Create

A visual journey of your personal experiences

A collection of drawings in your sketchbook, a completed painting you are PROUD of, all of these inspiring visual we create together will turn into a memory bank of feelings you can visit again, and again. The skills you learn, develop and grow will become a springboard to build off of when you return to your homes, and the art you capture, a frame in which to remember what you experienced. Sarah will also teach you very practical ways to continue to create MORE in your daily life, to move at your own pace, and to build a mindful practice from the many skills and materials you will accumulate at this retreat.

This retreat will be an invitation to slow down and really soak in the creative process. When we document a journey in a sketchbook or on a beautiful cotton watercolor page, we discover the difference between vacationing and traveling; daily life and LIVING actual moments to the fullest. We become adventurers of our own days! Discovering and translating our daily lives through a thousand tiny details that we may not have noticed if we hadn’t taken the time to pause and really look.

Sketchbook

Enjoy, celebrate and create beauty - together.

Gather with us as a community of like-minded friends who will fill up our hand-bound watercolor sketchbook pages. We will press lovely flowers to remember our days, and soak in the small group goodness of new and shared knowledge, connection and community. We will also add in a few relaxing walks around the area, what I like to call "sketch-crawls" to explore and enjoy some plain air painting and really soak in some of the local architecture and history.

"Most people rush after pleasure so fast that they rush right past it."

SOREN KIERKEGAARD

Come create and learn how art allows us to slow down and savor our days

details

what's included

Three days of art instruction with Sarah

Guided art excursions

All lunches & two dinners

Commune with like-minded creatives

Over $1000 worth of top of the line art supplies, hand-curated specially for you

Recommendations for accommodations and transportation

An unforgettable artistic experience

SEATTLE

Seattle has such stunning inspiration to offer for artists at every level and with every interest: the sea, mountains, rivers - plus the incredible vibrancy of the city itself. For this retreat, we will be nestled into the bright, light and airy creating space of Studio Life in Seattle, Washington. Walkable to all major bus lines and a brand new light rail, this location boasts fantastic access to Seattle’s best restaurants, hotels, shopping and parks. Our location is situated right in the heart of the University District with so many inspiring places to sketchbook - all at our fingertips.

About Sarah Simon

The Mint Gardener

Sarah Simon is the Artist and Author at TheMintGardener. Finding inspiration in the ever-blooming variety of textures and colors in her Seattle-based urban farm, Sarah creates and teaches lush Watercolors inspired by the diverse variety of herbs, flowers, and trees grown in her garden. With a continually blooming following of botanical and art lovers alike, her teaching has received worldwide attention with her online painting courses in the International Watercolor Summit, Workshop Week and her monthly live zoom teaching sessions. Sarah has taught thousands of people how to watercolor and with her teaching talents, has made it such an approachable and enjoyable art form, both for the experienced and novice alike.

Sarah's work has been featured in many publications and blogs worldwide, and has been celebrated in the form of commercial product design, stationery, and textiles as well as wholesale and private commissions. Just a few of her clients include: Nordstrom, Country Living, Facebook, The University of Washington, Expedia, Sakura of America, Blick Artist Materials, Winsor and Newton, Target, Estée Lauder and Sur La Table. Her books Modern Watercolor Botanicals and The Plant Lady Coloring Book were released in November 2019, and are international best sellers. Her third book Watercolor Workbook was just released this April and is already a #1 best seller. Day to day, you can find Sarah painting and sharing creativity on her Instagram, as well as hosting the #FlowerPaintingClub for an online community of painting-lovers.

Sarah is my constant art teacher. The way she teaches is so approachable and real. She breaks down techniques and color recipes so that her students can fully grasp and comprehend. Thank you, Sarah for bringing out my voice to create things that I never thought I could and to express myself through an art form that I can now enjoy, not just in a studio, but anywhere there's a tiny bit of space. I appreciate Sarah and her sharing her gifts so much.

⁃Nori L.

Sarah is a gem and makes watercolor with her a pure joy. My friend and I recently attended one of her classes on painting florals, and it felt so personable and refreshing! We absolutely loved it and definitely will take more classes. Sarah is a natural teacher, easy to follow and understand and very accessible for questions, which makes classes with her fun and successful. I loved learning how to paint her beautiful palette of colors and now I can replicate these beautiful colors and grow from here to really explore my unique style. Our paintings from class turned out so well, all due to her well developed, methodical and expert teaching abilities.Thank you Sarah, keep the classes coming!

