This heart-centered 2-hour retreat offers a gentle pause to care for yourself with the same compassion you extend to others. Using practices from the Mindful Self-Compassion program, you’ll explore what it means to meet yourself with warmth, especially in difficult moments. Whether you're new to self-compassion or returning to your practice, this session offers practical tools to bring more understanding to yourself in any moment. Activities include: Discussion of the three core components of self-compassion, Guided meditations and self-compassion practices, Journaling with gentle reflection prompts, and Group sharing or quiet integration time. Please bring: A yoga mat, a journal, and anything that helps you feel comfortable and supported.

Capture your own bouquet with watercolor and ink! This all-levels class will explore techniques for illustrative ink drawing with ‘dip pens’, and layering and mixing vibrant and organic hues with watercolor. Students will leave with their own unique composition of a bouquet - which could make a wonderful handmade holiday gift. Students can either buy themselves the required materials - the materials list is linked here - or they can buy material kits from the Mix, an art store in Brunswick (here is a link to a student-grade kit, and here is a link to an artist-grade kit).  *THIS IS A ONE DAY WORKSHOP.

Learn more about instructor Claire Loon Baldwin and see her illustrations for books and magazines on her website: CLICK HERE

So-called “Oriental” or round-leafed bittersweet is a creeping vine with inedible berries that is considered invasive in North America. Frustrating to gardners and arborists, and not readily favored by birds, bittersweet is a largely useless bane on wild land. We can use traditional harvesting techniques to tend Asian bittersweet in the wild: harvesting material for baskets while controlling and suppressing future damaging growth. We will cover identification, responsible collection, materials processing and storage, and creation, including the basics of stake-and-strand twining and weaving. We will shoot for a basket about 8-inches wide and 4-inches deep. Price includes all required tools and materials.

Ed Higgins’ popular charcoal class is back and better than ever, with new prizes awarded at the end of each class for the dirtiest hands! Charcoal is a fluid, forgiving, and beautiful medium, and should be part of every artist’s repertoire. We’ll warm up with speed sketching and then work on individual projects where the subject matter is up to you. The minimum materials list for this class is vine charcoal, compressed charcoal, charcoal pencils, and a large pad of newsprint. Contact the instructor if you have any questions (ed_higgins@icloud.com). *No Class: 12/22, 12/29, 1/19, 2/16.

Ed Higgins’ first sculpture class was so much fun, he’s running it again. This time we’ll boldly explore assemblage. Dimensional artwork built from found objects. You will plan and execute your own projects, collecting what you need along the way. Each class will end with a spotlight on an assemblage sculptor from the history of art. Attendance in one of Ed Higgins’ studio classes is recommended but not required. Open to artists of any experience level. There is no set materials list for this class. Contact the instructor if you have any questions (ed_higgins@icloud.com). Class runs in an open-studio style format. *No Class: 12/22, 12/29, 1/19, 2/16.

Who needs another lottery ticket or turtleneck? In this one night class Debra will guide you through the steps to make Peanut Butter Buckeyes, Haystack Cookies, Spiced pecans and Quick Toffee Brittle. All recipes will be made in duplicate so participants can take home little gifts that are packaged with flair. Come with containers for taking home your creations. All materials included.

A good follow up to Ed’s animal anatomy class last spring. We’ll take a close look at birds and come up with processes that help us observe, capture and express their unique anatomy and essence. As with many of Ed Higgins’ sketching classes, we’ll begin with speed sketching warm ups, and then concentrate on independent study projects. Minimum materials required for the class are a sketchbook, pencil, and white vinyl eraser. Contact the instructor if you have any questions (ed_higgins@icloud.com). *No Class: 12/23, 12/30, 1/20, 2/17.

Using precut glass squares, design, glue and grout two square glass candle holders and a vase. These make great gifts for the holidays for your loved ones or for yourself! First class is for designing and adhering glass to our substrates. Second class we will grout and finish. All materials included. A material fee of $35 must be paid to the instructor on the first night of class.