The Family Arts Needlework Shop is buzzing with conversation among stitchers who share a love of needlepoint (submitted photo).
Whether their fingers are nimble or a bit awkward, the stitchers who gather around the “stitching table” at Family Arts Needlework Shop agree that the community they find in the well-stocked needle supplies shop soothes their souls and sparks their creativity.
Tucked into a strip mall on 7th Street, the shop is a wonderland of colorful painted canvases ready for needlepoint, threads that invite a quick fondle, and accessories that make the craft of needlepoint easier, even for those with a challenge here and there. The friendly volunteers who staff the shop are eager to help, and fellow stitchers are quick to lend an opinion on color choice or a helpful listening ear.
Do you know a new baby who needs a Christmas stocking? A recent graduate who needs a sassy pillow for the new apartment? An old friend who needs an I Love You Anyway thingy for his kitchen? There are projects here waiting to be taken off the shelf and brought to life by needleworkers of all skill levels.
But it’s more than the projects that make the shop special in the hearts of many, “We offer community, and that’s been a constant here since our founding almost 60 years ago,” said store manager Julie Elder.
With so many brick and mortar shops disappearing in favor of online commerce, the face-to-face shopping and stitching experience at Family Arts Needlework Shop indeed sets it apart. Elder hears the conversations around the stitching table and smiles when she remembers many of them over the years.
“People come in sometimes wrestling with a sad situation at home or at work, and as they stitch, they share their worries. Their fellow stitchers are good listeners, and that is often what we all need. Come in feeling a little battered and worn, and leave knowing you’re not alone. That is the gift this little shop has offered since 1967.”
The shop was founded by a “gang of community-minded Phoenicians” who shared a love of needlework – especially needlepoint. The North Central Phoenix women pulled together like-minded friends and started a nonprofit shop that benefits not only needle workers, but charities focused on children and their families. The shop is supported by a board of directors and volunteers who work there. A paid shop manager and assistant keep inventory plentiful and fresh, and national teachers fill the calendar with classes for all skill levels.
The shop has had a few different locations over the years but has stayed in the North Central neighborhood. Find it tucked into a strip center at 5555 N. 7th St. Suite 144, south of the Basha’s’ store.
The shop’s legacy is an intergenerational one. Longtime customer Kate Forbes brought friends to the shop in early February and caught up on local happenings with staff and volunteers. Forbes’ mother helped start the shop, and Forbes stitches on long plane rides as she does international humanitarian work.
“I’m needlepointing cushions for the chairs in my office at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Geneva. I just finished another one!”
Forbes is as excited to share her progress on the cushions as she is to share news from her humanitarian work around the world.
“Needlepoint is calming and helps me rest my mind. I love to see a design take shape as I stitch, and it’s such fun to get newbies hooked on the art.”
She steers a newcomer to a rack of colorful threads. She fingers the threads. “Now this stuff…working with it will be a dream.”
A volunteer sings out from across the shop, “Have you seen this thread? It’s got a wee bit of sparkle in it!” She brings a hank of the thread to the stitching table. Stitchers pause to take a look and caress the sparkly red thread.
Stitchers bring their kids and grandkids to the shop, and the only rule around the stitching table is no talk of politics. The polite but firm sign on the door declares the shop a “Politics-free zone.” As a volunteer puts it, “Everybody is welcome here. Our goal is for you to feel better when you leave than you felt when you came in. We laugh, sometimes we shed a tear or two, and we always celebrate the little victories of life, as well as the major milestones. We share a lot here, and needlepoint is just one aspect of life at Family Arts Needlework Shop.”
To learn more, call or visit www.familyartsneedlework.com.
