A brown building with a tiny white awning
sits at 271 Third Ave. at President Street in Gowanus. The door
is closed and white-painted wrought iron covers the shaded windows.
But behind this unassuming facade, which once housed a funeral
home, something is brewing – and it ain’t beer.
To any outsider what goes on inside is known as knitting, but
at Alchemy Fiber Arts Studio, they prefer to call it "Hand
Spun Magick," and the store’s owner is "magickal"
in every sense of the word.
Wearing a long, deep-purple, crushed velvet cardigan, a black
skirt and embroidered gold-and-black "fantasy spinning shoes,"
Alchemy’s single-named owner, Prophet, 42, spent a recent weekday
afternoon spinning thick, studio-dyed fibers on a 3-foot high
wooden spinning wheel into tight bundles of yarn while 106.7
Lite FM played softly in the background.
Although she is able to spin yarn in anything from high heels
to sneakers, she prefers her special shoes.
"They bring me to that old, fabled knitting place,"
said Prophet, showing off her elfinshoes as she pedaled rhythmically,
spinning a mix of llama wool and copper thread.
While she works, knitters occasionally stop in to purchase materials
or say hello. During regular hours, anyone is able to sit in
the studio and knit, free of charge, surrounded by Alchemy’s
spiritual energy. Tea or coffee is always available, along with
the light chiming of music ranging from new age to pop to classics
and the priceless advice of a knitting master.
"Prophet is a creative genius," said Ramit Kreitner,
of Boerum Hill. "She can write you patterns on the spot,
and she’s excellent in math."
Everyone who enters Alchemy agrees with Kreitner.
"Whatever ideas you have, she can create them for you,"
said Kirsten Endacott, of Park Slope. "You visualize and
she sets your ideas down."
One look around the studio and Prophet’s genius is apparent.
Not only does a black, knitted-rubber and chenille bathing suit
decorate a mannequin in the back, as do knitted evening gowns
in chenille, cashmere or silk, with straps or racer backs, lace-patterned
trims or mermaid tails. Every nook and cranny either hides or
displays one of her fantastic creations.
Prophet says has been knitting since she was a little girl, inspired
by her grandmother, who knitted for Chanel, and learned from
a neighbor. Although she was working in public relations, Prophet
had an epiphany while knitting a sweater for her daughter. She
decided she was going to open a knitting store. She visited five
stores in Park Slope, and eventually opened the Knitting Salon
on Fifth Avenue.
"My husband asked, ’Do you even know how to run a knitting
store?’ and I said, ’Ask me in a year,’" recalled Prophet.
That was three years ago.
She spent more than two years on Fifth Avenue, but was forced
to leave after her rent was tripled. From there she opened a
small studio on Windsor Place for a couple of months, but in
the end, settled on Third Avenue, where she opened last February.
Through it all, Prophet’s knitters have followed her skein wherever
it led.
"I’m moving to Cranford, N.J., next month," said Janine
Sullivan, of Marine Park, "and I’m still going to come because
this is a very important part of my week, creatively."
Sullivan, who has been knitting with Prophet for two years, is
working on a vest for her husband. Although the project should
take her one month to finish, Sullivan predicts it will take
a couple of months due to her other commitments.
"I really only knit here," said Sullivan, "and
although I don’t need any direct help tonight, I always learn
something from my interactions with others here."
On Wednesdays, Prophet hosts her weekly knitting circle, where
Alchemy’s regulars, including Kreitner, Endacott and Sullivan,
knit everything from sweaters and shawls to bags and stuffed
animals. The group of nearly 20 knitters, made up of men and
women, beginners to advanced, chat about their personal lives
as well as their knitting concerns. They even order sushi together.
"It’s good for after working all day," said Marcela
Muleris, of Bay Ridge. "It’s like the bar without the alcohol."
Alchemy, named for the medieval philosophy that sought to turn
base metals into gold, breathes tranquility with its warm, red
walls and dim lighting. The walls are lined with books on religion,
meditation and tarot reading, magazines on knitting and bottles
of incense and oils. Cubbies and baskets of billowy fibers and
colorfully dyed yarns wait to be purchased and be transformed
with "magick." A mirror lined with candles against
the back wall lights the area like a fireplace. In front of it,
there is a basket with a note: "Place the names of those
needing healing."
"I come for the prayer," said Bobby Benson, of Park
Slope. Prophet is a practicing Kabalist, and while there is no
actual prayer time during the knitting circle, Alchemy does provide
a relaxing and peaceful experience.
Although Benson does not knit, he is very much a part of the
studio. He can often be found winding balls of yarn, making tea
or mingling with the knitters lounging on cozy chairs and couches
throughout the studio.
"My thing isn’t about the store," said Prophet. "It’s
about the atmosphere, the presence and the clients. It’s a place
to create beautiful things."
And beautiful things are indeed happening at Alchemy.
Prophet knits everything from dolls to black stockings (to be
worn with garter belts). Currently she is working on two projects:
a full-length, T-strap, black, open-weave gown out of hand-spun
yarn to be worn over a slip, for herself; and a first-day-of-school
sweater for her daughter, a hooded red pullover with a giant
gold star and a kangaroo pocket. Somehow Prophet finds time to
knit a new fall sweater every year for everyone in her family.
Not only does she knit, she also crochets, dyes fibers and spins
them into yarn. She even makes needles out of teak, walnut, birch
and occasionally, ebony, all available for purchase at the studio.
In October, Prophet will be self-publishing her first book: "The
Domi-Knit-Trix."
Outside of the studio, she is readily available to help her students
with any knitting crises that may occur without her "magickal"
presence; she takes emergency knitting calls on her cell phone
until 11 pm. Last Christmas, Prophet coached Endacott through
a crisis over the phone only hours before it was time to exchange
gifts.
"Here, it’s more than just knitting," said Prophet.
"It’s like hand-spun magick, and I feel like I’ve spun my
whole life into gold."
Alchemy, located at 271 Third Ave. at President Street in Gowanus,
is open from 3:30 pm to 7 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and from
noon to 5 pm on Sundays. Weekly Wednesday knitting circles run
from 7 pm to 10 pm and cost $12 per session to be purchased in
sets of four. Yarns range in price from $10-$75. Private lessons
available for $35. Discover Card, MasterCard and Visa are accepted.
Gift certificates are also available. For more information, call
(718) 722-7399 or (917) 755-0950, or visit www.the72.com.
