About
Once Upon A Yarn Story...
The story of the shop starts in Ireland where owner Carmen Schmidt lived for just over a year. During the rainy autumn months, she decided to pick up her knitting again for the first time in years and soon found herself falling back in love with the craft. As well as the rhythmic clicks and beautiful colours, she also discovered the craft happily came with a welcoming community of like-minded souls.
Even though Carmen had known how to knit since she was a child, it wasn't until now that she really got it. Her love (or, perhaps, obsession) for wool quickly grew and when she moved again in 2013, this time to the United Kingdom, she knew that she just had to do something with it. So, in November 2014, Carmen opened A Yarn Story in the small village of Bathford. But, after six short months, she found she had outgrown her sweet little shop. This is when she decided to move to Walcot Street in the heart of Bath's Artisan Quarter.
The shelves at A Yarn Story are brimming with all the yarns, patterns and knick-knacks that Carmen loves. Every single thing in the shop has a tale to tell that can be passed on so others can make it a part of their story too. She is passionate about choosing her favourite fibres and colours, as well as supporting designers and makers far and wide.
More than a shop, A Yarn Story is also a place for yarn-lovers to meet, create and feel at home, whether they are just starting out or have been lovingly knitting or crocheting for decades. With regular knit-nights online and in-store, and plenty of workshops with expert tutors, there is always something new to learn and share.
Meet the Team
Beverley
Sales & Operations Manager
Beverley began knitting when she was little, learning to knit from her mother. This resulted in a lot of blankets for her dolls. She then progressed to scarves and hats and when returning to knitting in her adult years, was delighted to find that seaming was a thing of the past and truly embraced sweater making!
She loves anything Scandinavian, particularly their knitwear design and loves to knit garments for herself and her family. She considers herself an ambitious knitter and enjoys learning new techniques. Since joining A Yarn Story she has branched out into a wider colour palette and loves the endless inspiration being in the shop has brought to her knitting plans (which are carefully cataloged in a spreadsheet).
Born in Oxford, Beverley has lived in North Wales and New Zealand, finally settling in Bath. She has a degree in Film and Literature and a PGCE specialising in Further Education. When she is not knitting, Beverley loves reading, watching films and taking long walks.
Amanda
Sales Assistant
Knitter and crocheter extraordinaire Amanda has been designing garments and accessories since the 80s, with her designs featured in many magazines, including Good Housekeeping and Simply Knitting. More recently she has designed for The Fibre Co., Walcot Yarns andThe Knitter. Inspired by the beauty and complexity of Japanese knitting, Amanda says life is never dull if you have a skein of yarn and a pair of needles in your hands. She reckons she could even knit if stranded on a desert island (providing it had sheep, alpaca or banana plants on it – banana fibre makes for excellent yarn…). As well as working in the shop, Amanda holds regular sessions at A Yarn Story to help fellow yarn-lovers with their knitting and crochet quandaries.
Susan
Sales Assistant
Susan's love of yarncraft started at the age of seven when her mother taught her how to knit mittens – useful for the chilly winters growing up in Canada! Her skill for cold-weather creativity continued and, by the time she was in her early teens, she learned how to knit Icelandic sweaters on circular needles. These days, her favourite things to knit include shawls (there isn’t any fitting requirement) and she also enjoys colourwork. Her current yarn faves include mYak and Walcot Yarns Opus for softness and, never one to shy away from luxury, she likes pairing mohair with other yarns. When Susan isn't knitting you'll find her spending time by the sea in Cornwall or walking her dog in her local park in Bath. A lady of many useful talents, Susan also has a degree in Physiotherapy and qualifications in Art & Design.
Kayleigh
Sales Assistant
Born and raised in the US, Kayleigh now lives in Bath, where her passion for knitting is stronger than ever. She learned how to knit a scarf at the age of seven (after being taught by her mom), and she now loves to knit sweaters, shawls and everything in-between. When Kayleigh is not in the shop or knitting, she can be found working on her PhD in Philosophy or getting creative in the kitchen inventing new recipes. She also loves to get out and about the countryside.
Carmen
Founder
Carmen is the owner and founder of A Yarn Story. Born and raised in Eugene, Oregon, Carmen went to uni in California before leaping across the pond to Europe where she first made Germany her home. She then headed to Ireland where she found her love of knitting, before eventually settling in Bath.
Her earliest memory of yarn involved creating endless i-cords with her French knitting dolly, as well as weaving rugs for her doll’s house, and winding and re-winding yarn on her Mom's ball-winder. To this day, Carmen is still a ‘product knitter’, and loves creating everything from socks and shawls to mitts, hats and sweaters – as long as it is beautiful, useful and full of colour.
Armed with an MBA from Goethe Business School and heavily influenced by her parents who ran a successful restaurant, Carmen combined her business brain with her passion for yarn to launch A Yarn Story in 2014… and has never looked back!
She says of her love of knitting, “With yarn you can take that string you love and turn it into whatever you want – absolutely whatever you heart desires.”
Peaches
Customer Relationship Manager
Peaches joined the AYS team in May 2015 when the shop moved to Walcot Street in Bath (and she was allowed in the building…) She can be found working in the shop a couple times a week – her enthusiasm while on duty is subtle, but can always be noted with the occasional squeak.
Peaches is an expert cuddler, tail thwapper and adorable-eyes giver. She is also a huge fan of making sure everyone knows how to share food, and she is partial to fish, dried meats and cheese. When she’s not at work she enjoys long walks, even longer naps, squirrel hunting, visiting her favourite local shops and occupying most, if not all, of the sofa.