All About Yarn

I have been coming to this LYS for about a year now. While the owners are not the most gregarious individuals I have never felt like I received poor customer service. I have taken in a few patterns and they helped me determine appropriate yarn options and they gave me some pattern advice without any issues.
I really like this LYS because it is close by and they have a fairly large and diverse yarn selection. The prices are comparable to other LYS so I do not feel they are overpriced. They have even ordered yarn for me if they do not have what I want in store.
The store is a little hard to find but its worth the effort in finding it. I will continue to frequent this LYS.

I went here once in 2008 and walked out without purchasing. My experience was spot-​on exactly like many of the other reviews here. I find the place excited because they carried certain brands of yarn, the store is not exactly easy to find, yes it did look like an episode of «Hoarders» as someone mentioned, the smell of wool is so so soothing, the feeling of being a kid in a candy store as some one else also mentioned. and so on and so forth.
My customer service experience was also as follows: the owner goes out of her way to make herself unavailable to me, there were ladies knitting on the store couch that are not the type of people I would conversate with, and briefly made me question my own love of knitting and crocheting. But that was short-​lived. I find several hard to find items that I was gleeful about. I take them to the register, wait a few minutes while being ignored. I refuse to prompt the owner because if she doesn’t want to make money, that’s her problem. I wanted the items so badly that I briefly considered appearing to walk out with the items without paying just to see if that would generate a response, but that’s not a good idea, of course. But I was so tempted to do that. Finally, a young lady with a mental disability makes a genuine effort to be helpful by attempting to ring me up. But she is unable to ring me up although she wants to and is clearly making an effort. This young lady turns out to be the either the owner’s daughter or some other close relative. The owner chastises the young lady and actually smacks at her hands. This experience is so dreadfully uncomfortable that I say, «No, really, it’s not worth it.» Then the owner snaps at me as if I’m her relative and it’s somehow to permissible to speak to me in that manner. At this point I laugh at her and walk out.
Obviously, Unilocal did not exist at the time and I fervently wished there was a platform for me to report this incident, to make it publicly known. I went onto Amazon or eBay and purchased the items that I desired. Yes, it is preferable to support your local businesses but some fools make it so difficult.

They have nice yarn and nice project pouches. However they are evil there and should be destroyed. They are so mean to you and you are spending your money. The local knitting group are very nice. I will not support this company,

I went for the first time yesterday and enjoyed the selection and help. The yarns were great quality. I found two projects for myself. And the woman there was terrifically helpful. They offer classes too. I’ll definitely be back!

Don’t expect help with anything from the owner! I’ve never met such an unfriendly, unhelpful shop owner. Try Cloverhill in Catonsville if you expect to get service and maybe even some help from the staff. I’m very disappointed. I’ve shopped here before but now it’s clearly become a clubhouse for the regulars.

I’m really not sure why so many of the negative reviews of this shop are filtered, because they are spot on. I have visited this yarn store several times over the years since I started knitting, and I have always received really crappy customer service.
The owners don’t greet you when you walk in, and act like you’re bothering them if you ask for help. Last time I was there, I had to just go up to a group of ladies that were knitting in the front of the store to see if one of them was the owner and could they ring me up? It was very awkward, and I doubt I’ll be shopping there again.

I know what some other customers are referring to, at least about one of the owners. Zero personality, no business sense as it relates to customer service and definitely should not be interacting with customers (as infrequently as that occurs). You almost feel uncomfortable — like they’re annoyed that you are there. I went in several times a few years back to give them a chance in case they were having an off day, but the lack of customer service and warmth sent me right over to another yarn shop that has all of the things that All About Yarn lacks.

I have been shopping at All About Yarn since they opened in 2004. Over this period of years, it has been fun to see the shop grow. In 2010 – 2011, they expanded their space to include a new classroom, and more shelving for their baby yarns section. This additional space really opened the store up.
The yarn selection is unique — they buy several yarns for smaller mills and dyers that you do not see at other local shops. Their organization is intuitive, and changes seasonally to feature yarns in the front of the store — e.g. lightweight cotton blends in the summer and warm woolies in the winter.
With a coffee and tea maker, and some cozy couches, they encourage their customers to claim a seat and stay for awhile. The owners are more casual in their customer service approach. You will be greeted when you walk in the door, but if you would like to find something in particular, you should approach them for help.
They have good sales and a nice clearance section. Over the years, I have reaped the rewards of their customer loyalty program several times over: for each $ 250 you spend, you get 25% off — it is a nice incentive to stock up!
Of course, there is some room for improvement (hence the 4-​stars): I would love to see a public computer for customers to use to look up patterns and yarns on their own, and I would prefer some variety in their musical tastes (their store radio is always tuned to a country music station, often a few notches too loud for my liking), but this shop is my go-​to yarn shop for yarns, pattern books, and accessories, and will continue to be.

I love this little shop. Found it a few years ago and keep going back for more! Karen and her co-​owner are very knowledgeable and can point you in the right direction. The story of how they started their shop is wonderful and I like that they include their daughters in the business. I have an intellectually challenged daughter and she feels very welcomed there. I also like their $ 25.00 off program which they keep track of. Their prices are very competitive compared to other shops and they have a great selection! I’m glad to see they are growing and expanding!

This was one of my first times in a yarn shop and I thought I had had died and gone to knitting heaven! There was soooo much to choose from! I spent plenty of time just feeling all the different yarns! There was so much to choose from! There were some drawbacks though — it was hard to find, the staff took quite some time to great me and then were nowhere to be found when I was ready to check out… but overall I’ll return and make some more yummy yarn purchases!

