A candlelit yoga studio with Brooklyn roots opened its newest location in Park Slope this week – and the company’s founder says it’s good to be home.
“We’re really excited to be back in Brooklyn,” said Sarah Larson Levey, the founder of Y7 yoga studios. “It’s where we started.”
The Williamsburg-founded yoga studio prides itself on simplicity and fun. The studios themselves are painted black, have no mirrors and are lit by candles. Yogi’s practice to the beat of hip-hop songs – making the sessions a sweat-dripping cardio workout, according to Levey.
Levey says the studio’s unique design was born out of her distaste for conventional yoga studios in the city, which she says breed self-consciousness due to their harsh lighting and large mirrored walls. By dimming the lights and nixing the reflectivity, Levey hopes to create a welcoming space where Yogi’s of any skill level can get their zen on.
“You’re not comparing yourself to others, all you’re really concerned about is your own body,” she said.
The studio, located at 478 Bergen St., will feature scores of workshops and classes for every skill level, including “Slow Burn” classes and classes that focus on a single rap artist every Saturday and Sundays.
After opening their first studio in Williamsburg in 2013, Y7 expanded, opening several locations in Manhattan and Los Angeles, before bringing it back home this week for their second Kings County location.
The studios offer fanciful products and amenities, such as products from high-end skincare brand Malin and Goetz, spacious changing rooms and lockers, and infrared heating systems that can heat rooms up to 90 degrees for hot yoga.
All of which goes towards creating an accessible yoga experience unlike any other in the borough, Levey says.
“Our initiative is to break down barriers, put people on to yoga, and make yoga accessible to everyone,” she said.
