meet the lovely shanti ~ our farm fresh floral arranging teacher

It's an endless joy to know how to take the beauty of your surrounding environment and bring it into your home. Flowers are incredibly versatile ~ creating a cheerful home, decor for a dinner party or even just a beautiful everyday focal point. There is an art to floral design and we are thrilled to be offering a Farm Fresh Flower Arranging workshop on July 7, taught by local love and very talented Shanti Shultz. A floral designer and ceramic artist for over 10 years, Shanti's passion is creating beautiful flower arrangements that brighten life's treasured moments. From her experience working on an organic farm, Shanti is well versed in the growing season of our local blooms and is passionate about bringing this natural environment into our homes and celebrations. Students will take a peaceful walk through the farm, harvesting flowers with different colors, smells and textures and learn how to put it together. Flowers are works of art all on their own, but when arranged in a beautiful manner create a masterpiece. 

Get to know this wonderful flower designer below!

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A summer hike you love.

The Royal Arches and Longs Peak.

A favorite summer vegetable. 

Cucumber

Favorite food hangout in town. 

The farmer's market in the summertime.

__________ screams summer.

Watermleon!

A risk you’re glad you took.

There are so many!

A favorite gift you’ve received.

Love.

What you love most about what you do. 

The colors and textures and discovering nature's artist.

The most challenging or difficult part about what you do. 

Water is heavy at 8 lbs a gallon! 

The lesson I keep learning.

Enjoy every moment.

My go-to outfit. 

A cozy hooded sweatshirt.

Daily practice.

Walking my dog.

Any tricks for finding life balance? 

Laughing at myself. 

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Thanks so much Shanti! 

the sweet shannon of hot mama designs

When you meet Shannon, you are immediately drawn in by her awesome energy and contagious laugh. She and her business partner Sahra are the creators of Hot Mama and Sugar Soul Studio, adorning women and their families with inspiring jewelry pieces that are created to tell a special story and celebrate life.  Each of their uniquely designed pieces are clearly works of art and you can feel the joy these women have in making them by hand ~ every single one. We are truly thrilled to have Shannon teaching a Daisy Chain jewelry making workshop in July and can't wait for her students to create their own special works of art. Not only will they love the energy Shannon brings into her classes, but will adore their one-of-a-kind inspired jewelry they will bring home. In case you're wondering where to find this talented two-some, they'll be exhibiting at multiple fabulous events this summer. We just know you'll love them and their jewelry line as much as we do! Without further ado, get to know the inspiring, sweet Shannon below. 

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Raw metal is at the top of my inspiration library

A summer hike I love is anywhere in Boulder where I can see wildflowers. Little blue flowers are my very favorite. 

A favorite summer vegetable
I love tomatoes with lots of fancy salt from the spice shop. Or maybe ratatouille with lots of basil on top. Both are favorites so it's a tie. 

Little boys of mine in bathing suits with freckles screams summer.

Risk I am glad I took.
Starting my business with a new baby. After giving birth I thought I could do just about anything. I still feel the same way. 

Favorite gift.
My business partner Sahra made an inspiration board for me at the studio as a surprise without my asking. She knew I had saved postcards and pictures of art that I loved for YEARS. She found a board I had covered in linen, put all the inspirational images on it & hung it in my studio space. It makes me feel happy, inspired and loved every day. 

What I love most about what I do.
The connection with people, when someone "gets" my art. When someone tells me that my jewelry is their favorite thing and they wear it everyday. When I am walking down the street and see someone wearing my jewelry that I don't know. When I hear that my work makes someone happy. I feel privileged and honored to be able to adorn people with pieces that celebrate life's important moments. 

The most challenging or difficult part about what I do. 
Too many ideas to express in the allotted time that I have to express them. 

The lesson I keep learning.
That life, happiness, joy, sadness and grief are all intertwined and often surprisingly happen simultaneously. 

My go-to outfit.
Black short sundress, chunky sandals, big sterling cuff bracelets. 

Daily practice.
Cooking. It makes me really happy and relaxes me. I get lots of creative ideas and solve many problems when I am deep into making a recipe.

Tricks for life balance. 
Ha I am the last person to ask on this subject. I like to move my body (I love dancing) eat yummy food, be with my kids, spend time with my friends and family, and making things with my hands.  If I am doing all of these things on a semi-regular basis then I am a pretty happy woman. 

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Thanks so much Shannon! 

the very first creative day retreat!

