Hey Maker!

Happy to share that the newest member of the Wellness for Makers team arrived in January . As I have been a bit slower to respond to your wonderful messages and emails, I still have some awesome content coming your way! Until then, check out our other newest addition, an Amazon Page. Here you can find links to some of my favorite wellness tools and you can even preorder my book coming out the end of June (along with some of my favorite must-have reads!)  

"Wellness for Makers: A Movement Guide for Artists" is a helpful guide to teach you that your body is your most valuable tool, and it will truly empower you to create more-healthful movement patterns that build strength and longevity. I know the challenges that makers face in finding time to focus on their body rather than their creations.  The repetitive tasks that artists and crafters take on every day can lead to strain injuries and pain. By following the 40+ exercises...

Hey Maker!

We're sure you've heard of the saying "New Year, New Me". A plethora of messages flooding your inbox on how to "be the best you". Although there is nothing wrong for wanting more from yourself, your situation, or your life - all is allowed - these messages often forget that just by being who you are, is a success. Your very unique iteration of life is already enough, just as it is. 

Have you ever started a resolution and just as quickly, stopped it? I know I have. I realized that I was making these lofty goals, outside of myself. I was striving for a "new me" instead of using what I already have inside and around me to take the next step. I changed the slogan to "New Year, Same Me". A year where I strive for some areas of "new" while also recognizing myself along the journey! Here are my favorites on how to get started:

1. Set Your Foundation

Steady yourself and acknowledge the power you already possess just as you are. Create a list of all of the things...

Hey Maker!

First, I wanted to share that this is Wellness for Makers’ 50th Podcast episode! How exciting is that?!

Thank you all for tuning in week after week. For sharing episodes with your friends, family, students, and co-workers. It truly means so much to me! I am so honored to be able to have the opportunity to share so many incredible conversations that leave you feeling inspired to improve your studio practice. 

With that being said, I am so honored to introduce today’s guest to the 50th episode, Serafine Lilien. As a graphic designer, Serafine developed a repetitive strain injury resulting from excessive work with a computer mouse. She retrained as an ergonomist and then went on to create ErgoArts. This wonderful organization she has created combines her two passions: art and ergonomics! She has more than 20 years of hands on experience as a professional ergonomics consultant for companies of all sizes, and includes individuals working...

Hey Maker!

Giving Tuesday is here! I thought it would be a great opportunity to tell you all about some of the incredible organizations I know and love. These non-profit organizations are doing what they can to uplift the art community and inspire others. I am honored to have had the opportunity to connect with each of them through the Wellness for Makers Podcast. Which organizations are you supporting this year? Feel free to respond to this email and let me know. Together we can create positive change! 

WOMANLY MAGAZINE

Womanly Magazine provides accessible health information to women and non-binary people through visual and literary art. Through their print and digital content, they lift up narratives that are often neglected by the typical women’s magazine. I love reading their magazine and know you will too! Tune into the Wellness for Makers Podcast to hear my conversation with Cheyenne Diaz to learn more about what Womanly is up to! 

DONATE TO WOMANLY

Hey Maker!

Brené Brown is a shared favorite of mine & Melissa's. She is an influential author, professor, and podcast host. She recently shared this quote about trust on her LinkedIn. 

 This got me thinking about trust in all areas of our life, but more specifically, trust in the body. We often talk about "repetitive strain injuries" here at Wellness for Makers. This means, injuries that occur due to repeated actions or movements that are not necessarily sustainable in the body for hours on end (i.e. poor posture at the wheel or your bench, uncomfortable ways you may hold your tools). This "repetitive strain" or movement, may also apply to our lack of movement. Perhaps many of your projects take place in a hunched over and rounded forward position. Your body starts to trust this pattern and may even build connective tissue around certain areas, especially joints, that it now believes should remain "stable". This is why injury may result from the...

Hey Maker!

In this week's episode, my friend Raïssa Bump here to help us "Reset"! Raïssa earned her BFA in Metals from Rhode Island School of Design and studied jewelry with Giampaolo Babetto at Alchimia in Florence, Italy. She’s been actively involved in the contemporary jewelry field and is well versed at making both intricate one-of-a-kind pieces and beautiful edition collections. Raïssa’s work is collected widely and has been included in various Lark Book publications and in the pages of Metalsmith magazine. She exhibits with galleries such as Sienna Patti Contemporary, teaches workshops at Penland School of Crafts , Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts amongst others, and is chair of the board of Art Jewelry Forum.

In 2015 Raïssa founded Reset, whose mission is to educate others to be attentive to their bodies’ signals and provide them with practical Self-Tuning techniques so that they...

Hey Maker!

There is this beautiful quote by BKS Iyengar in his book Light on Pranayama and it goes “Knowledge without action and action without knowledge do not help man, they must be intermingled.” I keep coming back to this quote because I feel that there is so much there. 

We often know what we should do. How many times has your body told you to readjust your posture, stretch, drink a glass of water, or take a nap, and you ignored it? How many times have you powered through pain or strain to get something done? We often know what we can do to care for ourselves now but we ignore the signals our body sends us until the signal gets louder and louder. But why? 

Change is inevitable. But we have the ability to decide how we wish to engage with change over time. Do you want to sit back and blame your poor posture? Or are you ready to do something about it? What is holding you back from creating lasting change in your body? 

Hey Maker!

I am so excited to introduce this week’s guest to the show. Andrea Lui is a Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopedic Physical Therapy (OCS), and is skilled in treating a variety of patients with acute and chronic pain. Andrea is passionate about patient education and empowering her patients to help themselves. 

I found Andrea through her instagram page @TheKnittingPT. She began noticing that there were very little resources available to knitters, crocheters, and crafters alike on how to take care of their bodies. She was inspired to put out short videos with information on stretches, strengthening exercises, and information on how to care for your body. 

No matter what type of maker you are, I know you will get a lot out of today’s conversation. So let’s dive in!

xo,

Missy

Andrea's Website

Instagram

Special thanks to Vacationland Music Company for creating the intro and the outro of the Wellness for Makers...

Hey Maker!

Today we have the dynamic trio of Lucy Derickson, Jane Marsching, and Julia Giangrande from an Ethical Metalsmiths team on the podcast! We dive into a very special research project conducted by Julia following the life cycle of Jewelry Pickle.  

Lucy Derickson is the Coordinator of the Crafts Area at Montgomery College in Rockville MD, with a focus on Jewelry and Metalsmithing processes. Additionally, she is a board member of the non-profit organization Ethical Metalsmiths (EM), and works as Chair of the EM Education Committee. Jane is a professor and sustainability fellow at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. She is an interdisciplinary artist, who explores past, present, and future human impact on the environment through collaborative research-based practices. Last but certainly not least, is our research conductor and Junior at Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Julia Giangrande. She has an interest in creating sustainable and ethical works...