Businesses are capitalizing on the trend.

Mary Colucci, executive director of the Craft Yarn Council of America in Gastonia, N.C., said the feel and product mix of many new independent yarn stores is different from their predecessors.

"Their appeal to get people into the store is different," she said.

Usually, the shops have patterns and projects that can be done quickly to fit tight schedules. They also have a much wider variety of yarns that lend themselves as much to fashion as function.

Sarah Gillespie, 25, recently searched among 50-plus yarns in the Knit Nook in Louisville to find the perfect style and colors for a baby scarf..

"They have really high-quality yarn, and it feels a lot better," Gillespie said, though she wanted even more variety. "I don't mind spending the extra money to support them and get better quality."

At Sophie's Fine Yarn Shoppe, owner Barbara Franc plans to open with about 115 yarns ranging in price from about $4 to $50 per ball in a variety of styles, colors and weights. They're much different from the yarns that were around when Franc, 47, started knitting about 40 years ago.

"It was like 'Do you want white or pale pink?' " she said. "There was no fashion."

Today, there seems to be no limit to the fashion, and Franc has knitted scarves, ponchos, socks, sweaters and purses in different yarns to display the possibilities.

"Eyelash" yarns make sweaters that look like they have tiny feathers, while others have a beaded look or change colors within the skein (a unit of yarn).

She spent between $65,000 and $70,000 to open her Louisville store, which she wants to be a "haven for knitters," where they can come to get help, share their work or just keep one another company.

"It's fun to get together in person to touch and feel everyone's project," she said.

Donald Meyer, director of marketing and public relations for the Craft & Hobby Association in Elmwood Park, N.J., said that unlike other industries, many independent retailers in the craft industry can succeed alongside big box stores. One reason is that they offer a social element.

"What the independent retailer can offer that a chain can't is that hands-on knowledge," he said. "You can establish more of a relationship with that independent retailer."

According to the Craft Yarn Council, the number of women under 45 who know how to knit or crochet doubled between 1994 and 2002. Colucci expects a study done this year to show even higher numbers.

Kira Sheridan, 24, and her husband, Dennis, 27, spent a little more than $20,000 to open Knit Nook with the basics. They were expecting it to be a pet project for Kira, who has been knitting since she was young. They just needed to break even.

But recently he quit his job as a computer programmer after the pair found they were making enough money to pay themselves salaries. They declined to share sales numbers.

"We thought we were opening a yarn shop," Dennis Sheridan said, "but it turns out we tapped into a giant subculture."