The Yarn Tree

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This venue is closed.

Owner Linda LaBelle keeps an exhaustive record of the exact origin of each fiber in her store. For instance, there’s the alpaca, cotton, and merino from Frog Tree, a not-for-profit that helps to fund a women’s artisan’s cooperative in Bolivia. All the yarns come from similarly non-corporate, small-scale operations. For conscientious crocheters who plan to spin their own yarn, there are beautiful inlaid-wood drop spindles from Wisconsin artist Steve Kundert. Sustainable birchwood needles and hooks from mom-and-pop business Brittany are also in stock. LaBelle, who hand-dyes her own line of yarns and has authored a book on dyeing, teaches classes on spinning, knitting, and weaving at the store. Students can take home the shop’s collapsible Kromski Harp loom to work on projects, or purchase their own, along with tape measures, knitting bags, natural dyes, and how-to books. The Yarn Tree now also sells farm-raised lamb and pork meat. — Alex Littlefield