By Hannah Wolke, Digital Communications Manager

Jackie O’s at Krombholz, a modern-day stitchery, recently opened their new location in Mariemont on Feb. 25 after closing their previous location on Montgomery Road. Jackie O’s was started by Heather Krombholz and it is now a family needlepoint business that is also run by Krombholz’s daughter, Kirtley Swary.

This past weekend, Jackie O’s along with many other needlepoint stores across the Cincinnati area and Ohio participated in the Three Needles Stitchery, which was a two day weekend retreat for people who love needlepoint. All these stores and needlepoint enthusiasts came together to stitch and shop with each other.

Jackie O’s offers many different types of lessons, such as how to start needlepoints, how to paint your own canvas and even how to finish your projects into an ornament. They offer events every Thursday in their store from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. called Stop and Stitch, where anyone of any age can come and take a break and stitch.

The family has run Krombholz Jewelers for around 80 years. There was not anything in the backroom of the store, so Krombholz decided to transform it into her own little stitching store. The jewelry store is run by Swary’s father and sister, while Swary and Krombholz run the needlepoint store.

“It was named after my grandma, Jackie O’Brien,” Swary said. “She was a prolific stitcher. She taught us all about how to stitch, so that’s where we came up with the name for all of it.” 

Needlepoint is a beginner-friendly type of handwork that is repetitive. Similar to embroidery or cross stitching, a crafter follows a painted or printed pattern on a netted canvas. 

“People like needlepoint because it is very entry level, beginner friendly, but then you can also expand and become creative with it,” Swary said. 

Everyone that came into the store would have conversations with Swary about projects they were working on or ask questions on how to get started. 

The store offered a variety of canvases to choose from; they have everything one can imagine from famous Cincinnati landmarks to Christmas stockings to small beginner friendly bows. 

“We do cater a lot towards beginners; we have a lot of beginner friendly canvases and teach a ton of lessons. We love teaching lessons,” Swary said.

A lot of college students and young adults are getting into needlepoint after learning about it from grandparents, but a main source of clientele has been social media platforms such as TikTok.

“We use social media to learn about it, but we also all want to get off social media,” Swary said. “It’s taken over… I love that so many younger people are getting into it because it’s such a healthy habit.”