Patrick and I are very excited to finally find a use for a little church up the road that he bought about 15 years ago. We toyed with the idea of using it for weddings, but it's pretty small and parking would be an issue. We even considered turning it into a little B&B for people hiking on the adjacent Appalachian Trail, but there is no septic system, and it would be hard to put one in because of the slope of the land and the little graveyard behind it.
Now, of course, it seems the church was always meant to be a yarn shop. We are having a new wood stove put in tomorrow and have loads of painting to do but otherwise we will be preserving the integrity of the building. It was built in 1840 after all.
My favorite part of the church is the little graveyard. The stones are very old and fascinating to read. Some of them tell the exact person's age at death, as in 42 years, 3 months and 24 days. There are also a fair number of children, which is incredibly sad, even though they would be long since dead by now.
We need to come up with a name for the yarn shop and I need your help. And, because I love a contest, there will be a prize for whoever comes up with the winning name. The winner will get two skeins of our beautiful kid mohair/cormo blend worsted weight yarn.Other info that might help you come up with a name- The shop will be adjacent to our farm but not right on it. The town is called Hopewell Junction. We will be selling only hand spun, farmstead, hand dyed or otherwise special yarns that you can't get elsewhere. No big name yarn company will be available. Just super cool, hard-to-get, yearn-worthy yarns. (Thanks to Kelly Rand at Crafting a Greener World for that awesome phrase which I plagiarized.)
Leave your name suggestions as comments on this thread.
XO
134 comments:
Uh oh, when I drive down from Albany, the first thing I'm going to be looking for is a bathroom.
Yarn Heaven, Heavenly Yarns, Eternal Yarns, You Can Take it With You
Celestial Fibers!
Of course, in puns, there's Church of the Heavenly Vest. Too limiting, though.
Have fun naming your new shop-to-be. Perhaps it will be open the next time we're home from the UK for a visit. DH's family are Albany-area folks.
No worries, Joan. I am working on a solution.
Susie, we are about an hour from Albany and I think you can even take the train. Does anyone know if Amtrak goes from Albany to Poughkeepsie? I'm almost sure it does.
Susan - you told us a story at Rhinebeck about the mouse in the church, I remember blurting out something like...
Church Mouse Yarn (or something to that affect).
or...
Heavenly Yarn Loft
or...
The Yarn Chapel
or...
Spirited Yarn
How about the name of your first sheep, the very first one that started it all unless the name was something very masculine like Walter or Alfred. It could be something like Hannah's Hope or whatever the name is. Hope for Hopewell and Hope for hoping for a future in local farming and their products. It'll be nice to see what your readers come up with!
lol, Eternal Yarns was the first name that popped into my head as well.
How about ChurchHouse Knitting, Tombstone Yarns (or Knitting) , House of Fiber , Spirited Fibers* (tieing in both the church and the graveyard)*my fav i think!
Wholly Yarn...
A Yarn of Hope...
Hope's Thread...
Earth's Hope Yarn Shop...
The Hopeful Yarn...
Great shop - can't wait to see how it turns out!
boy I wanted to win this but truly like Joan's The Yarn Chapel best.
I was playing around with Fiber and Firmament but am such a heathen that I was starting to worry about lightening strikes. Excited to see how quickly you are building this business. Good on ya,
Heather
Ya'll are coming up with great stuff! Do you think anyone will be offended by the whole "Church" thing? Cause I love it...
lol, i just thought of Communion Yarns as well. A friend and i have always joked about purchasing a small old church and turning it into a small irish style pub or tavern. We would have a simple name like Worship or Mass that would allow people to honestly say where they were going but not really tell people where they were going! smile People could sat they were going to Communion!
That is hilarious, Turtle.
I'm going to really have to think about this...but the first thing that popped into my mind was something about 'cross stitch'...there are some phenomenal ideas here...!
Church of the Eternal Yarn
Church of the Heavenly Fiber
What about "1840 Yarns" :-)
Fiber Farm Yarn.
I love 1840 Yarn and your first sheep's name. How fun.
The Yarn Chapel is by far my favorite so far. I'll have to give it some thought and come back with a suggestion of my own.
