GOLDEN DRAGON
This has been one of my go-to store for sewing, needle felting and other craft needs for the past decade, and I was so stoked to finally be able to have reason to browse and purchase some super gorgeous yarns from their wall of yarns. I have yet to find another store stocking such a vast range of delectable yarns in Singapore.
Their audience for yarns is the crochet and knitting group, not much for weaving. However, I find some of their cotton yarns work for warp as well but could get pricey. They also stock macrame cords, basket weaving supplies, raffia and loop rug hooking kits.
As you can see from my purchase below, they stock popular Japanese brand, Hamanaka, and also others like Sirdar, Sublime and other Italian and international branded yarns. They however do not stock kid mohair x silk yarns. :( Lots of wool, cotton, acrylic, polyester, cupro and silk, though, which is more than enough for weaving.
CRAFT ATELIER
Not really an all-out yarn shop (though there is also a wall of yarn here that shouldn't disappoint), but more a studio setting with a variety of floor, table, rigid heddle, inkle and frame looms. They also have a Hello Hydrangea frame loom in residence. On top of teaching weaving, they also teach yarn spinning, yarn blending, knitting and crocheting. Their store has a wide selection of looms and also lets you experience weaving on their looms for a fee. They are the Singapore retailer for Louet, Schacht and Saori looms.
They do sell warp yarns for both tapestry frame looms and fine warp yarns for floor and rigid heddle looms. I got my cone of 20/2 cotton thread from them.
This is the shop I visited after knowing Allyson Rousseau's works. I've gotten two cones of 8/8 Brassard unmercerised cotton thread and a few 8/4 cotton threads for warp. They also stock useful accessories like wave shuttles by Ashford and 3-in-1 magic sticks by Schacht. After I got myself a Schacht Rigid Heddle Flip loom from a local shop Craft Atelier, I've also ordered a variable dent reed and other cones of alpaca, tencel and Ito yarns to experiment with.
The shop owner, Sarah's service is perfection and she is very helpful and quick to respond to questions. I have never been disappointed with my orders.
MISS BABS
I wanted to get a Schacht Lilli loom and this store turned up in my Google search stocking some beautifully coloured yarns with intriguing colour mixes like Wild Iris as well.
I was looking for DK/worsted sized yarns that were affordable but they had more fine yarns instead. I was also very excited to own some vibrant coloured pinks (as shown on their website) and ordered a Mini Trio of pinks together with a lovely sky blue, candy pink and vibrant violet.
However, I was most disappointed by the mini trio pinks. On the site, the pinks looked vibrant and healthy, but what I received was dull and lifeless. Thankfully, the Pink Positive Yowza skein on the left did not disappoint (which was strange). Why is it some colours are accurate while others aren't? The violet appeared darker in my photo above, but in reality, was quite close to the original vibrant violet. So was the blue, named Chirp.
They included a free sample of another yarn which had colours that I find unappealing, and also some knitting rings. Overall, I wouldn't buy from them again unless I need superwash Merino textured yarns. I find these tend to keep their shape very well even after I rya knot them to trim off as tufts, which is not the effect I'm after.
I was searching for shops that stocked Rowan's Finest yarn in 065 Love as I was knotting up a beautiful deep red heart with the single skein I found from Golden Dragon. The store told me they only had that one skein left and wasn't sure if they will restock (but after a few weeks I returned to the shop to find 2 more! Which I quickly picked up since it's a discontinued range)...
It is in this store I found the colourful Malabrigo yarns and also how they offer free US shipping with any amount ordered and free yarn winding service. Super sweet folks!
From them, I ordered mostly Rios sized yarns and one Rasta. The Rasta and one of the Rios will be the main yarns for a new project where I hope to weave colours of the underwater. The mint green and aqua blue will be accents for the surface of the water. Can't wait to see what happens on the loom, but I can only work on it after the current waterfall piece I'm weaving on the Funem Studio XXL loom is finished. (Or I buy another large loom...)
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