⁃Susan K.

I just loved Sarah’s class and her teaching. The materials were just beautiful and the way Sarah presented the information was gentle and easy to follow. I really appreciatedSarah's focus on creativity as a practice, not being afraid to experiment, make mistakes and build this into our daily lives. I'm feeling so inspired. I cannot wait to take another class with Sarah!

-Julia M.

For all of you who love Sarah’s painting style, you will fall in love with her class and teaching style even more. I had not picked up a brush for ages, yet Sarah broke it down for me in such an approachable and fun way that I know painting will now forever stick with me. No more tricky mixing, no more watery paint or unexpected hard lines; Sarah will teach you all the techniques and details. And on top of all of that, Sarah's passion is contagious. She teaches with her heart and soon you'll want to start creating everyday too.

⁃Mariska M.

About

STUDIOLIFE

What if could we create more space for ourselves in our daily lives? StudioLife was started by Kristi and Brooke, with the idea of creating space. Creating space is a choice and takes practice. They believe that the discipline of creating space in our lives enriches us.

meet

BROOKE & KRISTI

We have been friends for a long time and found ourselves circling around the idea of wanting to start a new chapter, a new adventure, and a new way to relate to our greater community. Just a short walk from University of Washington and University Village, our amazing space is always filled with light, and makes a great place to dive into creativity, or reverie with friends, family or coworkers.We have loved the experience of connecting artists and learners from all over the country and world. The creativity of people continues to astound us - from learners arranging classes with friends and family across the miles to artist-instructors strategizing how best to teach and connect with their growing communities. We are both wired to look for and enjoy the creativity in others, so we gain a lot of joy from this beautiful business of ours. We would love to have you here with us at Studio Life!

MEET OUR

SPECIAL GUESTS

The evenings will bring an exciting line-up of special guests: local chefs, famous bakers, cocktail shakers and cookie makers (oh my!) of the Pacific Northwest. These incredibly talented local Creatives are so excited and eager to add their wonderful Seattle flavor to our fancy celebration evenings, as a satisfying cap to our art-filled days.

DANIE BAKER — CHEF

@heydaniebakes

By day, Danie crunches numbers and does taxes, but her real passion lies in the kitchen. She started cooking with her mom and grandmother when she was little. Usually just putting cookies on the baking sheet or licking the beaters clean. She didn't know much about what went into cooking then — the creativity, the knowledge, the trial and error — but what she did know was that the kitchen was a place of community. She and her family would laugh around the table, tell stories, do homework, eat until their stomachs hurt, and just have an overall good time together.
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You may recognize Danie from Bravo's Top Chef Amateurs and her fabulous column for the Seattle Times. You can find Danie's day-to-day doings at @heydaniebakes .

MORGAN GAUNT — COOKIE ARTIST

@morgan_g_co

Morgan Gaunt is the owner of Morgan G Co., a custom sugar cookie company located in the PNW. Morgan is on a continuous journey to be creative and thoughtful in her everyday life. Slowing down and celebrating family, nature, good food, and all the little moments that make us happy people. Professionally, Morgan creates tiny works of art using royal icing and sugar cookies. Morgan works with clients big and small, including Nordstrom, Planned Parenthood and JoAnn Fabrics creating colorful sweet treats for branding and events. Her favorite cookie designs include nature, florals, and cookies shaped like other foods! When she's not frosting tiny details Morgan likes to share glimpses of her family, her husband Jay and daughter Vada, her dogs, as well as social justice issues on her social media @morgan_g_co

QUYNH NGUYEN — PAPER FLORAL ARTIST

@pinkandposey

Quynh is the artist behind Pink & Posey. She specializes in building bouquets and arrangements for brides and commercial works. Her work has been featured in Nordstrom, Fran's Chocolate, Creative Live, Carte Fini’s Feature Artist, Lia Griffith's Artist Interview Series, The Handmade Showroom, Grapheme Letterpress, Pho Bac Seattle, Oscar & Co, Caroline Tran Photography, 100 Layer Cake, KING5 New Day, Seattle Evening Magazine and Refined Seattle.

Just as important as her passion for the art of paper flowers, she loves to share her knowledge with others and help the paper flower community. This led to the creation of The Paper Florists Collective, which now has over 5000 members across the world and a clear mission statement to share knowledge, connect, and elevate the artistry of individual paper florists.

Quynh is also the creator of the Posey Box. After just two years, it stands out as one of the top paper flower online courses available. You can find more about Quynh at @pinkandposey .