Saints and Spinners Yarn Shop
Two words: Clivus Multrum!
http://www.clivusmultrum.com/products_trailhead_design.shtml
(not for the name of the yarn shop! but for the bathroom problems :-)
Amy, I LOVE the Clivus. We stayed in a place that had them for a month a couple of summers ago. And my BFF Julie Roads (see comment above) has one.
I love when yarn stores have puns. how about HopeWool Junction? I simply like The Church of Yarn too because dometimes knitting does feel like a religion!
May I suggest:
Hope Spins Eternal
Heavenly Handmade Yarns
From My Sheep to Ewe
Can't wait to stop by on my way from Albany to Ridgefield Ct - it's a great halfway point for me- Please arrange for bathroom facilities nearby!
-Susan
She who dies with the most yarn wins.
Yarn of last resort
Yarns to die for
Make that.
Yarns to dye for
We are going to have the most amazing Halloween party next year!
They just keep coming;
Perpetual Sheep
or
Eternal Sheep
how about
sublime fibers
or
the cross and the stitch (may be a little too religious)
or
an antique art
or
old time luxury
good luck!!
it looks like a beautiful building. here's my idea, Clairvoyant fiber(s)
good luck to you. :)
I like a lot of these suggestions, but here's mine to add: The Little Yarn Shop, which would suggest a quaint little place that's a special "find" off the beaten path. Also reminds me of the Shop Around the Corner, like the Jimmy Stewart movie (and the You've Got Mail knockoff).
Heavenly Scent Woolly Shoppe
Wool Saviour Wares
Heavenly Woolies
Patrick's Paradise
Purl PASS (Patrick And Susan Shop)
PSSO Patrick Susan Shop Open
Close Knit Souls
Graveyard Stash
Woodland Church Yarns. I think the name is self explanitory.
I adore the church and think it's very romantic!
I think I like Church Mouse Yarn, The Yarn Chapel, or Hope Spins Eternal best. Woodland Church Yarns is also lovely. Honestly, I would say it shouldn't sound too spiritual, despite being in a church/graveyard--it may turn some people off.
Additionally, are the yarns you stock going to be funkier or more traditional? The name says a lot about the shop, even if you don't intend it to do so, so keep that in mind when you choose one--make sure it reflects what the shop will be and sell, in addition to the area/building.
Having just sent out 250 postcards to yarn shops throughout the country, may I also suggest that "ewe-nique" is not so, ahem, unique :).
Maggie! What are you doing sending out 250 postcards to other yarn shops?!? I want all that glorious handspun for my shop!
Ghostly Fibers
Ghostly Yarns
I like the sound of Hopewell Handspun.
I think Kelly did hit it right on the head....
Yearn-Worthy Yarns
I love the sound of the phrase and I think it describes exactly what you are planning to have there in the shop.
Run with it, but give Kelly the credit. :)
I, too, like the sound of Hopewell Handspun but had to come up with one of my own. So how about Shepherd's Bounty? Shepherd's Wears?
Hope Well Spun or Well Spun Hope
Whatever the name, good luck getting it up and running!
Yarn of the Dead...ok not a serious suggestion, but thought was funny, since it's by a cemetery.
Ok, here's another one...The Grave Yarn.
Or you could spell it the GraveYarn...can't you tell I want to incorporate the graveyard in there somewhere. I love cemeteries.
How about Heavenly Homestead Yarns?
or Earthly Home Yarns?
Cindy (mischiefmanaged on Ravelry)
I like Soulful Yarns. The others named here are all great, too. I think you'll have a tough time deciding!
--dina
Might be helpful to look through Interweave Knits list of Traveling Knitter’s Sourcebook
http://www.interweave.com/knit/sourcebook.asp
mydogpetey--I'd actually be careful with that. Some of those yarn shop names might have a trademark or copyright. A yarn shop in my town had to change their name due to a trademark. They received a cease and desist.
No, I meant for ideas - not to steal a name. Just for brainstorming!
It might be nice to have a name that reflects back on Susan -
The Shepherd's Harvest
or
The Shepherd's Harvest of Hudson Valley
Well, unless you're buying enough for me to make approximately $30K/year, I kinda have to keep a full time job OR get lots of other wholesale accounts :D
You can make that happen, yeah? I'll tell Ian!
