Recently, a friend of mine told me about a yarn shop opening in our hometown. Pretty exciting news, as fellow knitters and crocheters will surely understand. Up to now, I was limited to purchasing yarn at the big retailers and big box craft stores - I could not wait to see what goodies I would find almost on my doorstep.
Well, I was in for a treat! On April 1st, day of the opening, I went searching for 43 Queen Street and to my disappointment, I found a real estate office... Double-checking the address on my phone, I see that I had missed that the entrance was on Chapel Street. Two minutes later, I see this:
Ah, ah! I found it! Not in any way turned off by the graffiti, I ventured inside and found the ultimate "girl cave"! A yarn shop with a knitting corner!
But also, lots of eye candy... Yarn everywhere! Yarn I had only dreamed about before, right there in front of me. I was in yarn heaven!
I went searching for the owner of this little paradise and found one of the most interesting person I had met in a long time: Rikki Rumball. As she proudly gave me a tour of her shop, I learned the story behind this shop and many of its treasures. But you will have to go visit and find out for yourself.
Odds & Sods Wool Shoppe is a lot more than a yarn store. It also carries work by local artists and crafters, all creatively displayed. After a few visits, I soon felt more like I was visiting a friend's house than browsing in a store. Apparently, many customers instinctively take their shoes off at the door.
When the weather warms up, watch for a new mural to beautify Chapel Street and the Odds and Sods sign to go up on Queen Street. A few others projects are also in the works, but I have been sworn to secrecy...
Odds & Sods is located in Bolton, Ontario, north-west of Toronto. They are opened from 11 am, Tuesday to Saturday. More information and directions are on their website at www.oddsandsods.org
