Only knitters would dream up the annual Yarn Crawl, which rolls out in just over eight weeks: with no central location, attendees weave between eight shops around town, loading up on yarn and patterns and stamps on their Yarn Crawl passports. “Everybody shows up in their finest hand-knits and hand-crochets, and they meet others at a shop and become best friends,” says co-organizer Heidi Roe, owner of Northwest Wools in Multnomah Village. “It’s a big fiber party.” For shops, the four-day fest can be more lucrative than the entire holiday season. 

By both temperature and temperament, Portland is a knitter’s paradise. The weather lends itself to cozy knits, and the city’s rents still accommodate yarn businesses, says Sally Palin, owner of Close Knit on NE Alberta. Plus, she adds, “Portland’s just a crafty town.” Japanese yarn brand Amirisu has its North American headquarters here; Brooklyn Tweed and design-your-own-yarn company Yarnia are based in town, too. Knitting artists and yarn bombers abound.

Knitting and crocheting spiked during the pandemic. At Roe’s shop, customers ask for super-thick roving (around two inches in circumference) to make the chunky blankets trending on TikTok and websites like Ravelry. Today’s knitters span ages and genders, and buy both modern and granny-style patterns to make items like bathing suits, leg warmers, and prostheses for people who have had mastectomies—which Palin says are called “knitted knockers.” 

>25

Yarn businesses in the Portland area 

March 7–10, 2024

Marquee local event: Rose City Yarn Crawl

798

Length, in yards, of the longest yarn ball at Northwest Wools, Portland’s oldest yarn shop

1,800

Yarn Crawl attendees last year

14,000 

Attendees of October’s Oregon Flock & Fiber Festival in Albany, Oregon

Subcultures is our snapshot of one local community.