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 to find a shop near you.
Located in Carteret, New Jersey, the Sophisticated Stitchery is an elegant and comprehensive needlework shop owned by Karen DeRogatis-Resko, originally begun as a mail order thread business in 1989. Karen, who had been an avid knitter, had grown increasingly allergic to wool yarns and had then transferred her stitching passion to needlepoint. She was only the second in her immediate family to have inherited the "needlework" gene as it has not hooked her mother, sister or even her own daughter, yet! Her grandmother, of Hungarian extraction, was the only family influence in this regard. During summers that Karen spent with her as a child, she was taught how to knit and crochet.
Once she got into needlepoint and began searching for specialty yarns for her own use, she found a large void; they existed but procuring them proved difficult. Perusing needlework magazines she would notice unusual fibers, but back then, these were simply not available through mail order.Discovering sources for specialty threads and making them available to other stitchers became Karen's mission. She amassed a following by advertising in Needlepoint Plus and other Guild Affiliate publications. She also attracted new clientele by teaching classes in counted thread, Hardanger, canvas and ribbon embroidery. Right from the start, she offered specials and created incentives to attract stitchers and still uses aggressive marketing strategies. As her business grew, she decided to add a retail location as well.
Karen's pet theory is that cross stitchers, in particular, are like gypsies, wandering from shop to shop to see what each has to offer. Though she insists that there's more than enough business to go around, it's nevertheless important for any small business to develop and maintain customer loyalty. Karen succeeds by offering ongoing special interest projects and programs such as canvas and cross stitch of the month clubs, a Super Bowl week long sale, a cash and carry sale following the Nashville Market, a twice yearly custom framing sale, guild member discounts, monthly markdowns, contests and other incentives.
Karen's goal is still identical to when she first began - to provide quality merchandise, coupled with courteous, helpful and prompt service. She considers herself a "people-person" and takes an honest interest in her clientele, both as individuals and as fellow stitchers. Plain and simple, she states with an impish grin: "I try to go out of my way for anyone who "darkens my door." It means a lot to me to make my customers happy." Though the shop naturally maintains regular business hours, her mail order department is available for orders around the clock on a toll free number. A very high percentage of such orders are filled and shipped on the very same day.
Classes are offered on a regular basis as well as workshops with guest teachers and designers, who have included Jean Hilton, Anthony Minieri, Debbie Stiehler and Mary Klotz. These workshops often take place in the ballroom of the nearby Carteret Holiday Inn where out-of-towners can find comfortable and convenient accommodations. She is currently in negotiation for a workshop later this year with Ann Paxton, a retired supreme court judge, renowned for her spectacular Icon Bags using Delica beads from Japan. Karen is adding the Delica beads to her stock inventory and these, along with related products and classes are just two of the many ambitious projects Karen has planned for the near future.
The shop's needlepoint and cross stitch inventory go through constant changes, additions and upgrades. Hand painted canvases are available from Melissa Shirley, Painted Pony, Sharon G., Damarj, Jody Shelley Tribbey and many more. Counted thread needlepoint selections feature designs by Lynne Tomlinson, Kimberly Krum, Orna Willis, Ruth Schmuff, Jean Hilton, Genny Morrow, Dianne Evans and others.
Fabulous counted thread designs for linen and other upscale fabrics make up another entire collection. The cross stitch selection consists of designs by Moss Creek, Just Nan, Honey Bee Creations, Trail Creek, Shepherd's Bush, Sue Sekas, Just My Imagination, Heart in Hand and on and on. Totes and a variety of other bags from J.B. Designs and Sew Wonderful are offered. The selection of buttons is outrageous and additional accessories include semi-precious beaded scissors fobs, dyed birch lay tools, needle cases and rests in yellows, pinks and purples.Lovely hand painted lap frames can be custom monogrammed. Added to this is a stunning assortment of sterling silver
jewelry and charms, memory boxes, pin cushions and a selection of tee shirts and sleep shirts with humorous touches sure to strike a chord ("Life's a Stitch!") Custom framing is offered for all types of needlework. Karen has framed work for several well known designers: Romantique for Carol Costello and Sharon G's Federal Needlepoint Chair, which has been featured in the ANG Needlepointers Magazine. Custom finishing is provided for pillows, ornaments, box tops, etc. and also a stitching service for uncompleted projects - what stitcher doesn't have at least one of those? At the Sophisticated Stitchery, wherever the eye alights there is something to beguile and tempt!
