Stitched Together: One LYS’s Journey of Community, Change, and Success
Like the cast-on edge of a sweater, flexibility has been a necessity from the very beginning of Lift Bridge Yarns, our cozy yarn shop situated near the Erie Canal in Fairport, New York.
Above: Yarn shop owners Dawn (left) and Jessie (right) hosted virtual Sit & Stitches to stay connected with their community during the pandemic. All photos courtesy of Lift Bridge Yarns.
Coworkers at our LYS, in August 2019, we learned our employer was shutting the doors of their brick-and-mortar store to concentrate on online sales. Jessie had a 2-month-old, Katie Mae, and faced with the prospect of returning to work in the “real world,” we had a crazy idea. What if we opened our own yarn shop? It took some encouragement from our partners, and a few drinks together, but we decided to take the leap.
By that October, we had signed the lease on a tiny space in a converted barn. With the help of family and friends (and with Katie Mae strapped to Jessie), we gutted the place and made it our own. By Thanksgiving, the walls and shelves were filled with our favorite yarns. The doors of Lift Bridge Yarns were officially open! We were amazed at the warm reception we received from the local fiber community. Friends old and new steadily walked through our doors, and we were growing and learning day by day.
A Community in Lockdown
Four months later, the first case of Covid was detected in the United States and our doors were swiftly and unexpectedly shut. It was time, again, to take a deep breath and adapt to this new reality.
Our first order of business was to make sure our community was taken care of. We figured out Zoom and started weekly virtual Sit & Stitch sessions. Together, but apart, we all processed the early days of the pandemic over hot drinks, stitching, and laughter. One of our knitters, a neonatal nurse who cared for Katie Mae when she was born, mentioned that donations of baby hats to local hospitals had stopped because of the pandemic. We understood the assignment and put a call out to our community. We collected and donated more than 1,000 baby hats to local hospitals. It was the perfect lock-down project. We could use stash yarn and scraps, it was easy and fast, and we could focus on the beautiful new babies who would receive a handmade gift.
A New Yarn Shop Business Model
Now, what about the yarn? We weren’t set up for online sales yet and had no idea if we would be allowed out of our houses during lockdown. So, we packed up nearly every skein of yarn and brought them to Jessie’s house. In a matter of days, we had a basic online yarn shop up and running, which we improved and added to in the weeks that followed.
Our people came through. Between online orders and digital gift-card sales, we were able to pay rent and take care of operating costs for those three long months of lockdown. Over the following months we slowly began welcoming customers back to the shop, first for curb-side pickup, then by appointment, and then a limited number of people in the shop. We reevaluated operations daily to fit ever-changing safety guidelines.
In late 2020, we experienced yet another change, but this time, a joyful one! Jessie discovered she was pregnant with her second child, and this led to our hiring the first of our amazing employees. By the time Silas was born, we had three wonderful women on our team helping our shop become a success.
Looking Ahead
We frequently find ourselves asking, “When will we be back to normal?”
What we’ve discovered is this: Normal now is completely different from what we envisioned when we opened. KN95 masks and frequent COVID-19 tests are just part of daily life. We recognize our people by their sparkling eyes and voices rather than their smiles. However, there is one thing that has never changed throughout this wild ride: The support and enthusiasm of our vibrant fiber community which enables us to keep doing what we love.
Together, we are ready to handle whatever the world throws at us next, one stitch at a time.
Lift Bridge Yarns is a cozy, welcoming local yarn shop run by Dawn Verdugo and Jessie McNaughton in Fairport, New York. The yarn selection includes locally made and hand-dyed yarn along with other well-known brands. LBY has a little something for everyone. Find them on Instagram @liftbridgeyarns, on Ravelry: liftbridgeyarns, and at www.liftbridgeyarns.com.
This article originally appeared in Interweave Knits Fall 2022. To get more articles like this every quarter, plus tons of knitting patterns in every issue, subscribe to Interweave Knits.
This is my local LYS! I absolutely love the atmosphere, the community they have fostered, and of course, the yarn! The greater Rochester area is so fortunate to have Dawn and Jessie!