Yarn Store to Open in Downtown Northfield

Knitters and fiber lovers know that oftentimes a project is inspired by the beauty of a skein of yarn. Sometimes it’s the color, the feel of the yarn in the hand or the thought of discovering what the yarn will look like once it’s a finished project.

Longtime knitter Cynthia Gilbertson is no stranger to having yarn inspire her to start something new. But since moving to Northfield two years ago she’s discovered something else: Sometimes another kind of fiber can inspire a new project.

Gilbertson’s latest project, Northfield Yarn, a new yarn store due to open in September in a rear space of the building at 314 Division St., was inspired not just by the love of yarn but by the community of Northfield.

Formerly a lawyer practicing in Minneapolis and a teacher at William Mitchell College of Law, Gilbertson had long thought of opening a yarn store. She loved knitting and teaching classes and enjoyed the sense of community that comes together when a group of fiber lovers gets together to work on projects. Yet, the dream of opening a store didn’t come together until she moved to Northfield.

“I just love this community and while the idea of owning the yarn shop had been sort of an attractive idea, the idea of owning a yarn shop in Northfield, that is what made me really think I would like to do this,” she said.

So Gilbertson, ready for a new adventure and the desire to create a place where knitters can motivate, inspire and support each other, decided to open Northfield Yarn.

At present Gilbertson is in the process of painting, installing new carpet and finalizing her logo and signage.

Her website, www.northfieldyarn.com, is “still on the needles,” and she needs to hire some part-time help and find a person or two who would like to teach classes.

Gilbertson plans to carry a broad range of yarn—including sock yarn aplenty—ranging from inexpensive to high-end to suit the needs of a beginner wanting to make a scarf to an experienced knitter planning to knit a heirloom sweater. 

New to knitting? Northfield Yarn will carry everything you’ll need including needles, tools and patterns as well a selection of notions to finish a fiber project like elastic, zippers, thread and floss. Gilbertson also plans to carry some gift items like hats, mittens and knitted jewelry.

Gilbertson has a vision to fill the open shop space with a comfy sitting area where people can work on their projects. There will be a table and chairs for classes and open knitting times. Northfield Yarn occupies the space formerly used by , which moved to a location with a storefront in the same building.

There will also be a computer for tech-savvy customers who want to access Ravelry, a website Gilbertson describes as “Facebook for knitters,” to search for patterns and project information. The shop will be bright and colorful and, of course, filled with yarn! 

“I’m getting the most exciting stuff, you just can’t imagine!” Gilbertson said as she looked at the boxes of yarn that have already arrived to her store.

But before she can put yarn on the shelves, it’s back to work for Gilbertson as she keeps working on her project, a store that will be a welcoming place for knitters at all levels.