Shop Builds Community, a Stitch at a Time
- February 28th 2025
- Business Spotlight
Knots & Bolts Creating Company owner Vicki Pariyar (right) assists customer Rebecca Ames.
Photo: Kristi King
By Kristi King
Knots & Bolts Creating Company at 911 Main St. – the former Bergeron’s Shoes space – is the perfect place to be creative in downtown Sanford. There you’ll find yarn of all colors, everything for quilting, and all your sewing needs. It also carries unique local non-fiber gifts that non-crafty people would also love to receive, including jewelry, children’s gifts and art supplies. The shop also provides services such as online ordering, shipping and pick-up, long-arm quilt stitching and projects for other local businesses.
“Whatever I can do to build my connections to others is my mission,” said owner Vicki Pariyar, who’s knowledgeable about all things fibers and textiles. She began sewing with her mother, graduated with a textile design degree and began working in the industry. After moving to Sanford, she decided to create a fabric, yarn and teaching shop last June. The result is a “community experience everyone can enjoy,” said Pariyar, whose uniquely designed shop pays homage to Jagger Mill with historic storage pieces and discontinued yarn along with visual wall design including their ready-to-go monthly seasonal themed Wall Block Art kits.
Open Wednesday through Sunday, the shop is a popular gathering place for seasoned creators and those who want to try something new. Pariyar and her employees will lead a variety of classes starting March 1 with Oh Scrap!, a scrap quilting class, Crocheting a Trendy Twisted Headband and Making a Rope Bowl, while providing rooms for the Sit and Create Club.
Her monthly community event, “Midnight Madness,” from 6 pm to midnight on March 22, brings creators together for a whole evening, giving patrons the space, time and assistance they need to work on or complete projects with access to the store, a 10% discount, and snacks and games to keep participants energized.
Pariyar’s shop is one of the new stops for the Maine Quilt Shop Hop on April 6 that is wholly Maine-inspired. A large group from the Southern Maine Fiber Artists meet monthly “and make what they want to make within a community-building atmosphere,” said Pariyar, who plans on being successful in downtown Sanford for many years, adding, “I want to be one of the steppingstones to Sanford’s bright future.”
