Gather: Food, Medicine, & Dye

Weekend Workshop and Wild Food Dinner

June 19-20, 2021 • Trout Lake, Washington

Join foragers Julie Beeler, Lorelle Sherman and Jess Starwood for an unforgettable weekend in the woods where you will learn plant and mushroom identification, fabric dyeing with foraged plants, and a locally sourced six-course gourmet wild food dinner in celebration of the Summer Solstice. Located in Trout Lake, Washington at the base of Mt. Adams, the area is rich with edible and medicinal plants and fungi that will be collected and used throughout the weekend.

This workshop will take place on occupied territory of Yakama people. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Peacekeepers Society, a nonprofit founded in the mobilization of Yakama Nation ‘tribal trainers and wisdom keepers’ to promote positive social change for Native youth and adults.

Plant Identification and Foraging with Lorelle Sherman

The Pacific Northwest gifts us a bounty of wild foods in the spring and summer months, from roots to shoots, berries, greens, and possibly even mushrooms! We will get intimate with the local landscape by learning to identify, utilize, and sustainably harvest local and seasonal wild ingredients.

Through hands-on experience in the field, you will learn how to identify common native and invasive wild foods that you can confidently harvest on your next outdoor adventure. We will work through basic plant identification, ethical foraging practices, and easy and delicious ways to prepare and preserve your newfound wild ingredients. Group taste-testing and wild tea drinking will bring these local flavors to life. Come prepared for an easy hike and bring cloth, mesh, or paper bags to bring any foraged treats home with you for further flavor exploration.

Six-Course Wild Food Dinner with Jess Starwood

Forager, herbalist and wild food chef Jess Starwood will be serving a hand-crafted gourmet six-course dinner and drinks on Sunday night, celebrating the culmination of the event and the Summer Solstice. We will be enjoying an intimate experience with the local environment through new tastes, textures and wild flavors.

As you dine among the trees, each course tells a story about the land around you and the current season. Little to no processing of foods preserve their natural flavors and allow their unique subtleties shine through. This elegantly presented meal is crafted from locally sourced wild and organically farmed ingredients, completely plant-based and gluten-free.

Wild Plant Dye Workshop with Julie Beeler

Discover the alchemy of natural dyes and explore the bounty of botanical palettes. The serendipity of painting with plants combined with the ancient traditions of natural dyes yields unique and colorful results.

Working with plants that you forage in the wild along with Bloom & Dye’s locally grown flowers, you will gain knowledge and insight all while experimenting with the art of natural color.

We will be exploring a variety of ways to work with natural dyes; creating botanical bundles and prints, and making dye baths to create rich color palettes. Everyone will try their hand at different Japanese shibori traditions. Each participant will receive a variety of different natural fabrics to test and dye along with a linen foraging satchel to experiment with different colors, palettes and patterns. The custom instructional craftbook will allow everyone to continue their exploration at home.

About Your Instructors:

Julie Beeler, artist, designer and educator, grew up with a deep love and curiosity for the natural world. Educating others on how plants, fungi and their colors reflect the beauty of nature is something she is moved to share as a way to inspire care, stewardship and impact. Her work is bound up in the landscape; every thread is infused with botanical energy, as she gently simmers Mother Nature to unlock her colors. Drawing on cultural traditions and ancient natural dye histories each textile object is a record of a place and time, reflecting our relationship to the natural world. She has been recognized with numerous awards throughout her career as a designer of interpretive, editorial, and educational content, that supported cultural vitality with a commitment to preservation and conservation.
Instagram @bloomanddye and bloomanddye.com

Jess Starwood, herbalist, forager and chef, creates an innovative yet traditional approach to herbal medicine, wild foods and connecting the community with our local natural environment. She was recognized as one of the most creative chefs in Ventura County by Edible Ojai & Ventura County magazine in December 2019 and has worked with Michelin-starred chefs in Los Angeles, CA to bring nutritious, wild foods to the table. Not only sharing a love for unique and unusual foods, Jess strives to help students cultivate an intimate, sustainable and connected relationship with the land.
Instagram @jess.starwood and jstarwood.com

Lorelle Sherman Lorelle is a forest ecologist, naturalist, and wild foods forager who weaves conservation and ecology into her teaching. She has been foraging and teaching for over ten years in the Northeast and Pacific Northwest. Lorelle has a BS in Wildlife Biology and a MS in Forest Ecology. Since arriving in Oregon in 2015, she has worked with government agencies, private timber, and non-profit groups to develop and implement wildlife habitat and vegetation studies from the Oregon Coast to the western Cascades. Throughout her career, she has prioritized environmental education and science communication as a way to help others build meaningful connections with the natural world. Instagram @lorellemorel and lorellemorel.com.

EVENT DETAILS

SATURDAY
10am Welcome & Introductions
11am-4pm Foraging with Lorelle Sherman
6-8pm 6 course Wild Food Dinner with Jess Starwood

SUNDAY
10am-3pm Dye Workshop with Julie Beeler

Lodging is not included in this event. Some great local options:

Elk Meadows
Trout Lake Valley Inn
Cozy Cabins
Trout Creek Campground
Peterson Prairie Cabin
Guler Mt Adams Park

COVID-19 Protocol:

If you are sick or are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or have been in contact with anyone who is sick/experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, in the 14 days prior to the workshop, please do not attend. Send us an email and we will work out a solution.
We will be following Washington State COVID-19 protocols, guidelines and recommendations at the time of the workshop.
You will need to bring and wear your own mask or face covering.
Please maintain 6ft of physical distance from any other workshop participant who is not in your immediate household at all times.

Dinner will be served out doors with no more than 6 people per table from two households.
The workshop is limited to 12 participants + 3 instructors and will primarily take place outdoors with the exception of some botanical dyeing taking place in our indoor 1,300 sq. ft. studio space.
We will provide all individual tools and set up in personal stations to avoid unnecessary sharing of items.
The studio space will be sanitized both days and will have plenty of soap and hand sanitizer on hand. We will provide disposable gloves for those who wish to use them.

TICKETS

GATHER: Food • Medicine • Dye
June 19-20, 2021
Limited to 12 participants.
$400/person + $25 materials fee if registered before May 19, 2021
$450/person + $25 materials fee if registered after May 19, 2021

We are currently SOLD OUT

To be added to the wait list, please submit the form below:

Refund Policy
No refunds after 7 days prior to the event.