The Cordwood Studio

Here goes! Harvesting the last cabbage of the season. We've kept these going, under blankets for the past few weeks. The outer leaves are crispy with ice but under those layers you couldn't tell these beauties from their summer counterparts.

I did a double-take when I spotted these elm oysters from the corner of my eye while moving firewood. Foraging mushrooms in December is a first for us, but edible fungi are always welcome in our kitchen!

Green grass for the snowy months. We're working on our sprouted barley fodder system for the sheep and chickens. So far so good. Word on the street is that they are delicious.

Zoë's favourite day of the year! Her High Mowing Organic Seeds catalogue arrived so don't expect to see her out and about. She'll be hunkered down taking seed inventory and dreaming up next year's garden.

Digging in the dirt in December is quite concerning. But then I can't help but get excited when I pull up the mother of all parsnips!

Maple syrup courier at your service. #frontdoordelivery #covid_19 #stayhydrated

Staying hopeful that this fall you can come and wander our studios.

Hot and bottled! We are ready to fulfill your maple syrup needs. So far, we've harvested about 500 gallons of sap with 65 taps; spent six days and four nights boiling; and three days finishing and bottling. Our wonderful friend and neighbour, Danielle Prophets, has helped along the way. If you'd like a bottle, get in touch. 750mL - $20 ... 1L - $25 (limited quantity) *SOLD OUT* (Trades welcome too) We'll be doing front door delivery in the Perth area and arranging pickup for those farther afield. Many thanks to the sugar maples. There will be one more boil before giving these trees a rest. See more

At the end of the day everyone took part in test-fitting the bents. Everything checked out and all was ready for the next day's raising!

Throwback to Timber Framing Day 5. It was a full day of cutting rafter pockets in the top plates (for 16 rafters) and finishing the rafter joinery.

Thinking of the 11 students that came out for six days last August to take the Timber Framing course lead by Jason Gibson. This structure rests in our sugar bush as a sample for future courses. There is still work to be done in turning it into a proper sugar shack but we're looking forward to starting this project. We'll be boiling in style next sugaring season. In the meantime, we're admiring the joinery while stoking the fire from its sills. All future timber frames will be sold, with proceeds going to our financial aid program.

Plink. Plink. Happy spring everyone! We hope you are all well and finding creative ways to connect with loved ones. With the strain this pandemic is placing on our healthcare systems it is our duty to do our part: physically distance ourselves, help the most vulnerable, donate to The Table Community Food Centre or your local food bank and stay socially connected with one another. Here, we are immensely fortunate that at this time of year our energies move to the sugar bush. ...Spending time in the woods keeps our bodies busy and our eyes trained on the wonders of Mother Earth. At least she's getting a break during this tough time - unlike our healthcare professionals, grocery store employees and others working in areas that provide essential services. This morning while reading Robin Wall Kimmerer's book, Braiding Sweetgrass, she spoke of her time sugaring with her daughters. It seemed quite timely. "Our stories are linked in this run of sap; our trees knew them as they know us today". We are so lucky to be the current stewards of this land and to have this relationship with the trees. I hope you all get a chance to be in the company of trees during these rocky times. See more

Well, we've woken from a social media slumber. Since our last post on August 20th (almost 7 months ago!) so much has happened. Not only workshop-wise here at Cordwood, but in the lives of me and my partner, Ben. At the end of August, at the peak of our garden's bounty, we got married. It was a beautiful day full of love, dancing and delicious food. Going into the fall, we hosted various workshops that I will be posting about in the coming weeks. The instructors and classes ar...e just too good to go un-posted. So, stay tuned for these blasts from last fall. The Perth Autumn Studio Tour on Thanksgiving weekend was a huge success, as visitors from far and wide perused, shopped and chatted with the three artists at our studio - Just The Tip Hand Poke Tattoos, Kaajuk and myself, Zoë Emily Fibre & Felt Moving into the colder months we hunkered down in preparation for the arrival of our sweet little baby, Phoebe. She was born on December 31st and what a way to celebrate the year! We're loving every moment with her. She's very excited to meet all of the instructors and students who will be spending time with us this year. We have a wonderful roster of workshops coming your way, starting in June. We will be releasing the full schedule at the beginning of April. In the meantime, we'll get you caught up on last year's classes, give you sneak previews on what's to come, continue on some studio renovations, bottle up the liquid gold that is flowing from the sugar maples and watch our daughter grow and learn everyday. Wishing you all the best as the season's change and the promise of spring looms close. Much love, Zoë See more

Remembering this lovely day and group of people. Gathered around, sharing food and conversations after Shawn Yakimovich's guided Herb Walk. These folks learned about the different medicinal plants growing all around, in their backyards and forests, and how to use them to treat various ailments. Shawn will be with us again on September 14th teaching a full-day Frontier Medicine workshop.

Timber Framing Day 3: Production - morticing, cutting shoulders, drilling pin holes and test fitting the first pieces. Billie too had a busy day testing the quality of each sawdust pile.

One for the record books. Couldn't believe this specimen hadn't split and was still tender and delicious. Sometimes it all works out when things get away on you #thecordwoodstudiorecords #monsterradish

Timber Framing Day 2: Introducing the morticer! Also, guest instructor and sharpening expert Dan was with us for the day giving tutorials on chisel sharpening and maintenance.