*image by Teryn Wilkes

We had an extraordinary day at the first of three Makerie Summer Series events presented by Whole Foods Market Boulder! We held wonderful creative and homesteading workshops, ate meals filled with local, organic farm fresh ingredients on picnic blankets for lunch and shared one big, beautiful community table for a truly fabulous farm dinner. The classes were held by the river, under shaded trees and even on a beautiful bridge. The pace was relaxed and peaceful and my favorite quote of the day was from a sweet participant who shared that her day 'was just like a day at the spa, except she got to take something home with her.' I thought that summed up the retreat so beautifully! We even had a group of three generations and helped them create a memory for a lifetime. Creativity has no boundaries and this was a treasured example of that. I feel very grateful for the chance to work with so many inspiring people and wanted to give an enormous, heartfelt thanks to the following for making this day so special for everyone involved.

*Emily of Tea with Lola for her dedication and incredible work with the Makerie. She's such a gem to us!

*each and every special participant that gave themselves a day to play and joined us for the very first creative day retreat on the farm

*Betsy and Mike ~ owners of The Lyons Farmette ~ for opening up their home and farm to us and for being the perfect venue.

*Whole Foods for being an unbelievable supporter of this series of events and for their generosity, help and thoughtfulness throughout the planning process.

*Eat Private Chef and Catering Co. and team, Crust. Rustic Wood Fired Pizza and Whole Foods for the incredible meals

*our fantastic teacher team that taught the best workshops ~ Corey from Fabricate, Amber and Jaime of Fancy Tiger Crafts, Allison of BirdDog Press, Tonja of Moondance Botanicals and Ben of MM Local Foods.

*Spoonflower for printing our adorable MM Local recipe tea towels gifts and Studio Meez for designing them

*Ben of MM Local foods for being our lunchtime inspirational speaker and sharing his wonderful story of how his fantastic business came to be. He showed us how his creativity and tenacity helped cultivate a thoughtful and successful company, the kind that everyone would feel good supporting.

*Teryn Wilkes, Casie Zalud & Ryan for capturing the day with their cameras

*Couture Colorado for the wonderful opportunity to share our story

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We can't wait to do this again in July & August so grab some friends and come spend a wonderful creative day away on the farm!

~xo

meet the amazing tonja from moondance botanicals!

Tonja is the remarkable owner of MoonDance Botanicals, a fabulous boutique in Denver that makes all natural gourmet bath and body products handcrafted from organic and pure ingredients. We were thrilled when she wanted to bring her expertise and wonderful Luscious Local Skincare workshop to the Makerie Summer Series. Students will create a nourishing facial exfoliant, a fresh mask for the face and body and a silky hydrating facial cream, along with be given plenty more recipes for other skin care delights. Living in the dry Colorado climate, we could all use some great tips on how to care for our skin!

Get to know the beautiful Tonja below! We especially love her answer to finding life balance. 

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John O’Donohue’s  To Bless The Space Between Us  is at the top of my inspiration library. 

A summer hike you love.

Any hike with a hot springs as its final destination

A favorite summer vegetable.

Lamb’s quarter

Favorite food hangout in town.

City O’ City in Denver

Dandelions!_and herbal-infused vino verde! screams summer.

A risk you’re glad you took.

Leaving power suits and an expense account for the riches of nature!

A favorite gift you’ve received. 

An emerald necklace that shimmers like the greens of Ireland.

What you love most about what you do.

Connecting women to the wild wisdom within themselves.

The most challenging or difficult part about what you do.

Juggling the many aspects of owning a business while raising a daughter and finding time for stillness. 

The lesson I keep learning.

We choose.

My go-to outfit.

Cowgirl boots with knee socks, a gorgeous thrift store skirt and my well worn and loved jean jacket!

Daily practice.

Three sun salutations ending with Warrior Pose. Writing. Lighting a candle at my altar asking for grace as I move through my day.

Any tricks for finding life balance? 

Self care! The more you nurture yourself the more you will have to nurture others.

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Thank you so much Tonja!

meet the fantastic fancy tigresses ~ amber & jaime

It goes without saying how lucky we are to have such an incredible crafting boutique right down the road. Fancy Tiger Crafts in Denver is a crafter's mecca, full of any and every notion, bit and bobble you could ever want or need when making something by hand. Whether it's yarn or books or fabric, cute buttons or pretty ribbon, they've got it all. After hosting our Makerie Pop-up shops at Chautauqua the last three years, we were thrilled when owners, Amber and Jaime, wanted to teach their own Farm Fresh Handspun Yarn workshop at our first Summer Series event on June 2. We had so much fun getting to know these two dynamos through our little interview. See for yourself below!

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A summer hike you love.

Amber: My favorite hike is West Fork in the Uncompagre Wilderness. I love going mushroom hunting in the beautiful high mountain meadows there with my mom!

Jaime: I really like St. Vrain near Ward, CO.

A favorite summer vegetable. 

Jaime: Oh my god, that is so stressful! Summer vegetable...I guess I have to go farm fresh tomato. Or corn...they are all really good!

Amber: This is a hard question! My favorite is probably garden tomatoes. There is nothing quite like a homegrown tomato!

