Knittin' Kitten: a Portland treasure!

Last weekend I had the joy of visiting the Knittn' Kitten in Portland for the first time.

I can't say enough great things about this store - it's a fantastic place that I will look forward visiting again whenever I travel to Portland.

If you live in Portland or you are visiting the City of Roses - it's well-worth the trip up Northeast Glisan to check this place out.    They are tucked away on 7530 NE Glisan Street.

You can also follow the store on Facebook to keep up with their latest finds.  A few of their rarest treasures also go up on etsy.

It's a vintage store devoted entirely to craft supplies - fabric, buttons, notions, patterns, yarn, knitting needles, and lots of other craft supplies for embroidery, beading and more - plus a few cool vintage treasures and some beautiful original artwork and craft pieces.  It's a feast for the eyes in all directions.

  

The store owner is really delightful and incredibly helpful.  She took so much time to chat with me and offer helpful information and interesting stories about the fabric that I bought.  She is an accomplished and knowledgeable seamstress who can help you track down just what you need for your projects.

I took home lots of treasures.  Five cuts of fabric and lots of notions and little supplies, which you can read all about in just a bit.

If you live in Portland, this would be a great place to pop into instead of Joann Fabrics when you just need a zipper or some bias tape to finish a project.

They've got loads of little things that every sewist needs to finish off their projects - all at significantly less than you'd pay at a box store.  It's a nice mixture of vintage and new, depending on what you like and need. 

I love vintage notions - I think the quality is higher and I love wearing vintage, so it's a special treat for me to create something that incorporates vintage elements.  I usually hoard vintage notions as I find them in thrift stores & hope that I'll have what I need on hand when I'm ready to make a specific project, but the Knittn' Kitten has all those sorts of treasures in spades.  How luxurious that you could come and choose just what you need project by project - I'm a bit jealous of Portland locals!

Since I was coming from a distance, I stocked up on various things I use often - especially metal zippers.  I just love vintage metal zippers.  They are so delicate and sturdy at the same time.  I snagged a bunch for skirts because my collecion was short on short length zippers. 

You can also find totally unique things that will spark your creativity in unexpected directions, like this  really cool fabric-covered elastic sold by the yard. I have plans to use this as the waistband of a dress for fall that will be a knock-off of a RTW dress of mine. 

They have a fantastic collection of vintage patterns, all for around $3-4 each. 

And also a big collection of newer patterns for a quarter each! 

I snagged another boxy 80's top pattern - this one with colorblocking built into the design.  I am thinking of making a few more tops like my Southwest top for fall and this pattern looks like fun.

Oh, and check out the buttons that I found!  Some great shell buttons, including some big chunky ones for cozy sweaters and some lovely Czech glass buttons too.  There is a vast assortment of buttons to choose from!

Besides buttons, I grabbed a couple other things for knitting - some stitch holders and some black vintage Petersham ribbon for buttons bands.  They had lots of really nice wool yarn and other knitting supplies too... but I restisted taking too many knitting supplies home.

They were unlabelled, but I think that bunch of reds and variagated purples in the upper right corner were Manos del Uruguay yarns for $4 each.  What a steal!  I almost bought them, but I'm on a serious "yarn diet" right now!  

The lion's share of my finds were fabric!  I bought five cuts of fabric.  Some cheerful sunshine yellow fine wale coduroy to make a skirt.  Enough soft poly plaid in a beautiful navy/yellow/green colorway for a fall dress, and a cheerful yellow white and navy vintage cotton that will make a great dress.

3 yards of vintage cotton - a red & white plaid shot with metallic gold, perfect for a vintage shirtdress pattern!  

Some lovely semi-sheer vintage cotton voile in shades of green overlaid with delicate pink roses - this will also make a beautiful vintage dress pattern come alive with vintage fabric.  

And my final treasure - some printed bias tape.  My husband loves to tease me about bias tape because as much as I have, it seems that I always need another color or width than what I have.  In my continual search, I've started collecting interesting printed tapes.  I know you can make your own out of any fabric you like, but I still get a kick out of these.  Here's the one I added to my stash from Knittn' Kitten.

And just for fun, here's a picture of the printed tape that kicked off my collection - I've had it almost 10 years and still can't bring myself to use it - but one day I will have the perfect project for it!

What are you waiting for?!  If this isn't an excuse for a trip to Portland, I don't know what is! You are sure to find something really special at the Knittn' Kitten and have a great time in your search.