
A River of Yarn in Keene is celebrating 10 years as a destination yarn studio by offering discounts and savings on high-quality items.
Though she opened A River of Yarn 10 years ago, owner Tracy Minnema has been a fibre artist since she began crocheting at five years old and knitting at nine years old. Her lifelong passion led the Peterborough native to study Fashion Merchandising at Fleming College, working in Toronto for a few years, then returning to Queen’s University to obtain her teaching qualification in Technical Education. Tracy spent 30 years teaching Family Studies, clothing, and fashion at the secondary school level, and eventually opened her yarn studio.
Located at 353 Kents Bay Road and reflected in its descriptive name, A River of Yarn backs onto the Otonabee River, making it accessible by both foot and by watercraft while offering a serene garden space for visitors to work on their projects with a view. For those unable to make it to the studio in person, A River of Yarn offers an online store with shipping across Canada and the U.S. and free delivery to Peterborough.
At A River of Yarn, fibre enthusiasts will find luxury yarns at competitive and affordable prices that you can’t find anywhere else, including wools, silks, linens, cottons, and more. Alongside high-quality yarn brands like Schoppel, Fibra Natura, and Sueño yarns by HiKoo, A River of Yarn supplies Addi needles and hooks, books, leaflets and digital patterns, as well as project bags hand-sewn by Minnema herself.

In the spacious studio space, which is complete with a small kitchen area for snacks and coffee, Minnema combines her passion for yarn with her experience as an educator by offering a place for local crafters to learn about fibre arts. Every Thursday evening, the studio turns into a social drop-in where guests can connect with other knitters and crocheters while working on their own individual projects.
On Saturday mornings, Minnema also hosts regular learn to knit and learn to crochet classes as well as other workshops, which are often held outdoors in the summer. She can also be booked to host workshops for knitting or crochet guilds and groups.
In honour of A River of Yarn’s 10-year anniversary, Minnema will be celebrating throughout the month of April with numerous sales, yarn tasting events, trunk shows, and scheduled classes. The month of festivities will end with a tent sale on Local Yarn Store Day, held on Saturday, April 26 this year.
A River of Yarn is open Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Thursdays from 3 to 7 p.m., and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Hours may vary, so check the website at ariverofyarn.ca/pages/calendar-of-classes, where you can also keep up to date on class offerings.
To browse products at A River of Yarn, visit ariverofyarn.ca. You can also follow A River of Yarn on Facebook and Instagram.
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