Mauchline's newest shop owner is raring to go with what she hopes will be a welcome addition to the town and local area.
Tigs Barnes will be opening the Thistle and Coo shop on Loans on Tuesday (July 16) which will sell the likes of fabrics, yarn and haberdashery.
The shop will also run learning classes for sewing and for social meet-ups, but official plans have not been finalised and they will run on a donations basis.
Having only officially taken over the building three weeks ago, Tigs admits there are mixed emotions ahead of opening.
She said: "I’ve always been really crafty and I’ve always collected yarn.
"We moved to Mauchline and the opportunity to open this shop came up and I just had to jump at the chance.
"I’ve had a lot of help from people close to me and the companies that have supported me with moving in have been amazing, like Fast Move Clearances in Troon.
"It’s been a huge effort over the last three weeks to get everything the way it is.
"There’s a feeling of apprehension and fear, but also excitement once it gets going."
Plans are afoot for Tigs' son to run a Dungeons and Dragons group from the shop, with that hoping to be up and running some time in August.
Having moved to the town, Tigs is hoping that the shop can become somewhere that the public can rely on and support, as she hopes to imbed into Mauchline.
Tigs added: "The feedback we’ve had was incredible. I thought we would get a few shares but I looked at the post and it had been shared into all sorts of craft groups and things like that.
"We have such a great range of products that I don’t think you’ll get in many places and it’s better to be able to come and see and feel the items you want instead of ordering them online.
"We want to start making hats and scarves for the homeless and underprivileged, because that’s something we’ve done in the past.
"And we want to get involved with the local schools and maybe get them involved in some of the crafts as well.
"We want to be involved in the community and hopefully the community will support the shop as well."
The shop will be open at various time during the week until the school holidays are finished when it will move from Monday to Friday and a Saturday morning.
There will be special offers in store for its opening at 9am on Tuesday morning.
Anyone looking for any further information about products, the gaming groups, or anything else, can contact Tigs on 07446064543 or visit the Thistle and Coo website.
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