This episode takes a different spin on the word, craft. Sarah Sockbeson is a renowned Wabanaki basketweaver and has a history of this traditional craft dated back to when her grandmother was a child. Kristan and Sarah did talk about the basketweaving craft lightly at the beginning of the interview but then they got into the weeds of starting a podcast. Sarah asked Kristan questions about her podcasting craft and how she got into the theme of makers particularly in Maine and now throughout the entire nation. Kristan also shares some podcasting tips that she has learned during her podcasting career. Listen in to learn more about the craft of podcasting and about Sarah's podcast that is all about Native American artists.

I headed over to Vasselboro, Maine to interview blade-smith, Nick Rossi in his studio. It was amazing to be right in the studio and see the variety of equipment he had & learn what they are used for. 

Ramona is a painting artist in Gorham, Maine. “I got inspired to begin painting during the winter of 2020. It was a hard one for me, I was struggling with some seasonal depression. The days were short and dark and I needed something to brighten up my days, I needed some stress relief. Being in the health and wellness field, I decided to like practice what I preach to my clients: that you need to take time to take care of yourself and do something that you enjoy. I decided to invest in painting. It’s something that I'd always had an interest in but I'd never taken the time really to invest in the materials.”

I was so excited to interview artist, Ric Della Bernarda after seeing the work that he does at the Cliff House in Ogunquit, Maine. Ric is an oil painter, a plain air painter who also does a lot of studio work. Ric has been doing this work for 25 years, I found that amazing!

“I have really concentrated in the past five years in my craft and I teach a lot of plain air painting, which is outdoor painting,” says Ric. “I have beautiful scenery here in Southern, Maine that has been painted by so many famous painters.” He both teaches classes and has his own private studio right at the Cliff House.

I didn't really know much about the brewing process until my husband got into it over the pandemic. He bought a home brewing set and our basement turned into a science lab with pieces of equipment laid out everywhere. When I first saw our basement I thought, there is no way I could get into brewing beer myself. It is too much math and science, where I would rather go and market beer and promote it.

One of my goals for the podcast was to interview a brewery here in Maine, as the brewery industry has seen significant growth over the years. According to craft brewing business, over the last decade, on average 11 breweries open each year. That's a lot. I wanted to interview a brewery that has grown at a fast pace, has played around with innovative practices when it comes to its brewing and really just thinks way outside the box.

For the last episode of The Great North Sound Society Podcast Series, I had the chance to interview Bridget Kearney, a renowned singer songwriter who is a member of one of my favorite bands of all time, Lake Street Dive. Lake Street Dive recorded their album “Bad Self Portraits” at Great North Sound Society and Bridget continued to utilize the facility as a writer's retreat. This space gave her the chance to escape her day-to-day and focus on her craft.

Lake Street Dive has a big heart for Maine and continues to come back year-after-year to perform in Portland. They will be performing this fall at Thompson's Point. I was just in awe that they had recorded one of their most popular albums here in the great state of Maine. I think you will enjoy learning more about Bridget’s songwriting craft and her experience at this studio.

Next on the Makers of Maine Great North Sound Society Podcast Series is Isa Burke from Lula Wiles. Isa grew up in South Berwick, Maine and the other members of her band grew up in Farmington, Maine.

Isa describes her craft as “music.”

“I've been playing music my whole life, as have my bandmates. All of us come from musical families. Both of my parents are professional musicians and music teachers. My parents' names are Susie Burke and David Seret and they play a lot of different kinds of folk and traditional music. I grew up kind of immersed in the folk and roots music community in the sea coast area. It was kind of a no brainer for me. For a long time I wasn't totally sure if I wanted to be a professional musician, but I always knew that music was going to be a really big part of my life.”

Next on the Makers of Maine: Great North Sound Society Podcast Series is Dietrich Straus, a singer songwriter based out of Massachusetts. While Dietrich is not a Maine based musician, he has recorded many songs and albums at Great North sound society. Not only that, but but he has been a production assistant alongside Sam Kassirer. He grew up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania & moved to Boston after graduation.

