Knitting was invented to turn the tumbling balls of yarn that littered the badlands habitat of early man into a soft, warm blanket for man's first pet rock. Create something cozy with help from today's deal: for $17, you get a three-hour beginner's knitting workshop at Tempe Yarn & Fiber on East University Dr. in Tempe (a $35 value). Choose one session from the following days:

• Tuesdays, 5:00 p.m.
• Wednesdays, 5:00 p.m.
• Thursdays, 10:30 a.m. or 5:00 p.m.
• Second and fourth Saturdays of the month, 3:00 p.m.

This family-owned-and-operated yarn boutique has been teaching the finer points of the woven arts to wool wranglers of all skill levels since 2005. This three-hour starter workshop is ideal for new knitters and those who'd like a refresher course on the knitting process, including cast-ons, knit stitches, bind-offs and the wrist-contorting Lambada. Potential purlers should bring along a set of size 8 single-point needles and a skein of worsted weight yarn to start on, or can arrive early to peruse and purchase some from the shop's vast selection of unique and locally-made accessories and hand-spun yarns. Workshops are capped at 10 participants so that each individual receives the utmost attention embarking on their first scarves, dish cloths or knit bikinis.

Reviews

Six Yelpers give Tempe Yarn & Fiber a 4.5-star average. Three Google Mappers award it a five-star average and five Insider Pagers give it a four-star average:

• Decent variety of yarn and roving. Open friendly atmosphere- they have potlucks and tea parties. I felt very much at home here! – nicola p., Insider Pages
• Don't just come into shop - come into knit, spin and spend some time! The classes and events are a blast too! – A Google Mapper who reviewed on 11/5/09