History of Mystic Knotwork in Mystic, CT
The Beaudoin family has made nautical knotwork for generations. Alton Beaudoin established the family business in 1957, and today Jill and I work with our artisans in Mystic, Connecticut. Our workshop is at 25 Cottrell Street, and in June 2026 we opened our first independent shop in Olde Mistick Village after moving our Holmes Street retail location.
Explore Mystic Knotwork Through the Decades, or jump to our 2014–2026 history.
Our Family History, August 2014
The Beaudoin family, also known as Mystic Knotwork has been the source for nautical knots throughout New England for over 50 years.
The artistry continues to evolve through Matt, Jill and Christa. We are humbled to be recognized with a mention during the American Made Summit in 2014 with an honorable mention for heritage arts. Martha Stewart, who hosted and curated the event, chose us as one of 4 heritage artisans from over 6,000 other worthy choices. The combination of traditional technique along with a respectful combination of colors speaks to the modern nautical design sense.
We are part of the local community here in Mystic. We enjoy working with both local chambers of commerce and assisting in cultural events. While in Mystic, you can enjoy some of the best food and exhibitions in the region. We are glad to be surrounded by great music and there is something going on almost every day of the week all summer long.
Our mission is to keep the nautical knotwork tradition alive. Every serious home decorator knew that knots were part of the nautical look. Even the humble sailor bracelet can be a means to touch the past that stretches back centuries. For our family it all started in 1939 when my grandfather worked on the McCormick line acting as a bosun’s mate on cargo ships running between Argentina and New York City. In New York City, he would stay at the Seaman’s Institute. After showing interest in knots, the retired captains and officers that were staying there showed him a few knots to work on while out to sea. Invariably upon his return, they would show him all the mistakes in his workmanship and through this schooling he learned the art. His skills were honed by weeks at sea and the stern eye of his skilled teachers. As the years went on, he developed talents nearly equal to theirs. Toward the end of Alton’s time in the merchant marine, he was teaching Able Bodied Seamanship in the New York Harbor.
When World War II broke out, Alton went from a Bosun’s mate in the merchant marines to a private in the US Army; solely because he wore glasses. He never talked much about his time in the Pacific Theater, but we all knew he had a rough time, not only because of the 3 purple hearts he earned.
After serving in World War II, he returned home with sad memories of war and loss of many friends. He didn’t talk much about it, but he used his talent with cord as his escape from these memories.
By 1957, Alton had established himself as an expert in knotwork with pieces donated to the Smithsonian, he turned his artistic passion to a business selling the traditional sailor knot bracelet as well as fancier belts, sample boards, guitar straps, and bell ropes. In fact, one of his bell ropes was used for more than a decade aboard the USCG Barque Eagle.
Here is an article about him from October 8, 1976 in The New London Day.
All of this history was passed to his sons and grandchildren. I remember clearly the weekend trips with my grandparents learning macramé, splicing, sennit work, and other fancy knotwork. My cousins and I used to race to see who could make twenty sailor knot bracelets the fastest. I didn’t always win, but through the competition, we learned how to tie one knot excessively well. My childhood is definitely one that I treasure, I wish everyone could have experienced such a tight knit loving family.
Our whole family carries on the traditions started by my grandfather. My uncle ties macramé and sailor knots, but is better known for his castings of authentic knotwork. Because he casts in gold and silver, his artwork lasts more than a lifetime. My brother has applied what he learned directly to metal and has earned a reputation for his artistry. My sister translated her love for the sea and history into her career designing the Defender Co. online catalog. My father helped me to improve my splicing and pay attention to detail.
While we used to focus on our generational and deep roots in classic authentic nautical arts, the media has recognized our vision as new and hip. We are just ordinary sailors living in a coastal town, keeping our heritage alive and improving on it.
As styles and tastes change, Mystic Knotwork continues to adapt. In the 1950's, we were the stop in New England for sailors looking for custom work, by the late 60's we were sought by the earth loving movements, and in the 80's the preppy movement took our sailor bracelet as the iconic accessory from that decade through to today. Now, we are both enjoying the surge of nostalgia as people reconnect with their roots, and also people new to the nautical arts that enjoy our taste for design and innovation within this classic art form.
With Jill joining the team only 20 years ago, a fresh perspective on style was born. Her sense of color and texture combining with the insistence on authentic material has created what you see here.
The iconic woven mat and sailor bracelets are only the beginning of what the Beaudoin family has been bringing to the shoreline community for decades. While their authentic roots in nautical knot tying can be drawn all the way back to the 1800's through Samuel, it was Alton that brought the art back into the modern design trend (modern in the 1950's).
Enjoy browsing for your favorite bracelet, seaside decorative knot, or even plan the beach wedding escape. We look forward to sharing our American Made nautical traditions with you.
Sincerely,
Matthew Beaudoin
August 2014
I wrote more about Alton, Ethel, and how our family business developed in Mystic Knotwork Started With a Broken Promise.
