Dreamland Books & Yarn opened its doors last month on April 27, which is also National Independent Bookstore Day. Nestled in a small red storefront in downtown Seward, Dreamland offers a wide selection of books, as well as more than 10 brands of yarn. The store’s concept came from owner Micheley Kowalski wanting to sell two of her favorite things in one place.
“You walk into the store, and the books and the covers are so colorful, and, and then seeing all the yarn on the walls of the colors and textures. And they just seem to really work well together. And they really are creature comforts,” she said.
Kowalski also owns Resurrect Art Coffee House in town with her husband, Michael Stewart. She said its success gave her the confidence to open a new business, and hopes the store will fill a gap in local options to buy books and yarn.
Even though it's only in its first couple weeks of opening, Kowalski feels good about the feedback from customers.
“It's been really, like, heartwarming,” she said, “there's just so many people who come in, and they say, ‘Oh, I'm so glad to have a bookstore in town.’ Because I think, you know, for people who love bookstores — and I know there's a lot of us out there — they're just sort of the beating heart of the community.”
Kowalski has already learned a lot in the brief time the store’s opened. She said while Dreamland stocks and sells many contemporary fiction books, she’s finding many people also gravitate toward fantasy and romance titles.
“I've been learning and, like reading and trying to make sure that we sort of are up to date with those genres,” she said.
Looking ahead, Kowalski wants to expand her yarn offerings to include locally made options. She also plans to stay open year-round and host events in the off season.
“Right now I feel really positive. And, you know, the winter will be a different season, it'll be a different feeling,” she said, “But I also feel like having community events at the book and yarn store, you know, book clubs and knitting nights and craft nights, I think that's really important for communities. And so I'm pretty confident that the community will support us.”
Dreamland Books & Yarn is open every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in downtown Seward.
