Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Specials friendships at 1 Stop Bead Shop

One of my favorite stories is from a special 1 Stop Bead Shop friend – Marilyn – a resident of Springfield, who found us one Saturday morning and stayed to bead for 5 hours on her first visit. She came EVERY Saturday for several months and called 1 Stop Bead Shop her “Special Place.” 5 years later, Marilyn still stops in every couple of months and spends a few hours at our tables making jewelry and chatting. We helped her pick out the perfect beads for her daughter’s wedding jewelry and for the mother & grandmother bracelets when the 1st grandchild was born (we even got to hold the baby!). For her next big life milestone, Marilyn is about to celebrate her 60th birthday with us this spring! Thanks Marilyn for making us part of your life!
Mom & baby - wearing the necklace she made the day we got to hold the baby!


Another of my favorite “bead friends” stories has repeated itself over and over again. A couple of people see each other in class – they’ve never met before. Maybe they strike up a conversation, or maybe not. But, next week, they see each other again. Over time, conversations are struck up, and the next thing you know there is ride sharing, signing up for classes together and dinners out. The quintessential example is a group of three ladies who love to hang out at 1 Stop Bead Shop, love to hang out together and even bring their husbands with them, so that we’ve gotten to know them too. It was spooky one Saturday when they ALL ended up here at the same time, and none of them had told the other they were coming. The best people really DO hang out in the best places!

When I opened the store, as most of you have heard me say, I envisioned the “Cheers of Beading.” Once I began to see these friendships forming, I knew that we had achieved even more than I had ever dreamed – a place where people can belong & make friendships, which can be hard to find in our hectic, busy world.

I’m sure there are countless stories I could share, but I’d rather hear them from you. Will you please share your special 1 Stop Bead Friend story?

I have opened up our settings so you can share your story right on our Blog, or you can share on our 1 Stop Bead Shop Facebook. I look forward to hearing from you.

1 comment:

  1. I heard a great story recently, and it stuck in my mind because she said, "her best day ever happened at our store!" Her sister (who lives out-of-town) was visiting and they were frantically searching for wedding jewelry. All her sister knew was that she wanted something free trade, and mentioned possibly using Kazuri beads. She promptly told her sister that she had seen some at our shop and they should go see if any would work for her. They came in and, just by pure luck, we were having our Kazuri Trunk Show! They then had a blast sitting at our tables and creating all of the jewelry they needed! She had so much fun that she thought it was her Best Day Ever! How great is that?!

    Stephanie

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