Summer is the time to enjoy the outdoors, and the Trumbullplex is the place for it! So when we’re not at Craft-A-Way Camp, we’re enjoying the lush and abundant gardens that surround our favorite Detroit venue. On Saturday, July 13, we’ll host a Garden Party, so all our crafty friends can join us in this verdant patch of urban wilderness. Herbalist Carmen Mendoza King will teach us some healing and refreshing summer recipes. Amanda Barker will bring a mannymade pop-up shop, filled with woodsy home decor. And of course, we’ll share free, homemade vegan treats. So remember what your mother told you every summer: if you’re feeling bored or restless, you need to go outside!

Photo: J Rae Warren

With an education from Rhode Island’s Farmacy, Carmen Mendoza King is an expert on the uses and properties of medicinal plants. And as a lifelong Detroit resident, and a longtime member of the Trumbullplex community, Carmen is at home with the local flora. Not only an herbalist, but also a writer and activist, Carmen is always busy with a variety of exciting projects.  Among the most intriguing: the construction of a Trumbullplex Apothecary, where healing tinctures are brewed from Detroit’s herbs.

Photo: Clara Hardie

We’ll miss Carmen this fall, as she travels to California to pursue a graduate degree in Integrative Health Studies. But we’re glad to have an opportunity to learn from her before she goes! Carmen will share an afternoon of crafting herbal recipes for summer. We’ll make sprays that keep mosquitoes off our skin. We’ll learn which local plants are our best allies when it comes to treating bug bites, burns, and scrapes. And we’ll sip on some tasty and hydrating herbal iced teas.

mannymade

Animal imagery and geometric patterns. Photographic transfers and string art. A rustic heart and a contemporary eye. Amanda Barker balances disparate elements to create home decor that’s as haunting as it is charming. It’s that blend of instant likability and lingering complexity that made her mannymade line of wooden plaques one of the breakout hits of last year’s Detroit Urban Craft Fair. Having enjoyed Amanda’s company by the Craft-A-Way campfire, we know her to be as fun and fascinating as her work, so we’re glad she’ll be part of our Garden Party.

Photo: Ashleigh Davis

Long before Detroit became known for its urban gardens, vegetables were quietly growing around the Trumbullplex. And with beehives, chickens, and flowering trees (not to mention murals, a fire pit, and a box of free clothes), the grounds of this historic housing collective remain unique. If you’ve joined us for one of our events in the Theater, you know the Trumbullplex is an interesting and inspiring space. We’re proud to showcase another of its features this month.

Photo: Blair Ellis

We made some new friends at Camp this summer, and deepened some existing friendships. So we’ve seen how community is nourished by warm sun and unpaved earth. And we’re looking forward to another opportunity to socialize in the open air. Whether you’re a regular at our events, or you’re joining us for the first time, we look forward to seeing you in Michigan’s great outdoors.

Small Craft Garden Party
Saturday, July 13
Pop-Up Shop open 2:00 – 6:00 pm
Skillshare begins at 3:00 pm
Trumbullplex Gardens
4210 Trumbull
Detroit