Hmmm, soo many good ones have been said already. So since this the second yarn co-op, how about Second City Sheep. Or if you want to reminisce of the days gone by how about Yore Yarn.
Oooh, I like "Saints and Spinners"! A pun, but not too corny.
I grew up in a quiet town named Hopewell. So even plain "Hopewell Yarns" sounds beautiful to me.
i love that it used to be an old church! the pictures are just SO cute...
my thought was "Shepherd's Flock Assembly Yarnshop" or "Shepherd's Flock Yarnshop" or just "A Shepherd's Flock" and i like "Little Flock Yarnshop"
Or...
what about using olde english like jargon:
"the wool of thy flock"
"the church of thy yarn"
To me...flock just sounds like it fits with it being an old little church.
"Little Flock Yarns" - when i hear that i think..'oh little, local, hard to get yarns'
okay i'll get back to work now!
Ok, so I couldn't resist..
Flock Ewe.....
Sorry, I mean not to offend....
It's cute in a sick guy way, no?
Susan,
What is the history of the farm? What did Patrick's family call it before you started HVFF? Is Hopewell Junction famous for anything?
How about....."Hopewell Church Yarns" ?
I'm going to have to remind Mom that Church Mouse Yarn was my idea... I still think it's cute, too.
Hopeful Yarn?
1840 Yarn?
There already is a Church Mouse Yarn store on Bainbridge Island, WA .....Great name though :)
I suggest "Meeting House Yarns". Sticks with the church thing but opens it up to knitterly collegiality.
Bury me in Yarn
how about "Shepherd's Hope"
okay i'm back...
"little flock of yarn"
There are lots of great ideas here. I like The Yarn Chapel, as mentioned earlier.
This idea might take a little too much explaining to work, but here it is. There is a yarn store in Boston called Circles: A Knitting Salon. I liked the title and subtitle concept. Everyone calls it Circles but it has that little extra something in print. So, my suggestion is
Pastor: A Shepherd's Yarns
or
Pastor: A Shepherd's Yarn Chapel
Pastor has the obvious religious connection but also means shepherd in latin.
And, more simply:
Hopewell Woolens
Knitter's Rest
The Yarn Preacher
Good luck, Susan. This sounds like an amazing setting for yarn shopping.
What a lovely place for a yarn shop!
I love the proposed names. Here are some more ideas:
Hopewoolies
Hopewool Junction
Sheep to Wool
Shepherd’s Hope
Holy Sheep!
Good Shepherd Yarn & Fiber
It's so beautiful-and reminiscent of the beginning of Schoolhouse Press! I wish you as much success as they've had :)
As for the name, I love Churchmouse yarn and Saints and Spinners, plus Hopewool. I was going to suggest Good Shepherd except someone's already beaten me to it and there's a Good Shepherd Yarn company in Vermont already. So that leaves my final suggestion: All Creatures Yarn
Have fun with it!
The Ewe's Pew Yarns
Spirited Fibers
I love the building. What a charming place to put a yarn shop.
The Yarn Barn
Spiritual Experience
Yarn and Spirits
Yarn From Above
Close to Heaven Fibers
Every Stitch Filled with Love
Good luck and I wish I lived closer!!!!!
Knitathome @ ravelry :)
Heavenly Fibers
Holy Fibers
Yarn Sanctuary
Fiber Sanctuary
House of Worsted (instead of worship)
Going to Meeting Yarns/Fibers
Sunday Purls
Sabbath Yarns
Fiber Bliss
Pew Ewe (ok, that might sound bad, but it's punny!)
Touch of Paradise
I love this kind of brainstorming! Wish I lived closer, this would DEFINITELY be the type of shop I'd hang out in!
Knitter's Junction
I think The Church of Yarn is a perfectly wonderful name! You came up with it yourself!
Gee, thinking of these is kind of addictive...
Sit & Knit
Hopewell Sit n Knit
The Garden of Yarn
Hopewell Yarn Garden
house of worsted is awesome! definitely use that one.
