We're Better Together
“As you navigate through the rest of your life, be open to collaboration. Other people and other people’s ideas are often better than your own. Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.”
Dear One,
I love a collaboration. It's fun to put my head together with someone else's and realize that we are stronger, faster, practically super-human together. I'm quite sure the shop wouldn't be what it is, were it not for me and Kelly--each of us bringing our own ideas and abilities--bouncing off one another's thoughts and finishing each other's sentences over the years.
One of my favorite local restaurant owners has been posting stories on social media throughout the month of March (because it's Women's History Month) featuring her fellow women business owners in Winona. It's been a joyous way to cross-promote and remind our social media followers that we are part of a larger community. It's also gotten me thinking about the products we carry in the store and the people--often women--who are the hearts and souls behind each of them.
While Spun Right Round (oohlala!) and Big Bad Wool (yum!) leap to the front of my mind when I think of amazing yarn companies owned and run by brilliant women...it is the local favorite Palmer Yarn Company that I'll sing about today. I know I mention Palmer frequently, but it is fabulous in all the ways I can think of. And all their yarns are hand-dyed in Winona, which makes collaboration easier and more fun.
Our current collaboration with Palmer Yarn Co is our 2025 DK Yarn Club. You can join this love fest on a monthly or quarterly basis (there's a bit of a price break for the quarterly subscribers) and we will ship to you if you are out of the area. Each month's mystery skein of DK yarn comes packaged with ideas on ways to use it and a little surprise or two tucked in.
The image above is the color inspiration for April's skein. I am enchanted by the mix of warm and cool colors and can hardly wait to see the yarn itself!
It's a perfect pairing of the color genius of Palmer Yarn Co. and the weird, welcoming, idea-factory that is Yarnology. Plus, who doesn't need a sweet surprise once a month?
May you find many ways to collaborate with others this month. Who knows what form that may take? It might be an opportunity to teach someone a skill you know. It might be joining a new group who's work you've been admiring from afar. It might be teaching your cat to fetch. However it looks, take the leap. You'll be richer for having done it.
Gaby
P.S. It's a Makers Morning this Saturday from 10 to noon. If you're in the region, register here to save your seat. It promises to be just what you need: a calm, happy stretch of time sprnt with other yarn lovers. You can chat and make new friends...or just enjoy listening to the conversations around you.