With threads and fibers, Karen strives to carry complete lines whenever possible. She also makes it a point to stock every type of thread called for in the charts she carries, as well as the fabrics, beads, ribbons or any other enhancements specified. She does her biggest volume in silks because of its luxurious look and feel, insisting: "Once a stitcher starts with silk, they don't ever want to go back." Soie Cristale from Caron ranks among the top favorites. She further explains that the needlework guilds and education programs have had an enormous impact on the recent preference for silks and other specialty fibers, as stitchers have learned the proper handling for plying and laying them and stitching techniques which maximize their unique qualities. It's all in keeping with Karen's personal philosophy for wanting only the very best and then striving for nothing less.
The staff consists of Karen's "right-hand woman," Marge, and Lou, Karen's father (affectionately dubbed Mr. UPS) who serves as shipper/expediter. He is, in fact, so thorough and packages orders so meticulously that one customer, Jayne Siegal, wails that she needs a machete when her orders arrive. Karen's mother has also been involved as the company "banker," keeping tabs on the financial aspects of the business.
After more than 10 years of plying her trade, Karen's zeal and curiosity have not diminished one iota. To the contrary, she feels she is now at the "height of her game." She is always on the lookout for new items, often giving out skeins of new threads to customers at no charge just to get their feedback on how they work up. If several colors are available, the stitcher even gets to choose her favorite. More than once, and repeatedly by Delores Tucholksi, another regular, she has been reprimanded for her generosity. Karen just shrugs and compares herself to Peter Pan in Never-Never Land - flitting about in a world of marvelous colors, textures and designs, anxious to share her own enthusiasm and treasures with everyone else. As a very tactile individual, Karen encourages stitchers to look, feel, experience and then to trust their own instincts when stitching. Neither she nor her customers ever tire of playing "show and tell."
Sophisticated Stitchery has just debuted its own website at:http://www.sophisticatedstitch.com
address: 22 N. Whittier Street, Carteret, New Jersey 07008
phone: (732) 969-0408
(800) 669-0408
fax: (732) 969-0408
e-mail: Kstitch@iboc.net
hours: Mon., Tues., Thurs., Fri., Sat. 9 am to 4 pm
STORE FOCUS ARCHIVES
(For previous month's features)Hardanger House, Stettler, Alberta, Canada
Nordic Needle, Fargo, NDNeedlemania, in Cranston, Rhode Island The Country Cross-Stitcher, Woburn, Bedfordshire, UK Amy's Golden Strand, Memphis, TN Needle in a Haystack in Alameda, California
Tri Thy Needlecraft Centre, in North Wales, UK
Fils Du Temps in Strasbourg, France
Stitchery Source International / Rainbow Picture Framing in Miami, Florida
Nettie's Needlecraft in glamorous Beverly Hills, California...
Island Needlework, Key West, Florida...
The Summer House Needleworks, Oley Valley of Pennsylvania
Evening Star Designs, mail order specializing in Quilting supplies
Ginger's Needlearts and Framing, Austin, Texas
The Needlewoman East in Falls Church, Virginia
Hook-n-Needle in Fairfield County, CT
The Needlepointer, Everett, Washington
Haus Tirol in Williamsburg, Virginia
Crafty Lady in Macomb, Michigan
It's A Crewel World in Salem, Massachusetts
Exclamation Point!in Saratoga Village, California
Thistle Needleworks in Glastonbury, Connecticut