So there we were, Anna Chen’s Intro to Video class, Seattle, WA, 2002. Assignment; get into groups, go out and create. From that day forth, people envied us. We made cool videos. We were awesome. People also had a few other “funny” ideas about us…what with all the time we spent together and our matching attire…but that aside, we became good friends and cranked out some pretty fun projects.
I don’t say this much in public, but, Travis Romine, owner and operator of Paradise Fibers, is a good friend of mine and I gotta say…this guy is quite the entrepreneur. Music, video, floss, yarn…he’s done it all.
Travis comes from a very hard working family. His Dad, Bill, not only ran a machine shop for many years in the same location that Paradise Fibers now resides, he actually started Paradise Fibers with Mom, Laurel, before Travis came on board. Or is it Sacklunch Productions in that location? Or is it both? Before heading over to Seattle for schooling in video production, Travis was an audio engineer, musician, event coordinator…pretty much a Renaissance Man.
His current operation, a hybrid of sorts (web/retail location) based out of Spokane, Washington, has been quite the success. Paradise Fibers, everything for spinning, knitting and weaving. And when they say everything, they mean it! Rhea and I recently visited Travis and as we were touring around the shop he kept saying, “Have you been back here yet?” And as we wound through the halls and through the spindles of exotic Alpaka yarn, we would stumble into yet another room full of fluffy, comfy goodness. As we neared the back of the building, through the storage closet and out the back door, Travis revealed his “secret garden.” Peppers, tomatoes and various other vegetables that I imagine became ingredients in one of Travis’ famous homemade recipes; bruschetta, eggs or my all time favorite, barbecued.
Regardless of what people say, Travis is a good guy.
So whether you’re looking for yarn, needles, looms, patterns, project ideas or Buffalo Gold socks, Paradise Fibers has it and they all make great Christmas gifts.
Be sure to drop Trav a line and tell him Don sent you…he’ll know what it means.