Peaceful Fleece Yarn Shop
Hopewell Yarn Farm
Hues Of Ewes
sokker (on ravelry)
Heaven Spun Yarns
Dying to Knit Yarns
Hmm...what about Moral Fibre?
Pastoral Yarns
Knitter's Pew
Woolly Preacher
The sheep and Preacher
Divine Yarn
In Praise of Yarn
Holy Yarn
Heather
The Yarn Crypt
Hallowed Be Thy Skein
Fiber Shrine
larndt on ravelry
The Knitty Gospel
Susan's Technicolor Dream Yarn
Un-Convent-ional Yarns
The Frogged Church
Awesome suggestions so far. I especially like the combinations with "Hopewell", it just sounds so sweet and gentle. I also like the sound of the word "Appalachian". Involving the name of a favorite sheep is also a nice idea. All I can think of adding is
Yarnstead Fibers.
Good luck with getting everything prepped and ready. It looks beautiful from the outside already!
How about A Skein and a Prayer? (kind of like a wing and a prayer, only yarnier). Good luck with this new venture.
a holey place
I REALLY love Saints and Spinners, also The Ewe's Pew, and Moral Fiber!
Abby Glen Yarns
Glen Abby Yarns
The Abby Yarn Shop
I really like the one at the beginning of the post- The Church of Yarn! Especially since so many of us knit "religiously". ha
Yearnings Yarns
Yarn Yearnings
kodle@naxs.net
From Cradle to Grave...
I love the suggestions so far. How about "You Can Take it With You"
Jan
Heidi Fleece
New Stone Yarns
woollier than thou
Bless the lambs wool shop
Hopewell Handspun and Unique Fiber Sactuary
Hopewell Handmade Yarns and Fibers
Worth a Hike Yarn Shop (since it's near the Trail)
From-the-Farm Yarn
Sorry, but this came to me in the night and I can't resist. Do you suppose having a yarn shop next to the their graveyard will have the dear departed spindling in their graves? Sorry. Really sorry.
Ok here's 2
Trail of Hope Yarn Shoppe (Since it's near the trail and Hopewell)
Or
Paradise Yarns
Fiber Niche
Yarn Above
A Flock in the Woods
Hallowed Knits
Hallowed Fibers
Forest Cove Fibers
The Sheep, The Yarn, and the Holy Fiber
Blessed be the Fruit of Thy Sheep
Holy Zombie Fibers
Night of the Living Fiber
Ravelry: bewts
I like Yarn Chapel and Celestial Fibers so far. Those words have a softness to them, and they don't have as strong of religious overtones to me as 'church' or 'holy'
The other thing that I love about the building is the stone. What about something that picks up on that?
Stone House Yarn
or Stone Chapel Yarn if you wanted to keep that element in
The Shop In The Wildwood
Or
The Little Brown Shop In The Vale
Oops, check that. It should be
The Little Yarn Shop In The Vale
Historic Yarns? Looks like a beautiful site - good luck!!!
I have an idea for a name: Wholly Yarn! More as inspirations strikes,
Jane
Little Purls of Hope
It's such a cute building - it reminds me of the Marbletown areas and the little churches on the sides of hills that seem to pepper the landscape.
Oh my - I can't read all the comments... so if I am repeating ideas, I'm both unoriginal AND sorry for repeating. Lol...
First - for a potty solution: what about a composting toilet? You could build a little outhouse, but make it nicer. A little sink area for washing hands (is there a well?). And a separate room for the composting toilet?
For shop names....those tombstones look spooky so I was thinking:
Tangled Web (s)
Or, in keeping with the town name:
Hopewell Fiber
Hopewell Threads
Fiber Junction
Good Luck!!! What a great building. I'm an Architect, and a shareholder- so let me know if you need any help!
My mom owned a fiber-arts store when I was in college, many moons ago. It's long gone, but the name is still the best--Needling Ewe. She'd probably be honored to loan it to you (ewe). ;) But I also like something about Yarn Over and Hopewell, like you hope your creation will turn out well...
I like so many of the suggestions, but I was intrigued by the quiet graveyard.
