Pendleton Woolen Mill Store — Local services in Milwaukie

There are NO words to describe how utterly AMAZING PENDLETON WOOLEN MILL STORE IS!!

They say the employees make the company - and this could not ring any truer at PWMS. Period.

This was our first foray into the magical world of all things woolen - and we are totally hooked with every aspect of our experience at PWMS. When we first walked in we were greeted with a cheery “Welcome!” And it just kept getting better.

My “special needs” daughter was totally agog at the sheer sight of all the beautiful woolen products. But we were there specifically for wool fabric. And we weren’t disappointed in the least.

Lilly (an absolute lovely and amazing young lady) was the first one to assist us - and after giving us loads of background and information left us to our own devices to find what we were looking for.

When we were ready to have our yardage cut the incredible “Ryan” arrived with dress shears and knowledge in hand. We learned more about the process of making wool than we could have ever imagined. And Ryan was an angel with our kiddo - treating her with grace and respect (which as a parent of special needs child we welcome) and had Anicia help her with the “tearing of the wool”.

Italy - you can keep your “stomping of the grapes”. You’ve just been outdone.

The selection of wool, notions, patterns and other accoutrements was dizzying. We could have stayed there the entire weekend and NOT seen everything. The organization and layout of the store made it easy to peruse and be comfortable. That was greatly appreciated.

“Rachel” and “Lorene” (spelling?) were as equally charming and delightful. I don’t think I’ve seen “employees” as happy, helpful and interactive in my life. And an ADDED BONUS - apparently “Lorene” has a side gig as a Zagat guide and can steer you to the best Thai restaurants in Portland. And that ain’t no small feat!

We drove all the way from Sprague River (whopping metropolis of 68) to come to Portland for the weekend. Pendleton Woolen Mill Store made every mile of our trip worth it. Actually Ryan, Lilly, Rachel and Lorene facilitated that!

We will be back again before the snow flies for more beautiful woolen provisions - and to see these amazing ladies again!

Since 1863 Pendleton Woolen Mills has been a denizen of our great state - and with the quality of goods and the superlative quality of their “employees” it’s no mystery why they’ve lasted so long.

Here’s to another...

My review mostly concerns mill ends and yarn!

This Pendleton store seems to be the only one that still carries fabric, especially offcuts, mill ends, and bolts of yarn from the mill. I've never bought finished goods from this store, but we love the mill ends and yarn, and buy them here frequently.

They have bins (tiny trailers!) of small fabric pieces, sorted by size, that you can buy by the pound- from 1" strips of selvedge all the way to 6" of blanket material or what-have-you. Prices vary from $1.50 to like $5 per pound, and large bags are often (always?) BOGO. The color and type of fabric varies by the day. They have big cutting tables nearby and one or two people are usually rummaging through the bins for matching pieces and laying out potential projects on them. This seems to be encouraged, and it's a great feature of the store.

They are well stocked with bolts of all kinds of fabric for normal non-discounted retail, including blanket-weight, worsted, and Melton wool, and a rainbow of colors of their eco blend fabric. They also have tables full of pre-cut yardage. The prices vary a ton- one piece will be $40/yard and another could be $6. So if you're on a budget, be sure to look at everything you like and don't assume.

They also carry a range of Cascade yarns in solid colors, and seem to have sales on it frequently.

The staff are friendly, helpful, and seem willing/able to bargain a little bit on the things I buy (not sure what your odds would be asking for a discount on, like, a coat, but I've asked for and received one on a thread cone that was much smaller than the others and initially priced the same. The lady I spoke with about it was very gracious and it was as non-embarrassing as bargaining ever gets!).

Physically it's a beautiful store, with high ceilings and plenty of...

The sign out front says Clearance. It's a relative term. If you buy one item and get the second one half off, that's a 25% discount. I guess it depends on the original markup whether you are getting what would be considered a clearance price or not. If a woven wool fabric is $115 per yard, and it is as much as 30% off, then even at their clearance prices, it's going to cost a bit over $80 per yard. For people used to paying prices like that, I suppose $80 a yard is a bargain. If you think nothing of paying $198 for a tote bag and consider it a great mark down if it is under $150, then this place might be okay for you. As it is, it has a charming mill-like look and an industrial zoned location, but it reminds me of going shopping in any of the fancier tourist areas of the Virgin Islands. When I was growing up, Pendleton blankets were slightly on the costly side because of their high quality, but not really overpriced. That has certainly changed in the last 15 years or so. As long as there are enough people who can afford it and who love these things, they will stay in business, and good luck to them. But advertising "clearance" on the sign still doesn't make their blankets, coats, fabric or...