Mother of Purl

more often than not, they would end up staying for dinner as well. The store grew gradually, but it was always a success, and I soon moved from our basement to a store that was so little I had to stand outside the entrance way if I had more than one customer. Over time, the Canvas Pad moved to bigger and bigger locations, finally establishing a more than twenty–year residency in a 218–year–old historic Victorian house. The Canvas Pad, which began as a hobby, had evolved into a pretty impressive business. Not bad for something I started on a whim!
Our children grew up and moved to Los Angeles. Eventually, Merrill and I moved too, carefully packing up every last skein of yarn and relocating our business. We found a home in the San Fernando Valley, and soon after that a perfect location in Studio City. La Knitterie Parisienne was born, and the new name for the business was created to reflect my Parisienne sensibilities while clearly establishing the nature of the shop.
I had a brand–new opportunity to reestablish my knitting yarn business, and I wanted to offer my clients the highest–quality yarns available on the market. Throughout my career, I had honed my abilities as a skilled designer with a sophisticated flair for style and color. A mother of three, I also found that I had acquired the art of patience and had a natural ability to teach—both novice and expert knitters alike. This was a time before the knitting revival, and my new clientele was gravitating to the warmth and charm of my shop. It was comforting and rewarding; after all, Merrill and I had taken a huge risk in moving our successful business cross–country, and now new customers were finding a new home at La Knitterie Parisienne surrounded by one of the largest inventories ever found in a single shop: 13,000 yarns and, without exception, one of the best in the market.
Coincidentally, La Knitterie Parisienne was located in the heart of the movie studio district: Universal Studios, Warner Brothers, Walt Disney Studios, Raleigh Studios, and Paramount Pictures, to name a few, were just a stone’s throw away. As a result, I found much of my clientele comprised the stars and tastemakers of Hollywood, and they, like the rest of my customers, demanded the best.
This was an eye–opening experience for me, having operated a successful business in sub–urban New Jersey, where most of my clients were professionals and stay–at–home moms. The mix had now broadened to include a circle of celebrities, movie producers and directors, screenwriters, stylists and makeup artists: today’s trendsetters who appear in the pages of high fashion and entertainment magazines and are partly responsible for helping to launch what is considered popular.
GOOD KARMA
One of my clients, an actress and model, regularly stops at my shop on her way to auditions because she claims my store provides her with “good karma.” In the many years that she has performed this ritual, she always got the part.
CUPID’S ARROW
One of my clients, traveling on business, was knitting at the airport while awaiting her flight. A young man, interested in what she was doing, struck up a conversation. Turned out they both lived in the same town. One thing led to another, and today the two are happily married. Seems the knitting needles were real cupid’s arrows.
Because I was in the forefront of the knitting renaissance, I have had an unprecedented involvement in the evolution of my craft. I have worked closely with yarn manufacturers and needle companies to help them develop new lines, and have given them a perspective on what clients really want and need, as well as what doesn’t work. In a way, it was as if yarn was flowing through my veins and I was able to connect with my customers, offering them resources they couldn’t find elsewhere. I became adept at designing patterns for my clients when they couldn’t find interesting ones in existing books and magazines. I was unmotivated by the ordinary; I wanted the extraordinary, and so did my clients. Since its inception, La Knitterie Parisienne has been known for its incredible selection of inventory, its excellent customer service, and now for my original one–of–a–kind designs.
As word spread about my shop, people were traveling from all distances to share in the experience. From their first foot in the door, they were hooked, sitting alongside fellow knitters—whom they’d soon call friends—at the large circular wooden table in the center of the store. The press wasn’t immune to our popularity, and they too became involved by reporting on this newfound knitting phenomenon. I had been touted by syndicated columnist Liz Smith as the pied piper of knitting, and word was traveling fast among the media that had crowned me the “guru of knitting” and my shop as the place to knit. My reputation as a leader within the knitting yarn industry catapulted La Knitterie Parisienne into the headlines, with media coverage in local, national, and international print and broadcast outlets.
La Knitterie Parisienne became the it place to sit and knit, ultimately helping to popularize the idea of the knitting circle—a place to find fun, friends, fashion, and fiber all in one spot.
Now, for the first time, I am gathering everything I have learned over the years into one complete resource: Mother of Purl: Friends, Fun, and Fabulous Designs at Hollywood’s Knitting Circle. More than just a pattern book, Mother of Purl is a sophisticated knitting book, showcasing my techniques and tips that will encourage you to explore your own creativity and incite a passion to knit some really incredible designs—designs that I have created especially for this book. From my couture–worthy ponchos, suits, skirts, dresses, shrugs, and jackets to a pink bikini, tank tops, blankets, and the ultimate diaper bag—which I’m introducing for the very first time—I hope Mother of Purl will inspire you to begin knitting or motivate you to further improve your knitting skills, whether you’re a novice or a