Chapel Stone Fibers
Old Stone Yarns
Peaceful Thyme Fibers
Stone Fence Yarns
By the way the composting toilets that don't need water or a septic are a great idea and are used in our area by lots of arts and fiber businesses.
Ohh.... This reminds me of a Bobby Bare album, (A bird named yesterday) and in the last song he sings of a church in the valley, by the wild woods...
Wild Woods Yarns sounds like a good name...
Unfortunately I am living way too far away to visit :-)
Threads of Heaven. But I really do like the simplicity of the name-
"Church of Yarn."
A little lengthy but...
Hopewell's Knitwell and Livewell Yarn Shoppe.
I do love the Eternal Yarns though - it says so much so simply.
The other thought was along the "Yarn Junction" route
I can't wait to hear what you choose and only wish I lived closer - it sounds like it'll be wonderfully charming..
oh... Charming Yarns! I like that too.
I love the little church building... so rich with history.
Here are my humble suggestions:
Threads of Hope
Holy Unique Fibers
Farm Fresh Yarns
Good Luck with the shop.
Well...Hopewell Junction is right next to Fishkill (and in the town of East Fishkill I think), and Fishkill comes from the Dutch name "Vis Kil" or Fish Creek. So my suggestion would be "Fish Creek Fibers" :-)
How about just "Fiber Sanctuary" -- someone suggested above a longer name with this as the end, but I don't know -- I think short is sweet. And you can always add "of Hopewell Junction" or something on mailings, etc.
Yours,
"strickdoktor" on ravelry
Knitting Religiously
Oh, how I do adore puns.
spinknitup.blogspot.com
Not sure if this has been mentioned. There are a lot of suggestions here! So glad it's not me having to choose..
Being that it's an old quaint church, my suggestion is:
Abbey Yarns
Graveyard:
Eidolon Fibers
Just cuz I'm a wacky yarner:
Time for a Yarn
&
Fiber Frenzy.
Good luck to you :)
(sharbie on ravelry)
The Yarn Church
Angel Fiber
Knit Wit (a non churchy suggestion)
Knit Within
Heavenly Fiber (probably already suggested, though I didn't see it)
Heavenly Yarn Farm
Wooly Angels
Sheep Heaven
Technicolor Dream Yarn
Yarn of Many Colors
Shepherd's Stash Shack
What a great spot for a yarn shop!
What about Haven Yarns?
Unique Yarns. That covers it! Best of luck with your new shop! If I am ever over that way I will definitely visit.
The first thing that pops to my mind is Holy Handmade, covers the church and the specialness of the yarn.
How about
The Little Yarn Store in the Woods
or
The Yarn Chapel in the Woods
Just between Ewe and Me
Angelic Threads - Yarn for the Spirit (from Sophia - snmarx on ravelry)
It ties together the church, the graveyard and a holy addiction to yarn. ;)
I haven't read all the comments so I don't know if this has been suggested yet but...Heaven Sent Yarns?
I rather like Church of Yarn. Says it all.
I think I posted my ideas on another of your posts so will try again.lol Hugs Darcy
1.Sanctuary
2.A stitch in time
3.A Good Yarn
I don't know if this one has been spoken for or not, it just came to me.
Dyed in the wool.
Yarn Station!
Yarn-i-licious!
Apostle of yarn
Shepherd's Flock Yarn
White Rock Yarns (first thing I thought of when I saw the cemetery photo)
Wildwood Yarns
Shear Heaven Yarns
Good luck!!! Pick a name that makes it absolutely CLEAR what you sell!!!
My slightly tongue-in-cheek suggestion:
Martha's Farmyard
I would like to suggest
"Indulgences"
a play on words that has both a spiritual link as well as a modern idea of splurging!
How about:
Hallowed Yarn, Thread or Fibers?
Sacred Sheep
Sanctuaire
Petit Sanctuarie
Maison de Paix
Dye Virtuous or Virtuous Dye
La Forêt
munkiknits@yahoo.com
Okie, one more.
Trinity Stitch
Perhaps "Little Church Yarns"? It looks like a beautiful place to go and shop and then sit outside in nature and knit.
How about
Amazing Grace Yarns
or
Hymms and Hers Yarn Shop
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