Black Sheep Craft Shop

Black Sheep Craft Shop Offering high-quality materials and creating community for fiber artists at all levels.

Both sweaters I am working on right now are stars-aligning projects that are also gifts. In addition to the Catknit swea...
09/06/2026

Both sweaters I am working on right now are stars-aligning projects that are also gifts. In addition to the Catknit sweater I'm working on for Lucy (prompted to re-focus due to Sharon KAL), this morning I cast on jen geigley knits 's latest design, Terrapin. I'm not going to Rhinebeck, but I do happen to have a sweater quantity of Sawkill Farm yarn (2-ply worsted) that I purchased over a decade ago and have felt it was too precious to commit to a project. Watching Jen and Erica talk about just this project and just this concept of not waiting to use the good yarn was just the kick in the butt I needed to get started. This one will be a present for Keiser that I knit up this month to celebrate his 50th. It's just the perfect textural knit I've been wanting to make him, and the perfect foil to fi*****ng weight colorwork. I'm inches in already even after messing up and needing to rip back 3 rows!

This pattern is lovely, Jen!

Gratitude and grief can and often do live as neighbors, even roommates. It's been such a joy and honor to create a space...
07/05/2026

Gratitude and grief can and often do live as neighbors, even roommates. It's been such a joy and honor to create a space that so many of you have told me felt welcoming and safe to you. I wish I could fully express my heartache (and guilt) over that loss.

I'm going to shut down online sales for a couple weeks so I can get all my current shipping orders done (thank you!), pack everything up, and get control of my remaining inventory. I'm also looking forward to a beach vacation with some of my dear college friends. I'll be back soon with a special merch pre-order, craft meetup, and rambling sentences about my feelings.

Hi friends. I'm not going to be providing any update at this time, outside of sharing that I'll be open this weekend. I ...
07/01/2026

Hi friends. I'm not going to be providing any update at this time, outside of sharing that I'll be open this weekend. I don't want to create a long awkward Midwestern goodbye situation while we continue to explore a resolution, so after this weekend I'll be moving any remaining inventory home and will operate the online store while it lasts.

On to the good things I'm making room for:

Amazing friends and family
Gifts of crystal and magic
The kindness of strangers
So much laughter
Kittens
Baby fawns in my neighborhood (swipe for video!)
An upcoming girls trip with some of my oldest friends to look forward to
An amazing boss
Meals cooked by 9-year-olds

REMEMBER our community pride swatch project from last year? THIS year they have been lovingly assembled by Kayli Nartate...
06/27/2026

REMEMBER our community pride swatch project from last year? THIS year they have been lovingly assembled by Kayli Nartatez into a few blankets as diverse and colorful as our community. Additionally, everreadybetty contributed a GORGEOUS and fun quilt to the fundraising effort.

Rather than auctioning to the highest bidder, I thought it would be more accessible and raise more funds to encourage direct donations to organizations that support the q***r community. Every $5 you donate will give you one entry for these amazing blankets! I'll do the drawing after the July 15th deadline, sometime later this summer.

Donation receipts must be emailed and not direct messaged to me to be counted because I just don't have capacity to consolidate submissions via multiple points of entry...please use subject line Community Pride for your email!

Swipe to see the blankets! 🫶🏻

06/25/2026

Update on shop closing date: I cannot promise I will be open after this weekend. I hope we have a little more time, but no guarantees. Online orders may have shipping delays but will still be an option. AND - buy 5 skeins of yarn and get the 6th free!

If you want to listen to 12 minutes of me sharing how we got here, listen on. I adore you.

Bigger update later. Love you. 🧶🫶🏻🧶
06/24/2026

Bigger update later. Love you. 🧶🫶🏻🧶

Happy Father's Day and Happy Wedding Anniversary to my favorite Black Sheep, the one who has a "PUNK IS NOT DEAD" cross-...
06/22/2026

Happy Father's Day and Happy Wedding Anniversary to my favorite Black Sheep, the one who has a "PUNK IS NOT DEAD" cross-stitch kit near his chair in case he decides to pick up "hand work." The one who humors my every whim with patience, puns, and unwavering support. The one who works harder than anyone I know not just to make it through the day (which feels insurmountable at times ) but also to be a continually better version of himself. The best poo-poo face to Lucy, and the best at unconditionally loving his boys (human and cat) even when they won't talk back.

Appreciation post on the shop page because this place wouldn't have existed this year if not for you.

One of my goals for the shop has always been to offer products with which I'm proud to be associated. For me that has me...
06/13/2026

One of my goals for the shop has always been to offer products with which I'm proud to be associated. For me that has meant a goal of sourcing yarns that connect the human fiber artist at the end of the production line to the heritage and ethics of something special. It has meant companies that are women-owned. BIPOC-owned. LGBTQIA+ owned. Ethical and sustainable as possible in an extractive late capitalism hellscape. Not every product I offer ticks off one of these goals, and there is so much more I wanted to do in the future on this front.

The Farmer's Daughter Fibers yarns I restocked today are ones that I'm extremely proud to offer in my shop. Like some of my other "white whale" (to me) yarns, I planned and budgeted for this order. I don't have the space or sales flow to put one in very often, and it takes months to be ready after it is placed. It's a slow process and it is worth it. Just check out the company's history and its Diversity and Inclusion statement on its website and you'll be in awe, and you'll know that these are great yarns doing great things in the world. These are yarns you can feel proud to work with -- like many others that I offer.

I chose some vibrant colors for this order, and it's fitting that they arrived during Pride Month 🌈 ... They sure have cheered me up to see them.

📸 Thanks Jamie Nicolino

Hi PHM KALers, due to flooding at the shop and the likelihood of continued rain this evening, we are relocating our meet...
06/11/2026

Hi PHM KALers, due to flooding at the shop and the likelihood of continued rain this evening, we are relocating our meetup to Smokey Row. Sorry for the change!

Sorry! Kid emergency (she's ok).
06/06/2026

Sorry! Kid emergency (she's ok).

Address

3523 6th Avenue, Suite 102
Des Moines, IA
50313

Opening Hours

Wednesday 6pm - 8pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm
Sunday 10am - 4pm

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