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A yarn shop gave grandma a community
Arriving in Canada
Born in Hong Kong, Fiona Fung moved to Canada as a kid without speaking English. Her parents worked all the time, so her grandmother moved with them to take care of her. She learned English at school, but her grandmother had no such place, and the new country felt alienating for her.
The yarn shop
One summer they found a little yarn shop owned by a woman who also spoke Cantonese. They went every week. Her grandmother found her knitting circle there, and the child learned macrame.
A shop in her name
Her grandmother also taught her to knit at eight. That shop is where the love of small businesses started, and the dream now is a yarn store opened in her grandmother's name, built around that same sense of community.
Why did many Hong Kong families move to Canada?
Emigration from Hong Kong to Canada rose sharply in the late 1980s and the 1990s, in the years before the 1997 handover of Hong Kong to China. Canada's business and skilled-worker immigration programs drew many families. Vancouver and Toronto became home to large Cantonese-speaking communities as a result. Statistics Canada census data show Cantonese among the most common immigrant languages in both cities.
How do craft shops turn into community hubs?
Knitting and sewing are slow, social activities, so people sit together for hours and talk while their hands work. Shops that host open tables or circles give regulars a standing reason to return each week. Researchers who study social connection have found that regular, low-pressure gatherings build friendships more reliably than one-time events. Knitting groups have formed in libraries, shops, and community centers for generations.
Where does macrame come from?
Macrame is the craft of tying decorative knots in cord to make fabric, plant hangers, and wall pieces. The word is often traced to the Arabic term migramah, meaning a fringe or ornamental veil. Sailors helped carry the craft across Europe and beyond, tying knotwork during long voyages. It saw a strong revival in the 1970s.
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