Heart and Soul in the Village

I’m liking a lot of things going on in Manchester right now: the leaves are just starting to turn, the pumpkins are getting bigger by the minute, we’re selling a lot of bras and pajamas, and new businesses are opening up around town. Good things are going on here in Vermont, for sure. The new business thing is really exciting and I just have to gush about one in particular that I went to check out yesterday. It is the new yoga boutique at Heart of the Village Yoga located across the street from the Equinox Hotel. What a GREAT addition to our community.

Seems like all of my friends are doing yoga. Here in southern Vermont, we are fortunate to have a few studios including Heart of the Village which offers a whopping 30 or so classes a week. I keep saying I’m going to get to a class, but I haven’t been to one since the spring when I went to Yoga for Golfers. I really would like to figure out a good time to get back into some sort of yoga in my life. Invitations and inspirations welcome!

Anyway, back to this new retail shop that specializes in all things yoga including clothing, jewelry, and decor. I was fortunate to get a tour of the new digs by Heart of the Village owner and yoga guru, Jo Kirsh, who is just about as cool a woman as you’ll ever meet. The shop is a beautiful little nook – not too big, not too small – and is full of things that makes even a non-yogi like me feel good. I picked up a cool tank top that I can wear in the shop (and to yoga when I get there…) and saw a lot of items I’d love to have in the shop or give or get as a gift such as “Prosperity Hens,” which are strings of decorative beads in the shape of hens that bring good luck and prosperity. Who wouldn’t want one of those hanging around?

The jewelry selection was gorgeous and inspirational too, with themes of peace, zen, and crystals. I definitely want to get in there to look at it more closely when I have more time. If you miss Silverado, our former neighbors at the bra shop, you’ll like what you find here on the jewelry front. Jo took an extra minute to show me their selection of “malas,” which are sets of 108 beads strung together and are used to help the mind focus on meditation and count mantras. The discussion of malas made me remember reading “Eat, Pray, Love.” Boy, did I love that book… Didn’t we all?

In addition to the boutique, Heart of the Village now has an additional studio where they are gearing up to start offering Aerial Yoga classes. Now, this sounds like something fun and different and maybe will be just the thing to get me back on the yoga track. Jo gave me a little demonstration of aerial shavasana and other poses. Pretty cool stuff here in Manchester, Vermont, ladies!

As excited as I was about all things yoga at Heart of the Village, I was about to get even more psyched as I saw the other businesses that fill up the Equinox Shops building. Plough and Stone is a just GORGEOUS showroom of locally-made farm tables and pottery and quality home style items. Covey and Nye is an impeccable shop full of fabulous “country and sporting attire.” Even if that isn’t your style, the fashions there are worthy of a lap around the store. Great window displays and wouldn’t you know it that I ran into a woman that I knew in Rhode Island 30 years ago when we both sold advertising for a couple of radio stations. A truly amazing trip to Manchester Village that sincerely nourished my heart and soul on so many levels.