and patterns everywhere because fellow stitchers understand that attractive skeins don’t always produce expected results. You won’t find a bigger cheering section when you finish that challenging sweater than the staff at your local yarn shop, even if it would have been a breeze for them. None of them will roll their eyes when you complain about the huge amount of yarn barf you had to work through last week. They even speak our secret language of WIPs and UFOs.

5. Find a Sale (Probably)

Most local yarn shops have special offerings on LYS Day and that typically includes a sale! Whether it’s a flat rate off of supplies or a sale on classes, you’re likely to find your shop’s best deal of the year on this day. Demonstrations, raffles, and sample giveaways are some of the other ways many shops celebrate their favorite day of the year!

How to Find a Shop

If Google doesn’t turn up any results, there are some other ways to find a local yarn shop.

1. Knitmap

[August 2022 Update: Knitmap.com has been down for over 2 months. We do not know if this service will return.]

Knitmap is a search engine that allows you to search by location and filter your results by craft, class, Wi-Fi availability, and more. You can even select your state, province, or city to see a list of all shops located there. Knitmap relies on users to provide updates, so be sure to check directly with shops before visiting.

2. The Save the Local Yarn Shop Facebook Group

In early 2020, Sam Barsky started a Facebook group for the sharing of local yarn shop information. He was concerned about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on these local shops that rely so heavily on face-to-face interactions to stay afloat. This group is an excellent resource for finding local yarn shops and exploring the measures they’ve put in place during COVID-19 (curbside pickup, Zoom classes, etc.).

3. Ravelry’s Road Trip LYS Finder

If you’re traveling, it can be a bit tedious to check every city you pass for local yarn shops. Plug your starting point and your destination into Ravelry’s Road Trip LYS Finder, then set how far off-course you’re willing to travel. (The default is 5 miles.) The finder will list all shops within a 5-mile radius of your route!