Independent Study: 10 Ways to Get Creative This Spring

By Lynda Wheatley | March 19, 2022

If you want to learn how to grout a tile floor or install a new toilet…well, you already know where to go. But if the coming spring is motivating you to learn something that’s actually fun and can improve your home or life, we’ve collected a host of in-person and virtual options that’ll take you from zero to hero and grant you some better dinner conversation starters than, “So I was turning these flange nuts on our new toilet yesterday…”

1. Make Your Own Dishware: Wheel Throwing (Traverse City)
Transforming a wet lump of clay into a beautiful, functional shape isn’t simply a metaphor for life; it’s also what your hands do during the age-old practice of wheel throwing (derived from the Old English word thrawan, which means to turn or twist). ClaySpaceTC will provide the clay and teach you how to make your own real-life, usable piece of dinner or serving ware in one of five two-hour workshops remaining this spring. Keep your expectations high: By workshop's end, you’ll have created an object that’ll be glazed, fired, and yours to keep. Next class, $35, is April 1. See clayspacetc.com for more.

2. Learn How to Hunt Your Own Dinner: Zero to Hunt (Online)
Want to feed your family free-roaming grass-fed meat? Go one better than buying or raising your own animal and learn how to hunt Michigan game. Built for beginners, Zero to Hunt gives advice and insight on topics unique to the novice adult hunter, such as selecting your first weapon and gear, anxiety about taking an animal’s life, wild game nutrition, sighting a rifle scope, finding a hunting partner, and more. There is instruction for those interested in specific game—deer, ruffed grouse, rabbit, deer, turkey, and squirrel—and those curious about archery, hunting preserves, and how to hunt on public land. Start at zerotohunt.com, where you can also sign up for a newsletter and coaching.

3. Make Your Own…Everything: Tinker Studio (Old Mission Peninsula)
Tinker Studio isn’t only a (newly moved and expanded!) place to wander about and gape at handmade jewelry, scarves, paintings, photography, ceramics, and other art available for inspiration and purchase; it’s a place for makers of all levels, curious beginner to seasoned pro. What we love best is that you don’t have to stick to prescheduled classes—you can simply scope out the shop’s available offerings and schedule a class in what interests you. Whether you (and up to three friends) want to learn how to weave on a loom, create an accordion book, paint a landscape, bead “by the piece,” draw, make jewelry, or undertake some other artistic endeavor, you can customize and schedule a two-hour class for $50 per person (adult learners age 16+ only) or a three-hour class for $75 per person. Four-class workshops range from $100 to $150 per person. Learn more at tinkerstudiotc.com.

4. Add Horsepower to Your Kid’s Reading Skills: Circle M Acres (Ellsworth)
So Circle M Acres’ Learning with Four-Legged Leaders is not technically a do-it-yourself workshop—more a do-it-with-a horse’s-help workshop—but its literacy program, which just launched this month, helps kids from pre-K through SAT prep learn and improve critical reading skills…while they’re sitting atop horses. Yup. The equestrian hub’s “horse-powered” reading program (not riding program) is based on 10 years of research and employed by facilitators from around the world. It’s also darn fun for students who struggle to sit still with a book in hand. The introductory rate is $90 for three sessions. Call (231) 714-0103 or email Jeannamichelek@gmail.com for more information.

5. Plant Your Own Wall Art: Floral Underground at Farm Club (Leelanau)
If you’ve been within 6 feet of a home magazine or chic urban restaurant in the last couple of years, you’ve likely seen some wall art made of living or faux plants. This spring, Derek Woodruff of Floral Underground will host a hands-on workshop showing you how to make a small version of your own using differently colored and textured mosses, extremely low-maintenance air plants, and other decorative materials. The class will be held at 1pm Saturday, April 9, inside Farm Club’s heated Shepherd’s Tent. Ticket fee, $50, includes all materials. Find the event by searching Farm Club at Eventbrite.com. Can’t make the date? Head to the Workshops tab at floralunderground.com to choose from an assortment of plant-based classes—create your own terrarium workshop, plant music amplifier, succulent wreath, and more—and you can schedule when you’re ready.

6. Learn How to Taste Cheese: Petoskey Cheese (Petoskey)
Yes, you’ve eaten cheese. On burgers, sandwiches, soups, and salads. But if you’ve ever found yourself wanting to build a truly tantalizing charcuterie board, you’ve got to break through the plastic wrapping and wax rinds and really, really get to know cheese. Katie Pots of Petoskey Cheese is your gal. On April 14, she’s offering Cheese Tasting 101, a crash course through North Central Michigan College’s Lifelong Learning program. In one hour, she’ll cover the five families of cheese, new and old-world styles, and any cheesy questions you might have as you nibble. $40. Register at ncmc.com/event-4737465 if you can make the 5:30pm class, but if you can’t, simply email hello@petoskeycheese.com to schedule a private Tasting 101 or cooking class at a time that works for you.

7. Paint Those Bricks: Boyne Co-op True Value Hardware (Boyne City)
If you’ve inherited a brick fireplace, brick accent wall, or brick archway from your home’s previous owners and you hate it, there’s a far less costly alternative to removal: painting it. Boyne Co-op shows homeowners what they need to know, do, and buy before tackling the repainting of any interior brick—plus a little advice if you’re considering repainting any exterior brick on your home. (Short answer: Probably not a good idea in northern Michigan.) Find it—and other DIY topics like Using a Lift for Winter Projects—on their blog at boynecoop.com.

8. Create, Create, Create: Gaylord Area Council for the Arts (Gaylord)
We think creative arts are a life skill, and Gaylord Area Arts Council for the Arts seems to agree. The organization not only has an ongoing array of in-person art classes for kids and adults—on tap still this month are an Intro to Zen Tangling and classes in nature photography and figure drawing—but also offers access to recorded workshops dating back to September 2020, all free. Viewers can kick back with a glass of wine (or juice, for kids’ classes, of course) and learn how to begin a nature journal, build a woven teepee night-light, draw realistic birds, understand perspective, make fabric and paper beads, and much more. See gaylordarts.org.

9. Grow Your Own Food: Michigan State University Extension (Online)
It doesn’t matter if you don’t know a green squash from a zucchini; food prices are skyrocketing, and right now happens to be the perfect time to start planning your Up North vegetable garden. (Note to newbies: Planning, not planting—that’s May for most of us.) Michigan State University Extension offers loads of education opportunities, from the self-paced accessible anytime Smart Gardening with Vegetables 101 (search Vegetable Garden at canr.msu.edu) to ready-made Simple Vegetable Garden Plans featuring easy-to-grow kitchen staples, helpful beginner gardening videos, and even a state-wide hotline for any of your gardening-related questions 1-888-678-3464 (1-888-MSUE-4MI). Find the latter three by clicking the Horticulture Programs at the Leelanau County Extension home page, canr.msu.edu/leelanau.

10. Do Your Own Taxes (With Free Professional Help): Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency
If you earn about $58,000 or less, you can have your tax return prepared for you by a professional tax preparer…for free. Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency offers this service through locations in Cadillac, Charlevoix, Traverse City, and Benzie. Simply go to Downloads at nmcaa.net to download a simple tax packet, fill it out, and, along with copies of the personal documents requested, mail, fax, email, or drop off your forms. Your taxes will be prepared and quality reviewed within two weeks. Learn more at nmcaa.net/tax_preparation.asp.

 

Photo by Deena Arts