Craft Talk

For this episode, I'm joined by Michelle Laforest of Laforest living. Michelle runs an eco-based small business that up-cycles furniture into unique custom pieces that’s inspired by nature and living life more slowly with intention. She hopes to empower and inspire others to look at the world through a more sustainable lense and see that you can create something beautiful in the strangest of places.

It was such a pleasure to speak with Michelle about their experiences restoring old pieces of furniture and breathing new life into something that could have potentially been trashed or sent to the landfill. It was so fascinating to hear about Michelle’s mindset on the creative process and also chat about some of the challenges we face as humans in trying find a realistic balance while still doing our best to make our planet a better place.  Who would have thought that reviving old furniture could lead to such a beautiful conversation. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we did recording it.

Say hi to Michelle @laforest.living on Instagram

About this Podcast : Craft Talk is a collection of interviews with people of different disciplines ranging from creativity, business, and lifestyle. By diving into my guest's story and learning about how they approach their craft, I hope that these conversations help you find different ways to improve your own!

Say hi to me on Instagram @crafttalk.toolbox

Website -  crafttalk.net

For this solo episode, I share a story about 3 words that have helped me stay grounded and centered during a challenging period in my work career. In some roundabout way, these 3 words actually helped me quit my job!

If you have an overwhelming challenge ahead of you or just feeling stuck in general, I hope that my story encourages you to find power in these small reminders and help you continue on with the journey. Enjoy!

For this interview, I am so honored to speak to my guest, Jon Lake about all things self-growth. Jon is an environmental scientist and is in a constant pursuit of growth through meditation, travel, plant based eating, song-writing and endurance sports. 

This conversation takes us on Jon’s current journey and unpacks some of the ups, the downs, and everything in between. We touch on different aspects of his experiences, from traveling across the country in a converted van, to picking up hitch hikers, and even running into his future coach. 

I felt really blessed to catch up with Jon. Although we grew up in the same town and went to the same school, our paths didn’t cross too often. Over a decade removed, it was great to share this moment of conversation and even if we didn’t know each other too well back then, it really still felt like I was catching up with a old friend. I really hope you enjoy the conversation, as much as we did and I hope it inspires you to find more mindfulness in your own life!

I’m super excited to have Dominique Yahyavi on the Craft Talk Podcast. Dominique builds products that help small businesses and entrepreneurs run the creative side of their business. He is a designer and engineer from Stanford and before starting Pixelcut and Spark Camera, he worked at companies like Apple, and Ideo

We had a great conversation about Dominique’s journey in building his own business. It was so inspiring to hear about how he was able to land some of his earlier jobs and loved finding out how he was able to make himself stand out against a sea of other applicants.

I also really admired that Dominique tackled both the technical and business aspects within his company. Having skills on both ends ultimately gave him full ownership and knowledge of his products. I think this conversation is not just for aspiring programmers, but for everybody who wants to do something for themselves and have a desire create something that you can be proud of.

Enjoy the Episode!

For this episode of Craft Talk, I am joined by singer-songwriter, Mark Harrell. Mark is based out of Holland, Michigan, and performs original music with his band “Mark Harrell and The Hundred Star Hotel”.

During this conversation, we dove into Mark’s story and learned about how songwriting became a source of healing from a dark past. Early in his teens, Mark fell heavily into drugs and alcohol. For years, this addiction resulted in destructive and very dangerous situations. One incident in particular that he shared with me became the catalyst to start the journey of sobriety. A crucial moment that lead into the calling to write and express his experience through honesty and song.

There were so many other topics that we talked about. We also chatted about his love for movies, his songwriting process, and how he is dealing with adversity in both life and music. Ultimately, I was honored to have the opportunity to hear Mark’s story and I hope that our conversation can inspire and encourage others. I admire his level of vulnerability so much, and there’s no doubt that listening to his music after this conversation will give me so much more context and connection after knowing more about his story.

Check out Mark’s music on all streaming platforms and say hello on Instagram @harrell_mark

Enjoy the interview!

If you are struggling with addiction and are seeking assistance, call 1-800-662-HELP(4357). SAMHSA's National Helpline is a free, confidential, 24/7, 365-day-a-year treatment referral and information service (in English and Spanish) for individuals and families facing mental and/or substance use disorders.

About this Podcast : Craft Talk is a collection of interviews with people of different disciplines ranging from creativity, business, and lifestyle. By diving into my guest's story and learning about how they approach their craft, I hope that these conversations help you find different ways to improve your own!

Say hi to me on Instagram @crafttalk.podcast

Website -  crafttalk.net

Do you find yourself always feeling like you're not being "productive enough"? I know I feel like this all the time, even though it may not necessarily be true. There are a lot of factors that may play into this. Our tendencies, experiences, and our current capacities are all woven together, and if we get stuck in this pattern long enough, we can actually start believing that no matter what we do, it is not enough.

In this episode, I share my personal experience with this feeling. I talk about my tendency of having fears that I will eventually completely run out of ideas (scarcity mindset). I also talk about what direction I'd like to be working towards (abundance mindset). I walk through a process that I've been thinking about lately, and my hopes are that these ideas will help me get one step closer to becoming the more balanced, kind, and truly creative person that I always strive to be. Enjoy!

About this Podcast : Craft Talk is a collection of interviews with people of different disciplines ranging from creativity, business, and lifestyle. By diving into my guest's story and learning about how they approach their craft, I hope that these conversations help you find different ways to improve your own!

Say hi to me on Instagram @crafttalk.podcast

Website -  crafttalk.net

For this interview, I am joined self proclaimed Word Nerd, Isaac Knox. Isaac is an emcee, battle rapper, standup comic and also the cofounder of an improv freestyle company called “Free Daps”

In our conversation, Isaac shared the story on how music, emceeing, and freestyling became a part of his life.  Over years of developing his craft, he has been able to land amazing opportunities performing at halftime shows with the Orlando Magic and even getting featured on ESPN’s Sport Center Top 10 list. His freestyle improv group, Free Daps has held long time residencies at Universal Studios and Disney Springs, performing for people from all over the world.

What I really enjoyed about talking to Isaac is that all of the concepts and skills required to master the freestyle has so many qualities that transfer to so many other disciplines. You don't have to be a battle rapper or be in improv to learn from this episode. A lot of the skills and concepts we discuss can be translated into so many aspects of our work, creativity and life. Understanding the importance of anticipation, developing confidence in our skills, and trusting our instincts are all factors in creating better versions of ourselves. I hope you enjoy the interview!

Say hi to Isaac on Instagram @imisaacknox and check out his freestyle improv group @freedaps

About this Podcast : Craft Talk is a collection of interviews with people of different disciplines ranging from creativity, business, and lifestyle. By diving into my guest's story and learning about how they approach their craft, I hope that these conversations help you find different ways to improve your own!

Say hi to me on Instagram @crafttalk.podcast

Website -  crafttalk.net