SOMA Living June 2022

Knitting was a natural next step in my creative process.” She started with baby hats and found she couldn’t put her knitting needles down. “As soon as I learned to knit, I became an uber geek and had to understand all of the intricacies of the craft. I wanted to know and master everything I possibly could. I started knitting all the time and got to knit samples for my neighborhood yarn store. Then I was knitting samples for designers and the joy just never ended; I was never bored or underchallenged. Knitting was easy to do while watching my kids. I could put my work down and walk away, or engage with my kids with yarn in hand.” Within a year and a half of starting she was knitting full time and dreaming of opening her own yarn store someday. “My husband jokes that I opened the store to meet other knitters and make new friends, and he’s not wrong about that. Sharing something that brings me so much happiness with other people is the reason I wanted to start this business.” Her husband, John, always encouraged her dream and would regularly ask her, “When are you opening the yarn store?” When their youngest started kindergarten, Irina contacted her realtor, found a location, and it all evolved from there. The Local Yarn Store features yarn brands that share both Irina’s business and social values, “I choose to work with companies that are inclusive, supportive of the American wool industry and fair to their employees.” If you’re interested in picking up knitting or crochet, you can find class listings on the store website: www.thelocalyarnstore.com. Open Yarn Night is every Friday from 5pm to 7pm at The Local Yarn Store and is a chance to share a table with other knitters, laugh, and improve your craft (socially distanced seating is available both inside and outside the shop). While Irina runs The Local Yarn Store , John works in digital healthcare as a partner at Oliver Wyman in NYC. “He’s a great father and wonderful partner. He’s a master of the Dad joke, and is still the smartest person I’ve ever met,” said Irina. The Lester’s have three children: Vivian, 10, who attends South Mountain School and loves performing comedy and improv. Isabel,13, who attends South Orange Middle School and is interested in drawing and painting, and Peshi, who is 20, passionate about LGBTQIA+ issues and attends FIT as a fashion major. The Lester family’s favorite restaurant is The Fox and the Falcon. “They are right next door to my shop and we’ve become pretty good friends with the family that owns it. They do so much for South Orange and continue to inspire me to invest in our community in every way I can. The food and cocktails ain’t too bad either.”

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