Stitching Chicks expands as needlepoint's popularity surges among younger generations

As younger generations look for hobbies that pull them away from screens and back toward hands-on creativity, needlepointing is seeing a major resurgence. In downtown Morganton, that growing demand is helping push Stitching Chicks Needlepoint into the former Merrill Mischief building, where owner Laura Oden hopes to expand not only the business, but also the sense of community that comes with it.

“Needlepoint is not just what you see. It’s really the community,” Oden said. “And the needlepoint community is very welcoming and robust. Everyone’s willing to help each other.”

“Deep friendships are built over needlepoint, and so we want to offer community,” she said, adding that the larger space will allow for more of that community-focused work.

Stitching Chicks, a full-service needlepoint shop, opened on West Union Street in 2023 and offers hand-painted canvases from designers across the country. The shop sells more than 40 thread lines, project bags, stretcher bars, and other accessories, while offering finishing services that can transform stitched canvases into pillows, ornaments, sunglass cases, bag charms, and more.

“Really just whatever your imagination is, it can be made into,” Oden said.

Since opening about two and a half years ago, the business has shipped products to 49 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. Oden said much of the business also comes from shipping as its customer base continues to grow.

The shop’s growth, combined with the rising popularity of needlepoint among younger people, is what led Oden to expand into a larger downtown location. The new space will add another 1,000 square feet, with the upstairs designated for stitching retreats and shipping and the downstairs for retail space.

Stitching Chicks has not only outgrown its current retail and shipping space, but it also needs more room to host classes and events. Beginner classes are offered each month. Instructors from around the country regularly come to the shop to share their expertise.

The shop’s retreats bring in visitors from across the Southeast and beyond. Oden said the business will host a private retreat in August for more than 20 women from across the country, followed by a September retreat titled “For the Young and the Young at Heart,” aimed at needle pointers ages 30 and younger, the latest demographic to fall in love with the craft. People from as far away as Montana and California have already signed up.

Oden believes the popularity of needlepointing follows the trend of younger people wanting hobbies that reduce their screen time and allow them to create something for themselves or someone they love.

“They’re wanting to get off their cell phones, they’re wanting more of a simpler life,” Oden said. “Therefore, a lot of them are sewing, they’re knitting, they’re crocheting, they’re needlepointing, they’re baking, so it’s all those things that their mothers and their grandmothers used to do.”

More than half of Stitching Chicks customers are 30 years or younger, according to Oden, who said many young girls are bringing their mothers back into the hobby. Many are trying the craft for the first time, she said, adding that a new stitcher comes to check out the store almost every day.

“This is a judgment-free zone,” Oden said.

Magnolia Needlepoint will lead the September retreat, while nationally known needlepoint instructor Tony Minieri from the Atlanta area is scheduled to teach classes next spring.

Construction in the new space includes adding a kitchen, dishwasher, refrigerator, and sink to accommodate retreats and gatherings. Oden said the business also plans to keep Craig Merrill’s old fudge counter and repurpose it into a cocktail and food station for events.

The goal is to have the new location open in July, before the August retreat.

Oden said the new location fits naturally into downtown Morganton’s social atmosphere, allowing visitors to easily stop in nearby businesses like Brown Mountain Bottleworks and The Olive for a snack and drink.

Most of the businesses’ customers are from out of town, with a huge base coming from Hickory, Blowing Rock, Boone, Linville, Asheville, Charlotte, and tourists traveling through the area.

“If you’re a needlepointer and you’re within 50 miles of a needlepoint shop, you’re going to go,” Oden said. “Needlepoint shops all have their own personalities. It’s almost like going to wineries.”

While Oden could have kept needlepointing as simply a hobby, she said the inspiration behind opening Stitching Chicks came from wanting to set an example for her 7-year-old granddaughter, Magnolia.

“I just wanted to show her how to run a small business and be an entrepreneur, and just show that no matter your age, you can follow your dreams,” Oden said.