Sisters Jennifer McCubbins and Jamie Connelly didn’t know when they moved to the area several years ago that they would one day own a historic piece of downtown Murphys, or that they’d turn it into a two-story arts and crafts store with a resident psychic and local makers to boot.
Yet that’s precisely what happened, thanks to several fortunate—or serendipitous—events that led the two to go into business with each other last year.
“Everything has been so serendipitous,” said Connelly. “It just all landed together. …It was really fast.”
The new business owners were craft vendors at Murphys Witch Walk last year when they started talking about how they’d love to run a storefront in Murphys. Minutes later, a friend told them that Twisted Oak Winery’s tasting room down the street had just been put up for sale.
Meanwhile, the sisters had no idea that their husbands, both construction workers, were strolling down Main Street, talking about buying an investment property.
They toured the property the following Monday and bought it a week later. After nearly a year of renovations and planning, Serendipity is open and ready for business, with a grand opening scheduled for Oct. 2.
“We want to be an arts hub,” said Connelly, who also owns a successful craft business, Farmette Doll Co., making and selling hand-sewn dolls. A self-proclaimed “knit wit,” McCubbins also has a passion for crafts.
The two hope to support local artists and hobbyists, both by providing needed supplies and giving them an opportunity to sell their own works.
Serendipity’s website states, “Our beautiful shop was once a family home. Last known to house what we have heard to be the two loveliest sisters in Murphys. Today, we are happy to continue the tradition of the sisterhood! You will see our families working hard in this shop to offer small town hospitality, and try our best to create a local artisan community, right here in Murphys!”
Truly a family-owned business, the owners’ children can be found playing in the shop, while their husbands, both contractors who went into business together as well, help maintain the building, which they own.
McCubbins and husband Dan moved to Calaveras County about eight years ago with their two children. About a year later, Connelly, her husband, Shawn, and their two daughters followed suit and relocated from Santa Cruz, where Connelly worked in the restaurant industry.
The girls’ parents also had previously relocated to Calaveras County and opened their own successful business, a BBQ food truck called Smokin Hot Meats n Treats.
The boutique shop at 363 Main Street in Murphys offers a curated selection of art and craft supplies, with a heavy focus on fiber arts such as knitting, crocheting, embroidery, and sewing. Other offerings include small selections of supplies and tools for jewelry-making, papercrafts, tie-dye, painting, resin, woodcrafts, leather, clay, floral, Cricut, and more. The shop also functions as “an artisan collective,” with the entire lower floor dedicated to vendor space for as many as 38 local makers, artists, and creatives.
The store’s location in the heart of downtown Murphys was formerly Twisted Oak Winery’s tasting room and previously housed The Enchanted Workshop retail gift shop. The building was originally built as a home in 1909, supposedly for one of the daughters of a prominent Murphys family, who owned the Murphys Mercantile shop (now the Union Public Water District) next door.
A sign hanging out front of the charming cottage features a colorful hummingbird poised in front of California poppies. The hummingbird was painted by an artist friend, Martha Schwanbeck, and incorporates symbols (a blazing sun on its chest and moon cycles on its wings) that represent the sisters’ personalities.
The dainty bird itself is a reminder and memorial to the McCubbins’ daughter, Evelyn, whom they tragically lost at the age of 13 due to an car accident caused by “someone who shouldn’t have been driving,” according to McCubbins. Evelyn, who had ADHD and was autistic, was nicknamed after the tiny bird known for its high energy, because “she buzzed around so much.”
Inside, a “rainbow wall” of yarn skeins welcomes customers near the front of the store, while on the opposite side hang rows of color-coordinated seed beads. Customers can browse rows of aisles loaded with craft supplies, choose fabrics from the back wall, or go downstairs to browse the local vendors’ offerings. A backyard features a courtyard area with access to the creek, where outdoor events and workshops are held.
So far, Serendipity has held a pottery and macrame workshop in the space, which both sold out. The next class on the books is a Macrame and Crystal Workshop on Sept. 23, and will be “a magical collaboration” between Julie of Wild Cotton Design and Melissa of Mystique Murphys (the tarot and palm reader who rents a separate space in the lower level of Serendipity) which will teach attendees how to incorporate crystals into a macrame design.
Future events include a kids-only Tie Dye Party led by “an 8-year-old instructor and her adult helper” on Oct. 8 and a Makers Pop-Up Event on Oct. 15 during the Murphys Witch Walk.
Serendipity is located at 363 Main Street in Murphys. For more information, visit serendipitymurphys.com or follow them on Instagram @serendipitymurphys. To recommend a new business to be featured in the Enterprise, contact editor@calaverasenterprise.com.