My boyfriend and I just spent the last 5 days in Northern California and recharged. It was fantastic, spent some time in the Russian River Valley (wine tasting!), enjoyed the sun, spent a day in San Francisco, and drove along the coast and through the majestic Redwood Forest on the way back home (my favorite part).
While we were there, we checked out two local yarn shops and talked with the owners for a few minutes. I would love to give a shout out to Trudy, the owner of Yarnitudes in Sebastopol (near Santa Rosa) and to Rosanne of Purls of Joy in Healdsburg, about 30 minutes north. They greeted us right when we stepped through their doors and immediately made us feel like part of the family. When I explained that I was planning on opening my own store in Washington, they were so very supportive- and almost overwhelmed me with lessons learned and hints! The wealth of knowledge between the two - to include the stitchers at Purls of Joy who were there working on their projects - was so vast, and everyone was so much fun to talk to. I will take their comments to heart and keep in touch.
I am rejuvenated. I had to make it a point NOT to think about what I want to do with my shop while on vacation and just enjoy the moment. (It was so very difficult to keep my mind quiet!) As we were getting closer to home, however, I could feel my mind start to crank up again.
I will definitely be incorporating Trudy's and Rosanne's ideas in my shop. Some of the ideas I already had tossed around as possibilities. One thing that I did completely change my mind on was the color of the shelving. Remember in my earlier blog that I wanted dark shelving? Well, after walking into Purls of Joy and being blinded by the brightness - which was a GOOD thing, I was convinced that WHITE shelving is the way to go. How much better to see the yarn colors!
Keep stitching!
Teva
Hey, Teva. I am mighty excited about your plans for a shop in Centralia. Yahoo! I am part of the group that has been meeting at Yarn and Things. There are so many wonderful things that a yarn shop could be and I think you have some great ideas. If there is any way I can help, let me know. I'm in. Margo
ReplyDeleteThank you Margo! Could you email me at looseendsfiber@gmail.com? Teva
DeleteHi Teva! I'm in La Grande, OR and I found your group on Ravelry when I was searching for a group that would give me ideas about opening a yarn shop. I have been dreaming of doing that for a long time and an opportunity may be opening for me. The LYS is closing again and I missed my chance last time when someone stepped in to keep it open. An acquaintance of mine asked me on Monday how my business was going. I said I didn't have one and she thought for sure I had opened a yarn shop. Then today, I opened my email about the LYS closing. Is someone trying to tell me something? I have emailed the person and plan to go in tomorrow. I'm so excited for you and look forward to learning more about your business plans. My ideas for a shop sound similar to yours. I want to be community minded and I really like your idea of bringing your shop to the people who are able to come to your shop. I'll stop here before I am overcome by enthusiasm and continue to rattle on. All the best to you in your endeavour and much success!
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