I stopped in for the first time today to use the Groupon (that I also purchased today). When I pulled up to the office park location I was turned off and didn’t really expect much, but inside was great! I have a scarf pattern I’ve been meaning to try so I bought 3 skeins of Cascade 220 and 40″ circular needles for $ 38 — $ 18 with the Groupon. The needles were a bit more than I expected, but it was a great price on the yarn.
I’ll definitely go back :)

I’m used to going to my LYS, fibre space (in OT, Alexandria, VA), which mostly offers indie/​hand dyed yarns. However, the boyfriend is in Columbia for grad school so this is where I go when I don’t have things to do at his place.
They have an extensive selection of yarns, needles and notions. Lots of Addis and Lantern Moon. The prices are great for the most part. Their prices for the Addi needles are the lowest in the area.
The only thing about this place is that it feels a bit overwhelming, like you’re in an episode of Hoarders. It’s organized by weight, but it doesn’t look very organized. Also, the lighting is really horrible so you might have to take the yarn near the front window to really see the color. I think the darkness of the store contributes to its unkempt appearance. Also, there’s that ridiculous (and hideous) sofa in the middle next to the lace/​sock yarns, and there’s always someone or two (usually old and large) sitting there and it feels awkward asking them to move. What if they have hip problems? I would feel bad!
As far as services go, I am unsure if they offer yarn winding services. There’s a cashier girl who looks like she’s going to cry if you say the wrong thing so I try to keep my conversations short with her. The owner occasionally quips with a question about my next project, but for the most part, she leaves me alone. They are pretty mean about letting me use the restroom (saying it’s only for students), but I now use it without their approval. If I’m buying $ 75 – 150 worth of yarn each time, I sure as hell expect them to let me use their loo.

ONE OF THE OWNERS ALMOST MADE ME CRY.
Seriously.
I am visiting my beau during my winter break from school, and was excited to find a LYS (local yarn store/​shop) that sold Cascade Yarns. I am starting the GREAT AMERICAN ARAN AFGHAN project and wanted this higher quality yarn. I was also looking for a NØSTEPINNE and/​or BALL WINDER, and a SWIFT.
I walk in and feel like a KID-​IN-​A-​CANDY-​STORE. I was absolutely thrilled to see all these quality yarns CRAMMED into this small store. I TRY TO BROWSE, but there is just so much stuff, with NO LABELS (or bad labeling) that I quickly FEEL LOST.
There is one friendly lady there, sitting on a couch knitting away. Unfortunately, she’s only a visitor and not staff. The OWNER had to be approached and SHE MADE ME FEEL LIKE I WAS INCONVENIENCING HER. I asked if they carried the NØSTEPINNE (which if you’re not familiar with is a way to hand-​wind center-​pull balls of yarn).
NO = the ABRUPT ANSWER I received. Okay. No problem. They are rather obscure tools that are not popular with the advent of hand-​crank and automatic ball winders.
I then ask if they have the GREAT AMERICAN ARAN AFGHAN Pattern Book. She hastily riffles through the pattern books and SHOVES IT AT ME and then walks away.
The friendly customer that was sitting on the couch approached the owner to ask for help with the vest she was knitting. I am baffled as to why that friendly lady sticks around because the OWNER WAS OUTRIGHT RUDE to her.
I decide to BRAVE IT and approach the owner again to ask about the BALL WINDER and SWIFT. She shows me the ones she owns in the office and quotes me a price of $ 65 and $ 70, respectively. More than I can spend right now.
I walk back to the sofa area where my beau is patiently waiting and paging through knitting magazines. I sit down next to him and tell him it’s more than I can afford. He asks about the NØSTEPINNE, and the FRIENDLY CUSTOMER ASKS ME what that is.
As I start to explain it to her, the OWNER INTERRUPTS ME with her description of it, and pulls a NØSTEPINNE out from behind the counter saying it was ONE FOR THEIR PERSONAL USE. Ensuring conversation:
FRIENDLY CUSTOMER: Why would you ever want to use one of those (vs. a hand-​crank ball winder)?
OWNER: Exactly!
MY BEAU (commenting in my ear): Then why do they own one?
ME (thinking to myself): Exactly!
BOTTOM LINE:
Good intentions with why they formed it (see website for story), but …
Too much yarn and tools and books and … for their own good = hard to find anything = you have to ask for help = EXTREMELY RUDE service = BAD EXPERIENCE.
Go here ONLY if you’re desperate and need something NOW and okay with RUDE Service.
PS — I really wanted to like this place. Luckily I found another that’s close (enough), better priced, and super friendly.

Great prices, unbelievable selection and friendly people always willing to engage in helpful conversation. By my third visit there, the owner knew my name and remembered what I’d bought on my last visit. They always ask me what I’m working on and how it’s going. A warm and friendly place to shop. I never have to go anywhere else – they’ve got everything I need and at great prices to boot.

Possibly the best-​stocked yarn shop in the Ellicott City/​Columbia area. It’s large, and friendly, and every time I’ve gone they’ve had cookies and tea out for customers. A good selection of Noro and Manos del Uruguay, and not too much of a focus on novelty yarns, although there are plenty. There’s a table in the back, plus couches and chairs to sit in and knit or crochet or read the knitting magazines that are available. I like to wander around in a sort of yarn-​haze while I shop, and so the customers chatting about their knitting blogs and hysterectomies and so on are somewhat distracting and annoying, but probably that won’t bother you.