Over the coming weeks we’ll be taking a look at other craft and sewing studios around the country. We’re doing this for research purposes so we figured, “throw it up for all to see”. We hope to pick and choose some of the best ideas from other successful studios to make Assemble kick ass.

Make Workshop

http://www.makeworkshop.com

To get a good idea of what Assemble strives to be, check out Make Workshop in NYC. I think Assemble and Make Workshop were separated at birth. Make has a new school craft/diy feel with classes like shoe making, soap making and t-shirt reconstruction. They still pay homage to the more traditional crafting disciplines, like crocheting and knitting, but they also explore non-traditional crafts. One way Assemble will be different from Make Workshop is our focus on a space dedicated to assembling. We plan to outfit our place with big tables, cushy furniture, coffee (and treats if you’re lucky), an inspirational library of books and magazines, tivo, free wi-fi access, and of course our rentable sewing workspace.

Spark Craft Studios

http://www.sparkcrafts.com

Spark Craft Studios is located in Somerville, Massachusetts. They’re in a sweet two-story loft-style space with exposed brick and beams. Spark offers day passes ($8) and basic memberships ($150/year or $50 for 3 mos) for using the studio space. Spark provides the latest scrapbooking and knitting supplies for any imaginable project.

Mackenzie and I plan on posting weekly progress reports to let you know what’s going on with Assemble. There are two reasons for doing this.

1. To keep us motivated.
2. To keep you in the loop. If you are reading this it’s because you’re interested and excited about Assemble and we want you to know what’s going on.

We spent Saturday checking out a few other craft related shops in town. Knit Witz in Mandarin and Paula’s Fine Fabrics in Baymeadows. After some Tempeh burritos at Native Sun we headed over to the Beach Boulevard flea market to look for fabric. Mackenzie was hoping to find a super-secret resource for fabric, but no dice.

Next we headed to Riverside to look for studio space. This was probably the most depressing part of the trip today because it seems like we are never going to find a good space. We looked at Park and King, Post and King, Post and Stockton, Margaret Street, Five Points and up and down Oak Street.

We feel like Riverside is the best place to put our business to guarantee maximum success. The suburbs and beaches don’t have the vibe we are looking for. There’s not much space available in San Marco. Downtown has parking problems and then there’s Springfield. As much as we would love to open in Springfield there’s a perception that it’s not safe after dark.

Finally we stopped at Panera to talk about the weekly blog update, call about some leases and decide on an legal name. By the time we left Panera we had filed our articles of incorporation. We’re legit! Our official legal name is Assemble Lounge Inc.

CREATEjacksonville has a write up on Assemble:

Okay everybody. I know I get excited a lot, but honestly, this takes the cake. Mackenzie and Joey Marchy will soon be opening a studio/ lounge/ boutique called Assemble. Assemble will serve as a spot for the craft and DIY community to assemble, take classes, rent sewing workspace, pick up cool supplies and find one-of-a-kind crafted apparel and accessories. They even hope to offer a place for local artists to display their work.

Here is a successful Junkyard Wars audition tape. The guys demonstrate how a sewing machine works using scraps from their workshop and themselves. Sheesh, I thought my bobbin did more work than that! Is this kind of stuff teachable? Wouldn’t it be a fun class?

Speaking of classes, we’ve had a great response from potential teachers out there. I’m so excited about our classes. I’ll be posting a list of some of our offerings very soon. Stay tuned!

Mackenzie

Mackenzie and Joey talk about forming Assemble, looking for teachers and where they are in the process of starting the business.

We also talk about the blog and it’s role in Assemble. For now we plan on updating the blog about once a week with any news or updates on where we are with getting this idea off the ground.

Listen to the first Assemble podcast (5:34)

Subscribe to the Assemble podcast or Subscribe with iTunes

Assemble, a craft studio, lounge and boutique is opening in Jacksonville. Assemble will serve as a spot for the craft and DIY community to assemble, take classes, rent sewing workspace, pick up cool supplies and find one-of-a-kind crafted apparel and accessories.

We are currently looking for people to teach classes. Classes will include the basics such as sewing, knitting, and crocheting, but Assemble is open to all class ideas - so if you are someone who has a knack for assembling cool things, contact us with your craft and some photos of your work! teach@assemblelounge.com