Favorite food hangout in town. 

Jaime: Potager in Denver or my backyard.

Amber: I love Fruition in Denver. I also love food with friends at my home or theirs! 

__________ screams summer.

Jaime: Rosé

Amber: Water slides

A risk you’re glad you took.

Jaime: Opening Fancy Tiger Crafts.

Amber: Moving our store to a bigger location.

A favorite gift you’ve received.

Amber: A spinning wheel from my family on my 30^th birthday!

Jaime: A handknit Sebastian (my persian cat) that Amber made me.

What you love most about what you do. 

Amber: Being constantly inspired by our customers, instructors and employees, who are so amazingly crafty, plus getting to think about crafting all day!

Jaime: Being a part of the crafting community.

The most challenging or difficult part about what you do. 

Jaime & Amber: Finding the time to make all the things we want to make!

The lesson I keep learning.

Jaime & Amber: There is never downtime...

My go-to outfit. 

Amber: Something handmade! Usually in the summer that is my favorite oxfords and a handmade dress.

Jaime: A Wiksten tank, jeans and sandals.

Daily practice.

Amber: Quiet mornings making myself a latte.

Jaime: Running

Any tricks for finding life balance? 

Jaime: Finding time to travel.

Amber: Every once in a while, find time to try something that you find interesting that you wouldn't normally do!

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Thanks so much ladies! 

the beautiful birddog press owner ~ allison bozeman

Allison Bozeman of BirdDog Press is clearly a lover of letterpress and an incredibly talented designer, not only in her own personal work but as a graphic designer Whole Foods, hence the fabulous signage you see throughout. We're thrilled to be offering three unique workshops on this ancient art of printing this summer ~ Farmstead Stationery, Letterpress Invitational and Cheers to Letterpress, as there is something quite special about the handmade nature of each printed piece. We can't wait for our letterpress students to not only create their own personal designs, but to experience what it feels like to press the ink into each piece of paper. 

Get to know our lovely letterpress teacher below! 

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UPPERCASE Magazine is at the top of my inspiration library.

A summer hike you love. 

Alongside a creek or lake anywhere!

A favorite summer vegetable.

nothing beats a good homegrown heirloom tomato

Favorite food hangout in town.

the FORK on the back porch!

A cannonball into the lake, popsicle screams summer.

A risk you’re glad you took.

Having a 1200lb letterpress dropped off in my garage one spring.

A favorite gift you’ve received.

If it is handmade with love, it is my favorite.

What you love most about what you do.

The moment the form presses into the paper.

The most challenging or difficult part about what you do.

Too many ideas, too little time

The lesson I keep learning.

Sometimes you just have to say no.

My go-to outfit.

Hat and wild socks

Daily practice

Reading with my 6 year old

Any tricks for finding life balance?

breathe a LOT. live in the crevices.

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Thank you Allison! 

the darling fabricate co-owner ~ corey strohmeyer

You can only imagine how excited we were when we heard the news that a sewing boutique was coming to town. And did it ever! Corey and Linda brought Fabrciate to Boulder and we couldn't be more thrilled to have the cutest, coziest, modern sewing shop just a bike ride away. Involving our local community crushes into our Summer Series events has been one of the most special parts about putting this together and we are super excited to have Corey teaching a personalized picnic blanket class on June 2. She's an incredible teacher and will help you start out your summer with a blanket you'll love and use for all your outdoor occasions. A little up closer & personal with the darling Corey below.

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Having coffee with a creative friend is at the top of my inspiration library.

A summer hike you love.

I'm a beach gal, so instead of hiking I park it in a beach chair on the east coast.

A favorite summer vegetable.

Arugula. And Avocados. Preferably at the same time.

Favorite food hangout in town.

Snooze. Get the Bella Bella Benny.

Ice Cream for lunch screams summer.

A risk you're glad you took.

Opening Fabricate! Never thought we'd be that gutsy.

A favorite gift you've received.

I love Russian nesting dolls and my friend Sabrina hand painted an entire set of 7 dolls for me. It's tied with the shrinky-dink necklace I got for Mother's Day 4 years ago.

What you love most about what you do.

Everyday brings new people with great ideas into my life, and even if I've learned nothing new from them, there's always been a good conversation that happened.

The most challenging or difficult part about what you do.

Making myself understand that I can't do everything I want/need to, whether it's creatively, professionally or personally.

The lesson I keep learning.

If you go to bed late, you will wake up tired (typed at 11:27pm)

My go-to outfit.

Jeans and boots, or jeans and flip-flops. Depends on the temperature.

Daily practice.

Taking a few minutes before I fall asleep to give thanks for all the great things in my life.

Any tricks for finding life balance.

I like that you call them "tricks" which shows that you must be a magician to know them : ) Therefore, I have none. Let me know if you've got any!

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Thanks so much Corey!