Knitting circles were once a popular place to exchange rumors about the area's handsomest fireman, which of the neighboring towns' mayors were secretly left-handed, and the fate of the Crumb brothers. Get your finger on the pulse and some yarn with today's Groupon: for $10, you get $20 worth of knitting and cross-stitch supplies at Knit and Stitch in Cocoa.
For more than 35 years, Knit and Stitch has fueled the creation of woolly masterpieces with a stock of more than 30 brands of yarn and 4,000 cross-stitch patterns, fibers, specialty threads, and accessories. Thimble-thumbed patrons can knit sweaters, tea cozies, and actual tea reproductions with yarn skeins from Plymouth Jeanne ($3.95), Universal Uptown ($4.99), and Kertzer Marble Chunky ($13.95). Fiber and specialty threads intertwine on hand-painted and blank cross-stitch canvases ($4–$20) to craft embroidered effigies. More than 600 titles of counted thread leaflets and charts are available to guide crafters through cross-stitch projects, just as a beloved family recipe guides confused grandchildren into ominous shops full of herbs and potions. Customers can select their weapons of choice from a selection of embroidery hoops, Gingher scissors, and needles from Anchor, John James, and Piecemaker.
Crafters seeking guidance or just an amenably chatty workspace can settle down to loop and purl at one of Knit and Stitch's free worktables staffed by a sage yarn guru. Sip complimentary tea, water, or coffee while learning how to darn a sock, or bond with a peer over a mutual love of sugar gliders.
Origin Stories: Fancy Meeting You Here
From the moment her grandmother taught her to knit at age 12, Ann Sweeney nurtured a deep love for all things yarncraft, particularly the pleasures of knitting her own tassel-free winter hats. After a career spent spiffing up faltering hotels and restaurants, Ann realized her retirement dream of owning her own knitting store by purchasing Knit and Stitch, and she began to work the same magic on its struggling community. Her hard work transformed the shop into its current bustling incarnation. Ann is surprised how often far-flung friends bump into each other amid her skeins of yarn—as an English visitor recently did with a friend of hers from North Carolina.