A small business owner is turning her love for knitting into a true passion thanks to her appearance on the show “Jeopardy.”
And this Pride Month she’s using her journey to advocate for others.
Hannah Wilson opened The Dropped Stitch a year and a half ago after quitting her corporate job as a data scientist and using her winnings from her appearance on “Jeopardy” to pursue her passion full time.
“When I moved here I realized, ‘Oh, there’s no yarn store I can walk to—that’s not fun,”’ she said. “So I thought ‘Hey, what if I just opened a yarn store?’ It kinda like turned into a joke to something like, I think I can really just do it.”
Her shop sells all different types of yarn, knitting supplies, crochet and embroidery cross stitch and more near Clark and Bryn Mawr. It also offers classes for those looking to learn a new skill.
“We love having beginners in here. We love having people who say, ‘Hey, I kind of wanna get into crochet or into knitting or can you show me what kind of stuff I need to get started?’ And we’re like, ‘Yes, you’re welcomed,” she said.
She wants people to feel welcome and invited in this space.
“I think people come here because they know it’s a space they don’t have to feel like you know someone’s going to judge them for the way that they present,” she said.
Wilson, who is a trans woman, said her time on the national game show in 2023 gave her a confidence boost. It came three years after she started transitioning.
“For a long time, I was scared to leave my apartment because I felt anxious about the way I look and the way I felt,” she said. “I’m myself now. I’m comfortable in my own skin.”
With every yarn and stitch, she hopes she can provide support for others in the LGBTQ+ community.
“I just get to be myself and that’s an amazing thing, but that’s not true for everybody and I think Pride Month is about trying to make it make that possible for as many people as possible,” she said.
