Main Street News

Above photo by Kenzie Fields

“I wanted to create a space where people could learn new skills, find community, and explore their creativity in a positive environment surrounded by other creative people,” says Jamie Goldenberg, owner of Hart, a textile shop in Great Barrington, MA. 

Jamie’s background is in weaving, and she even opened a weaving studio in 2013 where she made artwork and custom textile commissions. In 2019, she began hosting sewing and knitting classes in her studio. When the pandemic hit, she shifted to teaching online and making more products to sell in a collaborative retail space until she could open her studio to the public once more. 

In 2021, Jamie opened a combined classroom and shop in downtown Great Barrington, but the location was a bit “out-of-the-way.” While she built up a good base of year-round support, she was looking for alternate locations to which she could move the shop. When the space on Railroad Street opened up in 2022, Jamie knew it was meant to be. Because of the expanded space and additional foot traffic, Jamie was able to add more yarn, collaborate with a local fabric seller to have Liberty of London and Merchant and Mills fabrics in stock, and expand the class offerings once again. 

This year, Hart moved down the street to 34 Railroad Street, providing even more space to expand Hart’s classroom and making it more accessible for learners of all ages and abilities, as the new location has a bathroom and a ramp. 

Fiber arts for all 

Hart offers classes for sewing, weaving, knitting, crochet, felting, printmaking, dyeing, embroidery, and most fiber arts you can think of! “People often come in and ask if we will alter their clothes or mend something,” Jamie says. “We explain that we don’t do that, but we love to teach people how to do it themselves!” 

Hart also offers private lessons in addition to group classes, as well as a weekly drop-in sliding scale “office hour” for anyone who needs help with projects. Jamie’s favorite part of the month is mending night, which is the first Thursday of each month from 7-9pm. “We have people who have been joining us every month for years now,” she recalls. “It is such a special group where beginners and experts alike are welcomed to the table. We share skills and ideas, and it’s so beautiful to watch this community grow.”

Jamie explains that Hart has so much yarn, looms, thread, sewing and knitting supplies, and other “fun, weird tools you won’t find elsewhere,” that there is something for everyone, regardless of what fiber art you’re interested in. 

Learning new skills and making friends 

For Jamie, the most rewarding part about operating Hart is seeing people learn something new and feel good about themselves. “It is just the coolest thing when they pick up a handmade bag and say, ‘I can’t believe I made this!’” she says.

Hart has also given Jamie the chance to meet so many talented people that she otherwise wouldn’t have known. Because of Hart, she has made friends who have the “strangest niche interests that align with mine,” and gives a special shoutout to her friend who loves antique crochet patterns from the Library of Congress archives and her other friend who has sheep and dyes her own yarn. 

“I also get to work so close to home, so I can be a solo mom that gets my kids off of the bus. My kids also get to see their mom be a successful, creative person who is engaged in the community, and I think it’s really important that my girls experience that,” she says. 

A place for everyone 

More than anything, Jamie wants people who enter Hart to feel capable of using the tools that they purchase so that they don’t just sit around collecting dust. “We provide a free lesson with the purchase of sewing machines and certain looms,” she explains. 

For those who are potentially hesitant about attending a class, Jamie notes that Hart has people of all ages and abilities who attend their classes and work together in a collaborative setting. “I think our community is what sets us apart. We offer a place to be creative and come together. We also make extra effort to stay away from any kind of ‘gate-keeping.’ Fiber arts are for everyone and anyone can learn the skills that we teach here.” 

Going forward, Jamie’s hope is to expand her team and add more teachers, as well as add more supplies for sewing, knitting, and crocheting to Hart’s repertoire. 

“I’d like to just stay put and keep doing what we are doing. Maybe someday we will grow or open a second location, but for now, it is really nice to be where we are and consciously choose to stay small, so that there is some work-life balance while my kids are still very small.” 

Hart Textiles is located at 34 Railroad Street, Great Barrington, MA. Keep up with them on their website here, on Instagram at @hart_gb, email them at info@harttextiles.net, or give them a call at (413) 274-8148.