Atlantic Shore opened on Fore Street in 1984. Steve and Sian Lugg, both brought up in Cornwall, stand behind the counter forty-two years on, with a small team who know the regular customers by name and the regulars who order by post by postcode. British wool, knitted in England, in the regional patterns that once marked a fisherman's village.
The shop is small, the floorspace runs four counters deep. Maritime knitwear at the front, sheepskin and slippers in the middle, Aran and home in the back, jewellery and gifts at the window. Forty-two years of British wool, in one room on the cobbles.
The shop's defining line. Traditional Cornish guernseys and fisherman's jumpers, knitted in England from 100% British wool, in the regional patterns that once marked a fisherman's village. Sized to a working cut, not a tailored one.
Aran jumpers and cardigans from the Aran Woollen Mills, hand-finished in County Galway. The cable-and-honeycomb stitches that ran across the Irish Sea to the Cornish working coast. In adult and children's sizes, in the natural undyed cream and the heathered greys.
British-wool throws, blankets, cushions and rugs, plus sheepskin slippers and Cornish-merino booties. The sustainability story we have carried since 1984: wool comes from the earth and can return to it, fully biodegradable, fleece to floor.
Pewter pendants, earrings and brooches made by St Justin in Penryn, Cornwall. Alongside, the smaller things St Ives visitors carry home: socks, hats, scarves, the children's range, and the Cornish-inspired gifts that line the front window.
The Cornish guernsey is the seam-and-shoulder jumper knitted in every Cornish fishing village from the eighteenth century onwards. Worsted-spun British wool, five-ply, oiled to shed salt water, knitted in the round so there is no side seam to chafe a rowing arm. The shoulder gusset and the underarm gusset are the working details: they let a fisherman cast a net or pull a line without the cloth pulling at the armpit. The neck-gusset square is the regional signature.
The traditional stitches are not decorative. The cable, the moss, the chevron, the harbour ladder, the rope-twist, the flag-and-anchor: each was a village mark. Forty-two years of stocking them means we know which mills run which weight, which cut a tall builder needs in the same nominal size as a slim sixteen-year-old, and which pattern wears well a decade later and which gives up at the elbow.
"If a fisherman was lost at sea, the distinctive pattern on his jumper helped return him to the village he came from." From our maritime knitwear heritage notes
Anatomy of a Cornish guernsey · the working details
Hi, our names are Steve and Sian. We opened Atlantic Shore in 1984 with the simplest brief: British wool, knitted in England, sized for working bodies. Forty-two years later we are still behind the counter at number 34, with a small team who have been with us for years and customers who order by post by postcode. We are proud to be one of the few St Ives shops still in original ownership.
Being passionate about British and Irish wool comes easily to us. We feel it is vital, now more than at any other time in the history of the Earth, that we offer sustainable items where we can. Wool comes from the earth and can return to it, fully biodegradable, fleece to floor. That is the long answer to "why we still stock what we stocked in 1984".
"Where the beautiful land of Cornwall meets the wild Atlantic Sea there lies my inspiration, and where I long to be." Sian Lugg, on the line that names the shop
The shop sits halfway along Fore Street, on the cobbles that run parallel to the harbour, next to Academy Steps. Joules is on one side and Stuart's leather goods on the other, the Ardor restaurant almost opposite. Three minutes' walk from Tate St Ives along the harbour front.
Yes. The maritime line is knitted in England in 100% British wool. The Aran line is knitted by Aran Woollen Mills in County Galway, Ireland, in undyed British and Irish wool. Both arrive at 34 Fore Street with the mill labels still on.
We are at number 34, halfway along the cobbles parallel to the harbour, next to Academy Steps. Joules is on one side, Stuart's leather goods on the other, the Ardor restaurant almost opposite. Three minutes' walk from Tate St Ives along the harbour front.
Yes. Standard postage is Royal Mail Tracked 48, two to four working days. Free UK delivery on orders over £90. International shipping by request via the contact form below. The small team at the counter packs the orders themselves.
Adult sizes small through extra-large in the maritime line, plus a full children's range. Cuts vary mill to mill. Phone or email before you order if you are between sizes or unsure how a particular guernsey is cut, and we will tell you what we know from forty years of stocking them.
Hand-wash in cool water with a wool-safe soap, do not wring, lay flat on a towel to dry. Wool resists dirt naturally, so most guernseys want washing once or twice a season. The full wool-care guide on the site walks through every step in detail.