#135: The Yarn Gourmet and Bead Creative

Today I got crafty (for the people who know me, I promise this is not a joke). I had an open afternoon and so I took the time to explore two stores in South Bend that will help anyone, from proclaimed novice to expert, learn several of the more unique and specialized artistic skills out there. I'm talking about knitting and jewelry-making, of course.

Some of the (many) skeins of yarn

First up, is the Yarn Gourmet in the River Park neighborhood of South Bend. The store has branded themselves as a "luxury yarn shop" and when I stopped in, they more than lived up to their name. The walls and aisles of the store are lined with brightly-colored yarns of overwhelming variety. For the experienced knitter, you'll have to visit and give me a quick primer on the differences between the various types. As an acknowledged beginner, or I would even prefer "observer", I was content to wander the store and browse their extensive selection of knitting books and already completed projects for sale.

After the Yarn Gourmet, I made my way over to Miami Street to visit Bead Creative. As their name implies, the store features vast quantities of beads in every shape, color, and size. Here too I was out of my league, but the friendly owner answered my questions and let me browse inquisitively for several minutes. Besides the beads themselves, all of the finished jewelry in the store is handmade by the owner and her daughter at the store which has been open for almost 5 years.

In my opinion, the biggest selling point of both stores is that they offer a slate of instructional classes so that anyone can take full advantage of the materials they have to offer. I know friends who knit to relieve stress and, really, who could deny the advantage of custom-making your own jewelry? If you visit either of their websites (linked to below) you can find a listing of the classes offered this spring.

Relevant Info:

Yarn Gourmet

2915 Mishawaka Ave

574-232-9276

Hours: T-W 10-5, TH 10-7, F 10-8, Sa 10-3 

http://yarngourmet.blogspot.com/

Bead Creative

2303 Miami Street

574-234-2323

Hours: T-Sa 10-6

http://www.bead-creative.net/ (Note: The website currently appears to be down, but I just visited earlier this morning, so hopefully it will be back up soon.)