Where to Buy Locally Made Gifts in Essex

For those of you who I haven’t met yet, my name is Teddi Rogers, and I am the Owner and Lead designer behind Kit+Syl Studio.  Kit+Syl is a boutique floral and jewelry business offering handmade jewelry designs and custom floral arrangements for your business, home, and gift giving needs.  Most recently I have expanded my shop to include goods made by other local artisans.  I hope that Kit+Syl is your next destination for buying locally made gifts in Essex.

I started Kit+Syl Studio in 2016 while I was still living in New York City.  During this time I decided to name the business for my grandmothers, Kitty Rogers and Sylvia Fader.  Each of these women had a sense of style that remains indelible to my own aesthetic intelligence.  In 2018 I took a break from the design world, and I decided to pursue my interest in sustainable farming.  This is when I moved up to the Champlain Valley.  Following this extreme change, I spent a year working at Essex Farm CSA.  Next I farmed for a season at Tangleroot Farm, and I still work for them administratively.  I continued my design work during my time farming, and I decided to commit to the practice full time in 2019.  I no longer work with my hands in the soil, nevertheless I remain a grateful supporter of the local farm community.  All of the flowers that I sell through the Kit+Syl Floral Shop are sourced from growers local to New York and Vermont.  I believe in the benefits of eating seasonally and locally.  I am proud to be able to offer flower arrangements that meet these standards.

What is Kit+Syl Studio About?

The farm community is one of many of the ways that moving to the Champlain Valley has enriched my life.  Most notably, this move has allowed me the opportunity to pursue my career as a jewelry and floral designer full time.  This gift informs the mission behind Kit+Syl, which is to provide beautiful, quality goods, and the highest standard of customer service.  Furthermore, I will strive to add value to my local community and to support the work of other small businesses and makers.

The beautiful Adirondack park is the perfect setting to create my floral and jewelry work, which centers on the relationship between design and nature.  All of my designs are a marriage between my aesthetic language and personal style.  Throughout my work you will see an exploration of contrasts.  I emphasize this by juxtaposing strength with fragility, female imagery with masculine, and clean lines with organic shapes.  Each Kit+Syl arrangement includes details that I ethically forage from the area.  These elements include textured foliage and dried accents.  I believe it is the unexpected additions that make my designs truly unique.

Where Can You Find Kit+Syl Locally Made Gifts?

My goal for the next few years is to open up a shared artisan/floral retail studio space in the town center.  For now I am thrilled to be a part of The Essex Inn Sunday Barbecue Series.  The Inn hosts this festive, but socially distanced gathering on their spacious back lawn area.  If you are interested in attending, mark your calendars for every Sunday of the season from 3-7PM.  The food promises to be delicious and the drinks are refreshing.  This is also a special opportunity to hear some great live music, which usually starts up around 5PM.  The last few weekends have featured the musical talents of our own Eric O’Hara.  Lucky for us, Eric is currently on break from touring with The Gibson Brothers!  Lee Adams accompanies with vocals that will blow you away, and Yannig Tanguy is something special on the fiddle.

Amidst the festivities I host a pop-up gift shop.  I sell locally grown flowers by the stem, pre-made bouquets, handmade jewelry, and other unique gifts by local artisans.  This is the perfect place to find locally made gifts in Essex.  Custom furniture, fashion, body products, ceramics and more fill the shop.  I will keep expanding the inventory as I continue to discover new talent in our area.  We just had our third Sunday Barbecue, and the turn out has been encouraging.  You can count on this event each Sunday, rain or shine!

Stay in Touch!

Every Wednesday I publish a new blog post where I share my writings about building the next evolution of Kit+Syl Studio, as well as interesting information about the floral, jewelry, and small business world.  Additionally I will conduct regular interviews featuring one of the talented local makers that I am stocking in the pop-up shop.  You can check out my posts at https://kitandsylstudio.com/blog.

When I’m not working in my studio I’m usually on a walk or hike with my dog, Lake.  Of course his name was inspired by my favorite part of life in Essex, Lake Champlain.

Thank you for reading!  Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any jewelry, floral, Essex, personal, or pup-related questions, or just to introduce yourself!  I love to meet members of my community, and I welcome feedback about how I can reciprocate value to this place that has made my own life so rich.