Every month The CARON Collection features one of the outstanding
shops who so ably provide stitchers with not only supplies but guidance,
technical expertise, and inspiration. We hope you'll support your local
shops and browse through our extensive SHOP
LISTINGS. This month, appropriately, we
visit a delightful shop situated in inarguably the Halloween Capitol of
the World....
It's A Crewel World
Located
in the historically rich city of Salem, Massachusetts
It's
A Crewel World began actually as just half of a shop in Boston, sharing
space with a knit shop. When the shop relocated to Salem, it was to a tiny
700 square foot space which quickly became crammed with every cross stitch
leaflet known to man or woman, as well as all the best handpainted needlepoint
canvases. The move, a year ago, to their own building with 10,000 square
feet, at 231 Essex St was their third expansion. The historic Gothic Revival
Daniel Low and Co. building has housed a church, a jewelry emporium and
a bank. How appropriate that it was also the site of the first mail order
house in America -- It's A Crewel World does an extensive mail order business.
You will find yourself shopping in spacious aisles beneath crystal chandeliers
with goods displayed in antique mahogany cases. Wander around Federal period
columns and up the Scarlet O'Hara staircase to the classrooms and private
offices above. The ample display windows (shown below) are an attraction
by themselves. Dressed by the incomparable Andrew Jackson (no, not the
original, but truly an original!), they have already received much popular
acclaim and many awards for an incomparable presentation.
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The
shop offers all the latest in cross stitch, needlepoint and an exhaustive
inventory of threads as well as knitting and, now, gifts and finished needlework
items. The guest book of It's A Crewel World is filled with names from
around the world. Visitors, even those who are non-stitchers, have plenty
to interest them at It's A Crewel World. The store has plenty of nooks
and crannies where unusual gifts and finished needlework wait to be discovered.
If you visit Historic Salem, widely known as the Halloween capital of the
world, during the last 2 weeks of October, the city hosts "Haunted
Happenings" with daily and hourly seasonal events including haunted
house and cemetery tours, ghost walks and, of course, encounters with this
city's renowned witches.
Monday
and Thursday night classes at It's A Crewel World which meet under the
able leadership of Carolyn Hook, the proprietress, are only two of a long
line offered by this innovative and extraordinary needleworker's mecca.
Resident ongoing classes by national teacher, Sue Reed, as well as special
workshops conducted by acclaimed guest teachers cover every technique of
needlework and, now that knitting has been added to the store, knitting
classes and fashion shows are scheduled, too. Many of the stitchers who
attend these classes, as well as growing in talent, have also become fast
friends over the years.
Carolyn
Hook is much more than just a shop owner and teacher, however. Her skills
include a rare combination of technical expertise, creative talent and
business savvy. In addition to overseeing her bustling store and school,
she is an author and designer. Fiber Fantasy, the popular thread color
comparison book is now in its third revision. Carolyn excels at choosing
stitches for handpainted canvas designs and provides this service in her
classes as well as on a commission basis. She also is a master of Japanese
Embroidery, crewel embroidery and stitch sampler designs. Send for her
mail order catalog for a complete listing. Two of her pieces are illustrated
here.
Visit It's A Crewel World at 231 Essex St., Salem, MA 01970. Call 508-745-9696
for directions. Or visit them on the web at www.needleweb.com/shops/crewelworld/
Note: Thursday Night Special, a collection of seven Xmas ornaments using
the CARON Collection's Watercolours, is an instruction packet which resulted
from the original testing of the threads. It is still available through
shops and It's A Crewel World. Contact Carolyn at the above address and
phone for more information.
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- Needlepoint photos provided by It's A Crewel
World. Just some of the wonderful needlepoint pieces on view at the shop.
If you haven't visited previous store features on Exclamation Point!
in Saratoga Village, California or Thistle Needleworks in Glastonbury,
Connecticut feel free to browse through
our archives.
© 1997 The Caron Collection
Ltd./ Rev. 12-26-97 / Voice: (203) 381-9999, Fax: 203 381-9003
CARON email:
mail@caron-net.com / Webmaster nika@connix.com
