a treasure from the beach...

Several days before we left for our vacation to Chincoteague, I mentioned to Brad how I thought that Chincoteague really needed a yarn shop. There are so many other shops (books shops, gift shops, coffee shops, etc., etc.) so the only kind of shop lacking (in my mind) was a yarn shop.

Well, low and behold, as we were driving over the bridge into the island, there was a big billboard advertising Carodan Farm Yarns. Do you even know how elated I was at that one? (Those of you who know me personally do, I'm sure.) 

Lily and I found the shop on Tuesday. Only she and I went because, well, my boys don't have a real interest in yarn and such, and I really wanted to be able to take my time and soak it all in. And Lily, well she's just like her mama. 

I opened the door to the shop (which is actually in the basement of the owners' home) and immediately was in yarn heaven. Oh my gosh. Be still my soul. Yarn, beautiful yarn, everywhere. 

I got to talking to the gentleman who was running the shop.  His wife was in Philadelphia for the birth of their grandchild this week so he was running the shop solo. He and his wife had raised sheep for over 30 years (since they were about 35 years old) in central Virginia, and moved to Chincoteaugue three years ago after he retired. 

They were inspired to open their own yarn shop after having an overly abundant supply of yarn from their own sheep. And then it just grew from there. His wife is the knitter. He told me that he does some weaving and needle-punching. I shared with him our dream of owning some kind of fiber animal within the next few years. He shared some of his experience and offered some tips.

And then we started browsing. Oh my, were Lily and I in a state of utter delight! Surrounded by all of that glorious yarn. So many wonderful brand such as Madeline Tosh, Debbie Bliss, Cascade. And then, of course, were his wife's hand-painted yarns. These were, by far, my favorite.

So that's what I purchased. Three hanks of beautiful, 100% merino superwash hand-painted yarn. All of her hand-painted yarns are inspired by the colors of the island. Her husband told me that they go out on walks and drives and she snaps photos with her camera and uses those photos as her inspiration when hand-painting the yarn. 

I chose two hanks from her "Cove Collection" which she named "Chincoteague Waters." And as I sat on the beach admiring the sea yesterday, I completely understood her choice of colors in this yarn. This yarn is going to be used to make a sweater for Lily for Christmas. The other hank is from her "Channel Collection" and is called "Dusk at Chincoteauge." I bought this hank to knit a shawl. The shawl pattern was written by a local islander, and I absolutely fell in love with the sample she had knitted and had on display. 

Lily chose a ball of an orange Cascade. She bought it with her own "beach" money, which I thought was absolutely precious! Like I said, she's just like her mama in that aspect. 

It was a wonderful shop to visit. I was inspired by the couple living out their dream, and I was more than happy to take home some wonderfully delicious, Chincoteague-inspired yarn. And then I found out that they were online as well, so go check Carodan Farm Yarns out!

Happy 4th!