Meet your WoolWinders Staff!

 

Susan Allaway

Susan has always enjoyed lots of crafts, but knitting was one of the first.  She learned to knit in Brownies and remembers struggling over every stitch of the first garter stitch square!  She has moved around some, but was happy to move back to her native Maryland when her two children, Robert and Kate, were young.  They have long since flown the coop, leaving more time for knitting and more space to stash yarn!  She loves all sorts of knitting and loves fixing mistakes and has gotten quite good at it, because she’s made them all (several times).  

Kathy Clemente


Kathy learned to crochet at age 5 at the knee of her grandmother and great, great aunt. After crocheting on and off over the years, she took her first knitting lesson in 2000 and was instantly hooked! Kathy has been a WoolWinders Yarn Shop customer since her addiction began and has been a regular on Thursday nights for years. Always eager to help others choose their yarn for projects, when she is not spending time with her husband or knitting works for Catholic Charities in Baltimore in her spare time, Kathy runs a residential program for people with intellectual disabilities.

Sarah Evans

More about Sarah soon!

Flo Meit


Flo comes to WoolWinders Yarn Shop with a background in Textile Arts, which she studied in Belgium where she is originally from (French is her native tongue). Flo was taught knitting by her great aunt at age eight. As a teenager she worked at a yarn shop in her hometown where she made samples that people could purchase. After attending college Flo came to the United States as an au pair. She met her husband David in New York City then moved to the Washington area more than a decade ago. Flo and David now live in Boyds with their two children. She enjoys knitting for them and gets to try many different yarns for smaller size garments. Flo loves good quality yarn and would not hesitate to use it for children even if it means hand washing! Recently Flo taught her six-year-old daughter to knit, an activity they enjoy doing together.
 

Dolly Quinn 


Dolly is an avid crafter in all areas of needle arts including knitting, crochet, quilting, sewing and embroidery. She learned to knit at the age of nine. She grew up in Maine where warm knitted garments and accessories are a necessity in cold New England winters. Dolly relocated to Maryland in 1978 and raised a daughter and step-daughter while working full time. Her hobbies were put on hold during these years but when the girls grew up and started their own families, her passion for knitting was re-ignited! 

Dolly has four grandchildren who love and appreciate receiving hand knitted sweaters, hats and mittens. Dolly retired in 2013 and spends her time knitting to her heart’s content at home and with her knit group friends. Over the past 20 years Dolly has taken many classes from renowned designers such as Lucy Neatby, Laura Ashley and Lori Versaci. Like most knitters, she loves to knit for herself. Dolly also does test knitting and sample knitting for Lori Versaci, Corrina Ferguson and Christopher Salas. She has also taught classes at The Knitting Boutique in Glen Burnie until the store closed. Dolly enjoys exploring new and unusual knitting techniques and construction but most especially, sharing her knowledge with other knitters.  She lives in Pasadena, on the shores of the Magothy River, with her husband and cat.
 

Suzy Roy


Suzy started knitting several years ago by watching online videos and learning by her usual method of trial and error. Because of the conflicting nature of both simplicity and complexity in knitting, what started out as something to just dabble in has captured her attention and become an obsession and beloved hobby. A native of New Hampshire, Suzy recently moved to Rockville with her husband, two adopted rescue dogs and house bunny. It can be assumed that between the “furbabies” and her extensive yarn stash, their home will be well insulated and warm during the winter months for many years to come. When not knitting, you can usually find Suzy hiking nearby trails or cheering on her New England sports teams.
 

Liz Symborski


Liz learned to crochet way back in Junior High School and over the years she has tried many different crafts. She learned to knit in 2002 and has been a regular in the Tuesday morning Safari ever since. She finally joined the staff in March 2010. The knitting she likes best is lace knitting and she enjoys the challenge of fixing mistakes, especially finding that elusive missing yarn-over. When not knitting she also enjoys making Japanese dolls and beading. She also enjoys spending time with her husband and two young-adult children who also share her love of crafting, although not her love of knitting. . . yet.

Janet and Mark Tate

 

When Janet and Mark moved to Annapolis, MD in 2012, Janet quickly sought out a local yarn shop and knitting group.  When the yarn shop closed, Janet seriously began thinking of owning her own yarn shop business.  It seemed like destiny when the Woolwinders Yarn Shop in Rockville, MD became available, so the Tates bought the business in September, 2016.  Eight months later in May, 2017, they opened a second WoolWinders Yarn Shop in their home town of Annapolis.

Janet learned the basics of knitting as a small child, but she began taking knitting classes as an adult.  Her favorite pieces have been those that were given to her family over the years.  She is particularly drawn to projects that are simple, wearable and made using a quality, all natural yarn.  

She enjoys everything about the knitting community - the challenging business aspects as well as the everyday customer interaction.  Being around customers in the yarn shop and feeling their delight as they work on their knitting projects is the best!

As for Mark, he has worked his entire career as an executive in apparel manufacturing.  Since purchasing WoolWinders, he has learned lots about the yarn industry.  He refers to his accounting responsibilities with WoolWinders as his “night job.”  As far as knitting abilities go, he likes to say “I can knit, but I can’t purl,” which is the truth.

Janice Toney

More about Janice soon!

Louise Evans

More about Louise soon!

Valerie Moreno

More about Valerie soon!

Kendra Smith 

More about Kendra soon!

Laura Booth 

More about Laura soon!