DANIELLE KARTES — AUTHOR & CHEF

@rusticjoyfulfood

Meet Danielle Kartes of Joyful Rustic Food! Whether it’s through her books, television appearances, magazines spreads, or speaking engagements, she's on a mission to inspire people to love their lives and make delicious food. Great food isn’t great simply because its expensive or prepared with the finest tools ,its great because of the love and care put into its creation. The most wonderful food we eat is wonderful because of who made it and how they loved us.

Danielle is the author of the Rustic Joyful Food book series, a speaker, a recipe developer, a regular contributor on the Kelly Clarkson Show and a food stylist. She makes real food—simple food that makes you happy. Her food is messy and full of life, food that represents the family. You can learn more about Danielle on her Instagram at @rusticjoyfulfood

ASHLEY RODRIGUEZ — FOOD WRITER & PHOTOGRAPHER

@ashrod

Ashley Rodriguez is a Seattle-based award winning food writer and photographer. She is th eauthor of three cookbooks; Date Night In, Let’s Stay In, and Rooted Kitchen (Spring ‘24). She is the host and co-creator of the James Beard nominated series, Kitchen Unnecessary; an online series which uncovers the world of wild foods through foraging, fishing and regenerative harvesting then uses these ingredients to prepare a feast over the fire.

Ashley and her work have been featured in Outside Magazine, Food & Wine, Saveur, Epicurious, Edible Seattle and many more.

She is a graduate of Seminary of the Wild through the Center for Wild Spirituality and a certified Nature and Forest Therapy guide through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides. She is also an Integrative Wellness and Life Coach focusing on deepening the Eco-Spiritual connection.

When not eating, or talking and writing about food you can find her foraging, fly fishing, feeding her sourdough starter and spending as much time outside as possible. She believes the outdoors is a place to be fed both physically and spiritually.

ROBERT HAYNES-PETERSON — CRAFT COCKTAIL INSTRUCTOR

@haynespeterson

Robert Haynes-Peterson is a writer and editor with more than 10 years of experience covering wine, spirits, cocktails, travel and more. In addition, he is a talented instructor and maker of craft cocktails. His immense knowledge of the world of drinks and spirits paired with his infectious personality make him a fascinating cocktail coach. His work has appeared in AskMen.com, Daily Beast, Time Out New York, Business Insider, Accent Magazine and more. He is certified by the Beverage Alcohol Resource, Wine & Spirits Education Trust and American Sommelier Association.

EXPERIENCE collective eFFervescence

Join me in Seattle

$495 deposit to secure your spot

Secure my Spot

Your non-refundable deposit secures your seat at the 2023 retreat, and will be applied to your total event cost.

Pre-sale price: $2500 (ends Nov. 18th)
Early-bird price: $2750 (ends Jan. 20th)
Full price: $2900

See detailed cancellation policy and more in our FAQ section below

Transportation & Lodging

Transportation and lodging are not included in the ticket price for this event. Both transportation and lodging will be the responsibility of the attendee, both to Seattle, and throughout the retreat.

Once registered, you will receive more information, including a discount for a great hotel within walking distance and other travel tips.

Cancellation Policy

If participant cancels before June 1, they will receive any payments made, minus the deposit.
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If participant cancels between June 1-August 1, they will receive 50% of their payment back, but not their deposit.
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Payments are non-refundable after August 1.

Payment is due in full for any registrations after June 1 and is non-refundable.
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The deposit once made is non-refundable, but should the participant be unable to make the planned event, the participant can use the deposit towards a future event with Hosts.

Any cancellation request received due to an extenuating circumstance may be reviewed by the Hosts who in turn will recommend the appropriate refund and action. Extenuating circumstances can be (but not limited to) death in the family, documented positive COVID-19 test etc.
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If the event is cancelled by Hosts, all participants will be extended a full refund of their payments and deposit.

Payment schedule

$495 Non-refundable deposit due upon registration

Remaining balance is due in two installments:

50% of the remaining balance due by March 1, 2023
50% of the remaining balance due by June 1, 2023

Participant is welcome to pay their full registration fee at anytime if that is their preference.

Payment Options

Payments for the remaining balance of your ticket can be made via:
- Credit card payment on StudioLife site, which includes convenience charge
- Zelle Payment (no fee)
- Check via mail (no fee)

Please contact hello@studiolifeseattle.com with any questions.

A Creative Way

seattle