A new spin on knitting

The Red Bank storefront.

Former tech employee opens Broad St. store to share her beloved hobby

BY GLORIA STRAVELLI

Staff Writer

It’s not your grandmother’s hobby anymore. Knitting, according to the proprietor of a new knitting and crochet supply store in downtown Red Bank, has evolved into a trendy pastime whose appeal spans generations.

PHOTOS BY CHRIS KELLY staff Dori Kershner, owner of Wooly Monmouth, a knitting and crochet supply store on Monmouth Street in Red Bank, which will have a grand opening May 22. At right are some of the many varieties of yarn offered at the store.

"I think knitting is one of those things that transcends the generation gap. I’ve taught knitters from 7 to 70," said Dorian "Dori" Kershner, owner of Wooly Monmouth, which opened this week at 9 Monmouth St. in Red Bank.

"You don’t need to be at a specific point in your life to be able to knit. It’s one of those things that can follow you through life if you stick with it. I’m in my 20s, and most of the people I teach in New York City are young — in their 20s and 30s. They’re pretty hip.

"It’s trendy now. That’s the funny thing."

A major reason for hand-knitting’s new cachet is an explosion of new novelty yarns in vibrant hues and new variations on the basics, Kershner noted.

"With all the beautiful natural yarns that are available, you’re not just making acrylic sweaters," she said, holding up a display sweater knitted with yarn made of soy and a vest knitted with yarn made from bamboo.

"There are a multitude of natural fibers and blends that are always good standbys like wools, cottons, alpaca," she said. "And there are lots of novelty yarns — ribbon, tape, boucle, eyelash, chenille — plus there’s a rainbow of colors and yarns that are variegated and self-striping."

That doesn’t mean synthetics don’t have a place at Wooly Monmouth.

"Acrylic has its place because it can add loft and shape," she explained.

Kershner became absorbed with knitting while commuting to her job with a software company in New York.

"A friend of mine had started and I caught the bug. It was one of those things I could do on the train and while waiting for meetings," she said. "It started off as a pastime and I literally just got obsessed."

For Kershner, knitting had Zen-like appeal.

"It’s calming. It’s cheaper than therapy. I call it mediation in motion," she said. "There are times with knitting where you have to focus on it, you can’t think about anything else. And, there are other times when I’m knitting and it’s like breathing to me because my hands can be busy and I can still be thinking about other things and working them out in my head."

She began taking classes and working with different fibers and sweater styles, shopping for yarns and supplies in New York City.

After Kershner and her husband, a physician with a practice in Middletown, moved to Red Bank, she realized something was missing.

"I noticed Red Bank is such the hub for the arts, community activities and has all these wonderful things but there’s no knitting store," she explained.

While the idea was germinating, Kershner was working part time and teaching classes at knitting shops in New York and Hoboken. The shop owners she worked for encouraged Kershner to pursue her plan to open her own knitting store and suggested working full time would be a good way to get the feel for running her own shop.

In March 2003, she made the leap from her high-tech job in the corporate world to working full time in the knitting store on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

"It totally solidified it for me," she explained. "I was really able to immerse myself in the environment and gauge myself against my patience level, and I discovered I really enjoyed it. I got a real gratifying feeling out of not just helping customers on Saturday, but seeing customers on a regular basis and watching their projects come along."

Located just a few steps off Broad Street, hours at Wooly Monmouth are Tuesday and Thursday-Saturday 11:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m., and Wednesday 11:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m.

Knitting classes will be held evenings and weekends, and private lessons are available. The shop’s Web site, www.woolymonmouth.com, carries a class schedule as well as a monthly calendar of in-store events.

In addition to hand-knitting and crochet supplies, accessories like novelty buttons and traditional pattern books, Kershner can provide custom, computer-generated patterns written to customers’ measurements and gauge. The patterns, and help with projects, are a free service with yarn purchased at the shop.

The custom patterns simplify instructions by eliminating unnecessary details, use clear and concise language and allow knitters to customize style details.

"The problem with instructions is simply they either don’t speak in the way we’re used to, they assume you know things you may not or they tell you things you feel are implicit," Kershner explained.

"People who want basic instructions, especially people who’ve never made a sweater before, will want my instructions because they are basic. My patterns are very straight-forward," she continued. "I have templates in the computer and I’ve written up the instructions for most sweaters you can make and I will fill in the blanks. People get a print-out that is easier to follow because I’m pulling things out of some patterns that, in my opinion, can be extraneous and confusing.

"Plus, if a customer comes in and says, ‘I want a turtleneck with a cable up the center,’ I can say, ‘OK, pick out a yarn, knit up a little swatch for me and show me how you’d like things to fit, and I will create directions for you to follow to make the sweater,’ " she added.

For those new to knitting or who don’t know how to put a sweater together, Kershner teaches a one-session class in the technique and she will put sweater pieces together for a fee.

Kershner said her goal is to make Wooly Monmouth a place where customers have a comfort level and a resource to turn to for help with projects.

"A lot of times people new at knitting are very intimidated. They’re afraid to walk into a store, afraid to ask questions. They feel like they’re going to say something stupid. I want to dispel that, [since] I was there [too]," she said. "The only way to learn something is to ask. I really encourage that. They may need to be a little patient with themselves and the things they need to learn.

"You need to go at your own pace," she added. "One of things I feel comfortable doing is finding projects for people that adequately challenge them. You don’t want to put someone in over their head on their first project but you also don’t want to do something that’s going to be so boring. It’s finding that medium for the customer.

"I have a vision and I’m working hard to create this space where people can come and buy yarns they like, have a wonderful selection to choose from and where they can get help to get them through the project so they don’t feel stuck," she said.

"No one should ever feel like they can’t finish the project. They should feel they have a place to go to get help. I want people to feel connected to me."