Friday, April 12, 2013

Boston Landmark Windsor Button Closes


Tomorrow is the last day of Windsor Button at 7pm this Boston icon will no longer exist.

My favorite yarn shop is closing because of a lease issue with the land lord (he wants to turn it into a restaurant). SO a Boston institution and flagship store that has been there for more than 75 years is closing (long after its other branches had closed). Everything in the store is 50-70% off. vintage goodies, expensive luxury materials, and other treasures are being liquidated.

Windsor Button has been a landmark in historic downtown Boston for 77 years! The store was an example of the old timed yarn shop with people working the button counter, material cut to order, and endless selection (literally). So far there are no plans to re-open. The owners, Susan and Stanley Baker,  have looked into other locations in Downtown, but nothing is big enough or in their price range.
(Boston Business Journal, Feb 14, 2013)\

WGBH has even devoted a story to this shop here:

Like Cheers, this place was a place that everyone actually knew my name, i would come in once a week to buy products for my knitting and competition stuff. Susan's advice was always very welcome, she has an excellent sense of color and a wealth of knowledge of the material she stocks. It was a place i could buy $2 red heart and $200 cashmere, bison, merino, silk, and rumored even Quiviut!!!

Also, sadly Minds Eye Yarns in Porter Square is going to close as well.  while it is not for a similar reason as WIndsor, it is sad to see the yarn shop go! Also the owner of Mind's Eye is  a veteran of my profession, Music Education, so I try to go by her shop once in a while, but an an hour-long train ride is often prohibitive for me.

Acrylic is NO substitution for a gentle merino, a smooth-shiny silk, a feathery light alpaca, or a luscious cashmere. So please SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL YARN SHOP!

Do what i did, and save your pennies, sell bottles, and make friends with the people who work there. because we all depend on each other!


My prayers are with the Baker family and their employees who will now have to restart from bottom!

Sources:
http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/news/2013/02/14/windsor-button-closing-its-doors.html?page=all

http://www.wgbh.org/programs/Greater-Boston-11/episodes/March-13-2013-Windsor-Button-Store-44601