Welcome to Yarn in the Woods

In Galena, Jo Daviess County, Illinois. If you're looking to check out my available yarns in person, you can find them downtown on Main Street in Galena at my uncle's antiques and used books store, Peace of the Past. He has two shops on Main Street, and my yarn (and me, on the weekends) is in the North store, between Fried Green Tomatoes and Gobbies Sports Bar and Grill, at 217 North Main Street. The yarn section is to the right side of the register/check out area.

We sell a variety of yarn including wool, alpaca, cotton, linen, and blends. All of the yarn is locally hand-dyed by me.

Hand-dyed yarn is more expensive because it is done in small batches by hand, which is more labor-intensive and time-consuming than commercially-dyed yarns. This allows for a much wider variety of unique colorways. Additionally, craft stores typically stock very cheap acrylic yarns and acrylic-heavy wool blends, whereas hand-dyed yarns are made with high-quality yarn bases that tend to have better drape, better feel, and won't pill like acrylic yarns. A sweater or beanie made of merino or alpaca wool is going to be a lot warmer and more environmentally friendly than one made of acrylic, which is just a type of plastic.

No, I only sell my own hand-dyed fibers or hand-made projects. If you drop by the brick-and-mortar location at Peace of the Past North in Galena, IL, you will find that I also have woodsy-themed crocheting stitch markers for sale.

Anything you want! From 0-Lace Weight up through 6-Super Bulky Weight, and from basic cotton and non-superwash wools to fine superwash merino and British Blue-Faced Leicester, to alpaca, silk, cashmere, baby yak, or even baby camel if you want to go the ultra-luxurious route. Smooth yarns, fuzzy yarns, high twist, bouncy, fluffy, boucle, black and white zebra twist yarn, or roving... You just need to let me know what you're interested in and I'll give you a list of choices that fit your needs!

That depends! If I have to special order your yarn base(s), which I probably will, it will take about a week or two for the bare yarn to get to me. More yarn and colorways that you have ordered = more time it takes to design/dye/rinse/dry it all. If you have very specific colors and techniques in mind, it will take longer than if you just wanted something simple. Additionally, any yarns that are made from plant fibers (cotton, linen, bamboo, etc.) will take longer because the process to dye plant fibers is entirely different and takes longer. After that, it depends on how many orders I have ahead of yours. Keep in mind that Yarn in the Woods has only one employee--me! I have two other jobs, plus a small homestead to keep in order, so please be patient with me!

2 to 3 business days maximum after you place your order, but I try to ship things out as soon as possible after I receive an order notification. Most of my yarn is for sale at the Peace of the Past antique shop, so it isn't always readily available for me to immediately grab and ship out. Whenever possible, I try to arrange a time with the owner of the antique shop (my uncle) to swing by and pick up the item(s), but he isn't always available right away. If the order is made on a Friday through Sunday, I will typically ship on Monday.