Most photos were taken by the talented Teryn, who captured the entire Makerie weekend on flickr HERE

A little over a week ago, I was back in beautiful Boulder, Colorado for the second annual Makerie.  Last year I was a teacher and this year it was part work and part play, since I gave a lunch forum on transitioning a craft into a business, but also took a few classes myself.  If you ever longed for time away: to create, to dream, to eat good food and make new friends...  the Makerie is the place for you!

The crafting retreat is set in the mountains in Chautauqua with adorable and fresh little cabins nestled in the foothills.  It was unseasonably warm--80 degrees!--so everything was lush and in full bloom.  

Ali {who runs the Makerie} picks the most amazing food for the weekend, a farm-to-table menu with meals like goat cheese and portabello sandwiches, pesto gnocchi, and red velvet cake pops being among some of my favs.  That's my little red head in the photo below:

{The beet tacos were amazing, btw!}

I took a food styling class with Aran Goyoaga.  Aran has her own distinctive, feminine style and a knack for creating tasty food and finding amazing light.

another of Aran's yummy photos:

Aran gave us a presentation with a few tips, then she made a hazelnut and goat cheese salad showing us the entire recipe, then had chocolate and cherry cookies, beet quinoa, almond apple tarts, and lots of other amazing food for us to sample and photograph.

I don't know if I have said before, but I have a love/hate relationship with photography.  I think it is such a beautiful way to capture life and savor memories, but it can also be extremely frustrating... it takes time, thinking, positioning and repositioning to get the perfect shot.  It was both gratifying and discouraging to hear Aran describe her process in her photo styling, which was not unlike how I feel when I photograph our shoes.  Aran notices every detail--the crack of an egg shell, the color of each berry, the turn of a leaf of an herb--all these details are studied and snapped again and again until finally they align into the perfect capture.  That's how it is for me...  I study every detail when I shoot our shoes, notice the light, try one backdrop and then another... and take shots over and over {usually while both kids are running around my ankles} until I get "the shot."  It's hard, aggravating and rewarding all at the same time.

I learned some tips on gear, using reflectors, but mostly, I could feel a sense of similarity.  I mean, I am not a professional photographer by any sense and I am not equating my skills with hers, but I think our emotional connection to what we shoot is similar, since Aran cooks all the food she photographs like I design all the product I shoot.

Here are a few photos from the class and my attempt at food styling.  {Ha!  I won't be quitting my day job any time soon!}:

I will have more on the rest of the Makerie weekend tomorrow!

XOXO!