I have a thing I like to say, a reminder to myself: to create good content, you have to live good content. And that concept is what I’m teaming up with Rebekka Seale of Camellia Fiber Co. and photographer Luisa Brimble to teach in Australia this coming September. Slow Living, A Practical Workshop: Creating Content through Food, Florals, Photography, & Textiles is designed to both enrich students through practical skills such as natural dying and baking while also strengthening photography and styling skills and giving you the information you need to both create and get your work out there. We will be holding them in both Sydney and Melbourne! The Sydney workshop will be held at The Lost + Found Department, and the Melbourne one will be at Butterland, and tickets are now available here!
If you’ve been following along on Instagram, you know I’ve fallen down some rabbit hole and am basking in the first days of summer in the Hudson Valley with my dear friends and insanely talented styling & home design team Tara & Percy of the Jersey Ice Cream Co. The ones who happened to do my kitchen. You can keep up with their travels and projects here. I’ve had the immeasurable pleasure of photographing their latest project, the complete renovation of an upstate farmhouse house built in 1710. Life has come to a delicious grinding halt, and I feel so awfully easy of breathing here. I walked through the vegetable garden popping sugar snap peas and arugula flowers in my mouth, and then wandered off to gather a wild bouquet for the first table of summer. Slow living indeed.
space and props from Jersey Ice Cream Co.
space and props by Jersey Ice Cream Co.
Each workshop will be over the course of two days, and on day one Rebekka will guide students through the process of naturally dyed textiles using foraged plants & flowers. That will be followed by morning tea, a camera & composition basics session from Luisa and me as well as a talk on editorial briefs and planning photo shoots. We’ll share a lunch and then spend our afternoon doing photography & styling food and props—after Luisa and I demo the process students will then have a chance to create their own vignettes. And afternoon tea, of course.
above five photos by Rebekka Seale
The second day we’ll start our morning with a chat about building a portfolio, finding inspiration, and getting work as a photographer. We’ll then get hands on in a baking practicum during which we’ll cover getting process shots while cooking. We will, naturally, then enjoy the fruits of our labor with morning tea. Students will then be able to photograph the teams that will be making our lunch, The Lost + Found Department in Sydney and Fig + Salt in Melbourne. That last afternoon after lunch we’ll have a session on post-processing and creating a social media presence that resonates and then we’ll have another hands on shoot with florals & food.
above seven photos by Luisa Brimble
We’re working with a wonderful team of partners—The Lost + Found Department, Butterland, Fig + Salt, Katie Marx Flowers, Phil of A Floral Frenzy, and Stephanie Somebody—to bring you the whole package—both practical skills for daily life from baking to textiles to florals as well as the skills needed to document the moments around you as they unfurl and get them out there for your audience & clients. Rebekka is one of my dearest friends and Luisa I have long admired & loved from half way around the world; I couldn’t be more inspired to work with the both of them, and I can’t wait to learn from them as well. We do hope you’ll join us, and I look forward to meeting you all whoever you may be! Again, you can find tickets here…get them while they last!
Girl! You are filling the world with your creativity, inspiration, humble soul, and lovely way of life. Congrats on this amazing opportunity. I can imagine what a wonderful workshop this will be, especially with such talented ladies by your side. I hate to constantly say this, but I wish I was able to participate. However, I can’t wait for all the pictures and stories.
Awww, I so wish I could go to this! I’m pregnant now, which makes it kind of hard to travel on a whim, even just to Tennessee, let alone Australia. You three sound like a workshop dream team, it’s going to be amazing.
What an absolute DREAM this would be to attend! How I wish I could. Lovely ladies, a beautiful country, and all the things I love most. I know it will be perfect, even with out me there. 😉
I so wish I could afford to attend this. I love Australia and all your workshops and dinners look so amazing. Also tea time is my favorite time! Why is there nothing like this in Tucson? Maybe I need to move to Tennessee…..
Oh you two! You beautiful southern women creating magic together. what I wouldn’t give to meet you and be a part of this workshop. It sounds just too good! Please do come to Europe with Rebekka and hold the workshop there as well. I would love to help out too!! Amsterdam would be the perfect place 😉
xo
Maja
Wow, your life is just too spectacular! Wish I could attend this 🙂 Congrats! Can’t wait to see all the lovely pictures.
“…to create good content, you have to live good content…” Love this bit of truth, and these gloriously moody photos. Keep living and sharing all of this great content.
I completely agree with “to create good content, you have to live good content”. I find blogging a wonderful way to challenge your day to day life, because it encourages you to live the best life possible (or at least with the best food possible).
WOW, this looks absolutely incredible. I wish you luck, and hope it is a huge success so I could go next year when I don’t have multiple friends weddings to save for that will take up the rest of my vacation time for the year 🙂 Have fun attendees!
Beth,
I’m beyond happy for you and all your new ventures! Thank you so much for sharing your lovely life with the rest of the world. You are such a blessing, and you deserve every bit of happiness and success, darlin’!
x
Amber
I so wish you will do something like this in the PNW! This is incredible and it’s very inspiring to see how you fill my instagram feed/pinterest feed with beautiful things.
I’m dying to do one in the PNW! So bad. As soon as time allows…maybe in 2015 : )
What a wonderful event, I wish that I could attend but the days don’t work. Beautiful, inspiring work as always 🙂
How inspiring and exciting! Congratulations on all the wonderful opportunities! I’m sure it’ll be beautiful.
Oh wow! I’m so bummed I live on the otherside of Australia to where you’ll be holding these, it would be such an amazing thing to learn from you and Luisa! xx
i also vote for the PNW! what a setting for such a dream.
Oh, come to Texas! You ladies are the loveliest!
Oh Beth, I WISH that I could come to this…but it’s just too far to travel! How about another European workshop sometime very soon? Maybe Venice??? Pretty please! Xxx
I am so pleased to have found your beautiful blog and Instagram feed, the images and ethos behind them is quite lovely. The workshop sounds like heaven, I wish I lived on that side of the world.
I love informal gathered bouquets and have recently added them to the offerings at my farm stand (I sell culinary herbs and a couple other things on Saturday morning at a local farmers market – mostly for fun and perspective). I really haven’t felt I could make really pleasing arrangements reliably. But over the past year looking at your photos – and those on several other blogs yours has led me to – as well as reading your posts about your own learning process has been just wonderful and my jarred bunches of gathered and grown flowers are pleasing me more and more, as is the general arrangement of the offerings at my stand. Thanks for putting so much out for us to soak up.
I would love to make it to one of your workshops sometime, though can’t imagine getting the necessary vacation approved before it filled up! But perhaps one of these days. Meanwhile, thank you again for the blog.
Ahhhhhhh! I am a Sydney-sider and this is awfully tempting, even if I have no need for it my daily working life! I’ll be stewing on this and trying to gather the funds before I know it I’m sure!
Is there going to be one in NZ at some stage?
Is this workshop suitable for complete amateurs? I’m a competent photographer but challenged on the styling side of things. Love good food but not great at cooking. Love making things so natural dyeing definitely sounds interesting. Just wonder who your target audience is with these workshops?
All skill levels are welcome. Because there are three of us we will be addressing individual needs. It’s great if you’re already handy with camera basics!
I’ve just booked in and cannot wait! Looking forward to learning new skills and just being around like minded people. Thank you so very much for coming to Melbourne!