While viewing the behind the scenes of Dietrich's recording session at the studio, which you may have seen in the preview video of this series, it was amazing to see the dynamic between Sam and Dietrich. They carefully listened to the instrumentals and voice build into a magical tune. The voice and individual instruments were recorded once at a time, in separate rooms. The process seems so fluid and just came naturally to both of them. I was excited to have Great North Sound be my first recording studio experience because there is no way it is like any other.

Sam Kassirer, a musician and producer acquired the 200 year old farmhouse for his growing collection of instruments and recording equipment. But, then the house quickly evolved into a music studio, or really a music destination studio. It consists of a four bedroom, two bathroom, an attached barn, and an attached carriage house which has been converted into a 600 square, 16 foot ceiling live room. Artists such as Dietrich Strause, Lula Wiles, and Lake Street Dive have recorded albums in this lovely, quaint farmhouse with Sam leading the production.

I am so excited to kick off this Great North Sound Society Series with Sam himself. Sam describes his craft as making music and helping others make music. “I think I was really lucky to get into music at a really young age and I also was really lucky to know at a young age that it was the only thing I was ever any good at. It kind of just snowballed from there,” said Sam.

Thompson's Point in Portland, Maine puts together a series of Makers Market events where craftspeople around the state get together to showcase their work. Kristan Vermeulen continues the interview series at their April event. She interviews a pottery business, Luster Hustler, who specializes in taking all different types of females' body forms and turning them into functional and sculptural art, and a full-time attorney who started a side hustle crafting all-natural, aromatherapy dough -- the substitute to the typical stress ball.

Tempshield started forty years ago by a husband and wife duo, the Sweeney's, Laura and Ted, on their kitchen table. They lived in Massachusetts at the time, and they were responding to a need in the marketplace. They developed their very first cryogenic protective glove and from there they developed aprons and gators because liquid nitrogen is a liquid, and it can splash on your clothes. If it gets on your clothes, it will absorb into the clothes and then of course right onto your skin. In 2018, Jim Woldenberg took over Tempshield and had continued to grow its operations and team. They even started a sister company called My Mainers that crafts gloves for outdoor recreation use. Tune in to hear more about how this protective gear is made and how Jim appreciates their Maine-made focus.

Briana Warner, the owner of Atlantic Sea Farms, came to Maine with her husband, a Mainer who was a "boomerang-er". She noticed that the kelp was gorgeous here in Maine, healthy and clean. Bri describes her craft as kelp, in general, and said, “the motivation behind it is mostly around looking at climate change along our coasts, and figuring out ways that crafts in one way or another can help the coast both adapt to and mitigate some of the effects of climate change.” Briana takes us on a journey through her career as she was a former diplomat for the U.S. Foreign Service and owned a bakery in Portland hiring refugees who are new to Maine. She also talks about the craft behind kelp and the impact it has on climate change. Not only do you get to know Bri, stay until the end of the episode to hear a special tune from Lady Lamb.

For Kazeem, craft is a very broad term because he touches on it in so many ways between curation, fashion design, and showcasing his own life through his brand. He wants each customer to have a unique experience when they come into his shop. His shop reflects anything he is into at that moment from food, to travel, to cultures, to his own journey. Kristan chats with Kazeem about his past life before coming to Maine, how he got to Maine, the inspiration behind opening up his own shop, and what the future holds for his business.

Gabriel Frey learned his craft at a young age as the traditional basket weaving skills were passed down by his grandfather. There is so much that goes into basket weaving as you have to learn about the harvesting of trees and which trees are ready to be broken into raw materials to be turned into a fancy, useful art form. Gabriel also shares Wabanaki history in relation to basket weaving and how his entire family is involved in educating others about Wabanaki history and culture.

Mahoosuc Guide Service offers an experience unlike no other. An experience of getting to know the land, nature, the Maine culture during the cold months, and the main event, the mushing lifestyle. Kevin and Polly have been guiding for over 31 years in Newry and not only do they offer dog sledding overnight camping trips but they offer canoeing and fishing adventures as well during the warmer months. Kristan Vermeulen takes you on her adventure discovering the craft behind dog sledding from sitting in the sled crafted by Kevin himself to sleeping in a tent lined with fir and heated by a wood stove.