In the interest of full disclosure, I’m not really in Taos now, but sitting at my desk trying to keep the kitten-on-cat violence to a minimum. The devil doesn’t wear sheep’s clothing, but comes in the guise of a sweet-faced, orange kitty. It’s beyond me how “no” translates into kitten-speak as, “Snookems, do whatever your little kitten heart desires.”
But back to Taos. There are many reasons to love Taos, among them the sage-scented air, the slanted New Mexican light and the soft-edges of the adobe buildings. With faded hollyhocks leaning against the town’s brown, undulating walls, it’s like walking from one painted landscape into another.
There are also four yarn shops serving a county population of about 32,000. And, baby, we hit them all.
First stop, Weaving Southwest. Breathless in the face of all the color, I completely forgot to take pictures. Take it on my recommendation, run and order one of their yarn cards, now! We also made a short visit to the aptly named, The Yarn Shop. The smallest retailer of the bunch, The Yarn Shop offers pretty standard knitting fare and is worth a look if for no other reason than its close proximity to this fabulous shoe store.
A bit woozy from the long drive and impeding excitement, we dined early on Thursday and then retired for an evening of knitting and catching up on the new TV season.
Dia Dos (Day Two):
Off to Taos Sunflower in the charming village of Arroyo Seco. Lauren recommended it as a must-see, saying that the first time she went, she had a religious experience. (Mom and I felt similar stirrings when our credit cards wriggled out of our wallets.) This is a particularly inspirational yarn shop; staff members have knit countless tempting garments—Noro jackets and pullies, a Debbie Bliss ruffle cardie in cashmerino I was mad for, Terri Ranck multi-yarn confections, simple, ingenious scarves. On top of everything, the sales team members are smart, funny and as much in love with fiber as the customers. They don’t allow photos inside, but here’s an exterior view:
That’s commercial yarn hanging outside. You’ve got to go in to see the nifty handspun.
After a restorative lunch at Taos Cow, we went back to town for the requisite tour of La Lana. For the first two weeks of the month, La Lana is hosting a fiber arts exhibit called Fiber Frolics. Though the shop is known for displaying its proprietary patterns knit up into sumptuous samples, the art show was stunning. We loved Katherine Maxwell’s pieces; check out this cropped, drop-sleeve pullover:
And this stunner:
The needle-felted folk to the right and left of Maxwell’s tunic are by Ayala Talpai
We also got to intrude on Ayala Talpai’s needlefelting class, where participants were busy making dragons. Here’s the artist making a baby:
A student dragon:
Some rose corsages by Ayala:
A fun chapeau:
And a jacket by unofficial exhibitor, Dorothy Lake:
Last but not least, a little La Lana yarn porn:
Read Letter from Taos, part II tomorrow!