Who Are We

Sue Costigan

The Endless Skein’s fearless leader, owner, knitter and crocheter, Sue Costigan, was born and raised in Prospectville, Pennsylvania, where she grew up with her sister and parents. Sue has been married to her best friend Tom since 1986 and together they have raised their six children. Sue graduated from Villanova University as a Civil Engineer. Her roommate in college was a dedicated knitter, which greatly contributed to Sue’s interest in the hobby. As her children grew older, Sue was busy working to grow as a knitter and crocheter. She took classes from many excellent instructors, attended conferences, and partook in yarn-related travel.

Sue’s dream of The Endless Skein all began when she stumbled upon Yarn Central, located off the Taconic, where she bought some yarn to create a beautiful, simple sweater. Sue later joined their Tuesday knitting group, which was both a rewarding and fulfilling experience for Sue. This gave her the opportunity to sit with a talented group of ladies each week as their designs and ideas flourished. Soon after, the shop owner decided to move on and close the shop. Sue was very tempted to buy the business from her, but she didn’t feel qualified just yet, and before long, someone else jumped at the opportunity. Then, one fateful day, the new shop owner happened to mention something to Sue, being completely unaware that Sue had even considered buying the shop. She said, “I feel like you might want to be in my shoes one day!” Ever since then, the idea of owning her own yarn store was firmly planted in Sue’s mind.

Sue spent a fair amount of time getting up the courage to take the leap, plotting and planning how to make her dream become a reality. Sue and her husband came across a local florist shop for sale which they thought would be an ideal spot for Sue’s yarn shop. They purchased the building, knocked it down, built a brand new building, and voila, The Endless Skein was born!

Carol Casparian

Knitting is one of Carol’s favorite pastimes, along with cooking and baking. Prior to working at The Endless Skein, she was a stay-at-home-Mom for her four children. Now she loves to travel with her husband, exploring new cities and countries where she gets the chance to test her proficiency in multiple languages. When knitting, Carol loves colorwork and patterns where she can learn new techniques.

Cindy Cohen

Cindy learned to knit on a train 20 years ago and has been passionate about fiber ever since. She loves learning new techniques and helping others to have knitting adventures as well. When she isn’t knitting, you might find her stand-up paddleboarding, hiking, bucket drumming, drawing, or exploring the world with her kiddos.

Maria Elena Hardman

Maria Elena is happy to call Cold Spring home. She enjoys sewing, crochet, knitting, and just making all things by hand, in general. She comes from a long and wide line of makers, and vividly remembers casting on her first stitches with Mom and her sister in their craft room when she was just seven or eight years old. Since then, she has probably made hats and blankets for hundreds of babies (and adults!) and still enjoys learning a new skill with each project. Currently, her most challenging, yet rewarding project has been teaching her handicrafts to her own kids. She loves the smell and squish of a fresh skein of beautiful yarn, but is also known to take apart sweaters and re-purpose the yarn into something new. She is rarely found without needles in hand or half a sweater in her bag. You may also find her in her garden, sipping coffee, organizing her yarn, petting cats and dogs, practicing yoga, hiking, or wandering around town with her husband and children.

Gail O'Donnell

Gail found her passion for weaving, quilting, and natural dyeing in college while getting her BFA in Fibers. Currently she produces a line of naturally dyed yarns for knitters. When she isn’t submersed in fibers, she can be found drawing, painting watercolors, gardening, or exploring little towns upstate with her husband.

Ilma Dietz

Ilma was swathed in hand-knits from an early age by her mom, an amazing knitter who rarely used a pattern. Ilma, however, did not learn to knit until later in her life. A perennial student, knitting classes took the forefront over gardening, cooking, and a myriad of other crafts, although woodworking and furniture making run a close second. Ilma currently gets her inspiration from Northern Europe, mainly color work and lace. She has never met a fine yarn that doesn’t have her name on it, especially if it’s in the turquoise color family. Ilma is always ready for a new adventure, whether it be travel or exploring another craft.

Birgit Kraeft

Birgit learned to knit and sew at 12 years old. Her mother was a trained seamstress and pattern maker and passed on the talent to her daughters. Knitting very quickly became an obsession, with colorwork being the favorite. She taught herself how to spin on a spinning wheel during covid lockdown and now passionately plays with color and texture to create beautiful yarn. When she is not knitting socks or planning the next yarn, she is busy sewing a line of accessories and project bags. Non-fiber activities include tending to her cat, enjoying a cup of tea, or strolling the grounds of any of the historical mansions in the area.

Tele

Tele was our beloved shop dog, a Border Terrier who lived to a ripe old age. He could be found in the boss’s office or behind the register taking a nap. No other animals, aside from service dogs, are invited into The Endless Skein.

R.I.P., Tele.

Who are we