I make no secret of the fact that I love Wollmeise yarn. I prefer to work in lighter-weight yarns which is mainly what they offer, I love the drape, I love the warmth and softness of the wool, and most of all (and probably what most of their fans would also say) I love the colours.
Two years ago I suggested to my husband that if I could reduce my then-current yarn stash by two-thirds by the time my fortieth birthday came around this summer, I would like to visit Bavaria to go to the Wollmeise store to celebrate my milestone birthday. He agreed.
I achieved my goal and last month we had a long weekend in Germany, with the highlight of the trip being a visit to Pfaffenhofen an der Ilm, the whole of Wollmeise.
I had seen the shop on their website so knew mostly what to expect but it was wonderful to visit. Having my husband and our two small sons in tow I knew I wouldn't be able to spend hours in the shop. (Note to self: next time, visit alone!) My husband kindly took the boys to a cafe for a drink and a snack to allow me time to browse. I had one hour, and I think I used it wisely.
What the shop has that the online store doesn't is the Nobody is Perfect (NiP) range, the Wollmeise version of seconds. These are skeins which might be slightly underweight, might have a knot in them, might bleed dye when washed, or might be the "wrong" colour. Since I can buy "correct" colours online I was especially keen to see the colour "accidents".
I finally ended up with three skeins of Lace, a total of 8 skeins of the Pure merino fingering weight (some NiP and some named skeins), three named skeins of DK and 6 skeins of Twin sock yarn. One of those was chosen by my older son for me to knit him some socks, although since he has started calling it his woolly friend and walking round the house petting it I'm not sure he's going to let me make those socks any time soon.
Two years ago I suggested to my husband that if I could reduce my then-current yarn stash by two-thirds by the time my fortieth birthday came around this summer, I would like to visit Bavaria to go to the Wollmeise store to celebrate my milestone birthday. He agreed.
I achieved my goal and last month we had a long weekend in Germany, with the highlight of the trip being a visit to Pfaffenhofen an der Ilm, the whole of Wollmeise.
I had seen the shop on their website so knew mostly what to expect but it was wonderful to visit. Having my husband and our two small sons in tow I knew I wouldn't be able to spend hours in the shop. (Note to self: next time, visit alone!) My husband kindly took the boys to a cafe for a drink and a snack to allow me time to browse. I had one hour, and I think I used it wisely.
What the shop has that the online store doesn't is the Nobody is Perfect (NiP) range, the Wollmeise version of seconds. These are skeins which might be slightly underweight, might have a knot in them, might bleed dye when washed, or might be the "wrong" colour. Since I can buy "correct" colours online I was especially keen to see the colour "accidents".
I finally ended up with three skeins of Lace, a total of 8 skeins of the Pure merino fingering weight (some NiP and some named skeins), three named skeins of DK and 6 skeins of Twin sock yarn. One of those was chosen by my older son for me to knit him some socks, although since he has started calling it his woolly friend and walking round the house petting it I'm not sure he's going to let me make those socks any time soon.
And finally, here I am with my shopping bags! A successful mission indeed!
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