“The main thing about Stone Wave Collective is friendliness at every level. We’re beginner-friendly, returning-friendly, body-friendly.” – Liz Glover Wilson
When East Village event planner and longtime yogi Liz Glover Wilson opened Stone Wave Yoga Collective in the shadow of the Shawangunk Ridge back in 2017, she had a vision: a come-as-you-are space where anyone interested in what yoga has to offer could dip a toe in and see what happened—and where those wishing to deepen their practice would find the training they needed. She wanted to create a place that transcended the stereotype of yoga as suited only to the lithe and fit, or to any one type of person, age group, or other demographic. Seven years later, that vision is a reality, solid as a rock and flowing like a wave; the studio has grown into the power its name implies.
“Stone Wave is so much more than a yoga studio. It is a place of comfort, community and sharing,” writes a Google reviewer in one of over 90 five-star reviews. “The people who teach, as well as the people who attend are what make this place so wonderful. The minute you walk in, you feel welcomed and free of judgment. In my experience, yoga can be intimidating to newcomers, especially in certain studios. I've never felt this here. It's somewhere where you can learn and grow your practice without feeling hindered by others. I cannot recommend this studio enough. Between the welcoming space and the gorgeous views, there is so much to love here.”
When Liz Glover Wilson opened Stone Wave Yoga Collective, she wanted to create a place that transcended the stereotype of yoga as suited only to the lithe and fit, or to any one type of person, age group, or other demographic.
People are finding what they seek, whether it’s regular exercise, easing sore muscles, trauma-informed teacher training, or “Mindful Movement and Music” after-school sessions for the kids. People come here to meditate and to marry, to heal and to help. Sunflower Art Studios, the associated nonprofit, has nurtured the creativity and flexibility of over 600 children; none are ever turned away for financial reasons. Stone Wave teachers provide yoga instruction at two local resorts, the neighboring Wildflower by Auberge and Audrey’s Farmhouse in Walden. People book the on-premises getaway space, the Harmony Inn, on a regular basis and design their own retreats, which can include anything from rock-climbing to skydiving to a distillery tour without ever leaving the Gardiner town limits.
So, besides the glorious setting, what is the secret sauce that’s helped Stone Wave flourish? “My instinct is just to say that it all works because of authentic love,” Wilson says. “I think staying true to that vision, despite all the ups and downs and outer threats—just staying focused on the love-based vision of creating a community that is truly about come-as-you-are and fostering that environment has made it all work. The deeper I go into my own studies, the more I find the same truth: that is what true love is. It's not conditional. It's about staying steady and staying authentic, no matter what is said or done from the outside. Coming from a place of non-judgment, maintaining that open-armed environment and really honoring people, whether students or instructors.”
“My instinct is just to say that it all works because of authentic love—just staying focused on the love-based vision of creating a community that is truly about come-as-you-are.” – Liz Glover Wilson
Beyond fostering that environment in its own studios in Gardiner and Poughkeepsie, Stone Wave radiates it into the wider world. “We've graduated 240 teachers from here since 2019,” says Wilson. “We are so happy to see our teachers everywhere, in studios all over the Hudson Valley and down in the city, in Wisconsin and Connecticut and Florida. And that's the goal—to make sure that yoga is being offered to all different types of communities in all different locations so that we really can have a further reach and give people the access to this beautiful modality. So yeah, go and take this wherever the river leads you.”
Maintaining a high-touch business through the pandemic shutdown was a challenge, but the love-centered business model turned out to offer solutions. “We immediately launched a sustainable membership program and a lot of members signed on, which really helped us through that first eight months,” she says. “We converted the second half of our building into the Harmony Inn, and it's been doing extremely well coming into its second year—very affordable, with panoramic views of the ridge, and it includes unlimited yoga, pantry items, and the most comfortable bed in the Hudson Valley. It’s an oasis, this little Zen apartment for people to come and get a night away.” The studio itself can be rented for “compatible uses that don’t compete— book clubs, milestone parties, kids’ parties,” says Wilson.
“All in all, it kept us going. And we’re still offering most of our classes accessible by Zoom, so we now have people dialing in from all over the place for our daily classes. We had to figure it out as we went along; at first, we were all a bit unsure, trying to understand how to teach people who weren’t physically in front of us. But we’re really good at it now.” When the going gets tough, the flowing gets going.
“When we closed for the pandemic, I couldn’t use my props because of the germs, and I took that time to create a yoga bolster that’s antimicrobial and can be sprayed down; I mean, you can bleach it if you want, and the vegan vinyl holds up. It’s actually a pretty great thing for studios and places where equipment gets shared.” The bolsters can be purchased on Stone Wave’s website.
Stone Wave Poughkeepsie, despite having opened just eight months before the shutdown, also survived and is currently thriving. “We have a dedicated hot yoga studio upstairs, and then we have a boutique storefront studio downstairs offering everything from prenatal to senior yoga to karate to Zen vinyasa.”
Growing since the pandemic: senior classes, trauma-sensitive instruction, and core strengthening. “Your core is everything: your digestion, your sensuality, your willpower,” Wilson says. “So we have mat Pilates and HIIT (high intensity interval training) workouts that focus on that.
“The main thing about Stone Wave Collective is friendliness at every level. We’re beginner-friendly, returning-friendly, body-friendly. Even if you’re here for hot yoga that’s generally very scripted, we stay open to you modifying and finding what works for your body.
All of us strive to make sure that we’re not aesthetic teachers—we’re not looking for people to look a certain way. We’re looking for them to find true freedom in their body, and we just create the space for that.
That’s everything to me.” To give Stone Wave a try, you can sign up for a New Student Special—five classes within two weeks for just $35, chosen from an encyclopedic menu of options. And on Saturday, June 8, Stone Wave will be celebrating the first seven years of growth by inviting anyone interested to come by for food, yoga, music, dancing, and fun.
“Seven is a key number in numerology,” observes Wilson, “having a lot to do with completion, perfection and stability, which embodies where we are right now. And I am just so incredibly grateful—this is all such a huge gift.”
stone wave yoga-the collective
845-419-5219
2694 US 44 55, Gardiner
2 LaGrange Avenue, Poughkeepsie
stonewaveyoga.com
