Guide to Yarn, Farms and Shopping Local Update NY

Apr 23

The Catskills is like Brooklyn’s older sister. I’m talking sisters like a decade apart. (And yes, I have a sister 16 years younger than me).

As much as I love Brooklyn, she can be a lot and all over the place. sometimes I don’t always feel like she even knows who she is. The Catskills has definitely figured themselves out. Unapologetically rooted in this authentic indie, artsy earthy vibe. Take all the cliches about hippies and vegans and artist, and then make them real to the core and filled with good intentions.

I first visited Woodstock when I was in college. I worked in a peace house and we took a trip to the Woodstock Animal Sanctuary. I have to admit, driving back almost 2 decades later for the a needle felting glass at Hedgehog and Moss, I was overcome with nostlagia upon seeing a poster for the Bread and Puppet theater, who’s performance I apparently just missed. But let’s rewind a bit. What brought me to Woodstock and the Catskills a few weeks prior was the Ulster Country Fiber & Cider Tour. Starting in Saugerties, and stopping through Woodstock, Kingston and Stoneridge I got to discover to many gems. From Yarn Shops, to Cafe and epic vinyl finds, the only thing that was missing was my parter.

He works a lot, and so typically I like to scope places out first and find all the really good stuff I think he’ll enjoy a pack in a tight itinerary for what typically tends to be a day trip on his one day off. So a few weeks later we came back together and got to check out a few of my favorite stops from the tour, and a new one stole my heart: Kaaterskill Falls. A reminder that there is so much more to New York than the city.

Our first stop was Village Refinery and Coffee, a local food spot and market in Kingston. Here in Brooklyn there’s a delicious sandwich shop called Sea & Soil. This Co-op serves some of the best sandwiches and savory pastries i’ve ever had. Village Refillery reminded me so much of Sea & Soil. The biggest perk: their grocery assortment featuring fresh produce as well as some cool niche panty items that they feature in their menu items. We got he Turkey sandwich served on a baquette and Aaron got the mushroom sandwich on a buttery brioche bun. This was the warmest welcome after a 2 hour drive from Brooklyn.

Before heading over to Kaaterskills falls we stopped at Freak Out Spot, one of the “best vinyl spots” that Aaron have been to in NY. I was able to replace my copy of Rolling Down Royal Canyon by Devendra Banhart and he picked up On the Corner by Miles Davis and Willian Onyeabar’s Anything You Sow. We love a good vinyl shop, but with the high demand near us, it’s hard to find LP’s that we don’t already have in our collection.

I was able to sneak in a visit to Hedgehog Fiber to give a quick hello to Stephanie for the weekend of Local Yarn Store Day. She opened her shop only six months ago and is already creating beautiful community with a book club, a class schedule that includes one off felting courses and featuring local emerging artists. I was able to make it back on my first summer Friday for the Felting Workshop and Vlog’d the entire trip on my YouTube channel. Make sure to check it out if you haven’t already.

And check out a few of my other favorite spots I visited:

Anchorage Farm: A sheep farm in Saugerties
The Perfect Blend Yarn & Tea: A yarn shop in Saugerties that features one of the widest yarn assortments that I’ve ever seen.
Freeweaver: This boutique features hand-dyed yarns and hand-made pieces from local artists.
Seed & Song Farm:A farm in Kingston that has a variety of animals, sells products, yarn and rovings.
The Garden Cafe: For 11 Years, they’ve been serving delicious whole-food plant based dishes and deserts to the Woodstock Community
Clove and Creek: thoughtfully created home and lifestyle shop blending vintage, handmade and natural elevated objects.
Department of Things:An analog shop with a playful, design forward shop filled with artful objects, books, and unexpected finds.
Sunflower Market: A cozy community rooted natural foods market.