Mystic Knotwork Through the Decades
Dwight Eisenhower was president, Elvis Presley bought Graceland, and Mystic Knotwork made the news. The year was 1957, and my grandfather's decorative knot shop was already open to the public in Mystic, Connecticut.
Artisans traveled from around the world to learn knot tying from my grandfather. He and my grandmother helped establish a style of nautical decoration that you can still find in coastal villages around the country.
The knots are much older than Mystic Knotwork. What we've watched change over the years is the fashion surrounding them. Sometimes people wanted traditional white cotton, sometimes something a little more colorful.
Our sailor bracelets started in the coastal and nautical world, but the hippie movement of the 60's adopted them too. Then came the macramé craze of the 70's. For a while, knots were showing up everywhere, not just around boats.
We have to admit to playing with neon colors in the 1980s. Some fashions are better remembered than revived, but the sailor bracelets kept finding new audiences.
Not every change came from fashion. In 2006, a sale of 25 dog toys became our entry into the nautical wedding market. That story deserves more than a sentence, but it shows how an old knot can end up doing something nobody originally intended.
More recently, we've been especially grateful for the renewed interest in American-made products and quality handmade work. There's also a bit of nostalgia involved. People remember wearing sailor bracelets when they were younger, and now they're bringing their own children into the shop.
Today we're still tying knots in Mystic. You can visit our Downtown Mystic workshop or our shop in Olde Mistick Village and watch the work being done.
The Next Chapter, 2014 to 2026
Added November 2026
When I wrote the first part of this history, Jill and I had already spent years bringing the family knotwork business onto the internet. We had worked from home and at the Velvet Mill in Stonington. It was a good way to make and ship knots, but it wasn’t quite the same as having a shop where someone could walk in and ask what we were working on.
25 Cottrell Street
In 2015, we opened our workshop at 25 Cottrell Street in downtown Mystic. We could work on orders and meet visitors in the same place. A customer might come in for a bracelet and stay to watch a bowl or a large manila knot being made. That’s still one of the things I like about the workshop. You don’t have to take our word for how things are made. The people tying the knots are right there.
The location also gave us a chance to show the larger work that doesn’t always fit neatly into a photograph online. A sailor bracelet and a manila wreath may look like entirely different things, but both come out of the same tradition.
Holmes Street
We opened our Holmes Street shop in 2017, in the little lighthouse building downtown. That gave us another place to display finished work while the Cottrell Street shop kept producing and shipping orders. It was also the year we added more than 100 wholesale accounts. I wrote about the rather hectic combination in 2017, The Wild Ride. We were learning how to run two retail locations while trying to keep the wholesale customers supplied. Apparently we thought one challenge at a time would be too easy.
Over the years, Jill kept finding combinations of colors and textures she wanted us to try. The bracelets were still there, of course, but we were making more bowls, trivets, ornaments, wedding pieces, and other knots for the home. A lot of those ideas start with something we already know how to tie and a conversation about what else it might become.
Some Recognition Along the Way
In 2014, Martha Stewart recognized our work at the American Made Summit. We were also recognized by SCORE in 2015, and in 2018 received Connecticut’s Governor’s Rising Star for Tourism award. In 2020, the U.S. Small Business Administration named me Connecticut Small Business Person of the Year. That last award came in the middle of a year when just about everything was being rearranged by the pandemic. The celebration was virtual.
It is nice to see knotwork recognized alongside other Connecticut businesses. My grandfather was making sailor bracelets long before anyone thought of them as a tourism product. He was interested in the work, and in doing it properly. We are still working from that starting point.
Olde Mistick Village
In June 2026, we moved our Holmes Street retail shop to Olde Mistick Village. It was our first independent shop there. We had sold knotwork to the tourism information booth, and we once had a kiosk inside Cape Cod Crafters before that business closed its Mystic location, but we had never operated our own shop in the Village.
There is a personal side to that decision. I have a genuine affection for Joyce Olson Resnikoff and her family, and her son Chris Regan is a personal friend. These are people I care about, not just names on a lease. Having our shop in the Village means something to me for that reason.
We kept the Cottrell Street workshop downtown. It is still where we make and ship much of our work, including the larger knots and orders that need more room. At Olde Mistick Village, visitors can find our bracelets, cotton bowls, trivets, ornaments, and other pieces, and see the work being done there as well.
Still Tying Knots
We now have two places in Mystic where you can visit us, and a team of people who have learned the knots that my grandfather taught our family. Some days we are making traditional sailor bracelets. Other days there are wedding orders, bowls, wreaths, or something new on the bench. I still enjoy seeing what happens when someone who knows the knots gets an idea for another way to use them.
I started this history with the weekend races to tie twenty bracelets. It seems a long way from those afternoons to running two shops, but the work on the table would be familiar to my grandfather.
Sincerely,
Matthew Beaudoin
November 2026
Visit Mystic Knotwork Today
You can watch us work at our downtown workshop at 25 Cottrell Street, or visit our boutique at Olde Mistick Village, 27 Coogan Boulevard, Unit 1-D, Mystic, Connecticut. Our current hours and visitor information are available on our shop pages.