Home Free Bagels

Home Free Bagels is a locally made bagel business that provides employment to Asheville's homeless population.  HFB is operating on behalf of the Asheville Homeless Network and aims to provide NYC-quality bagels to customers that are committed to supporting the local economy both through buying locally made products and employing city residents that would otherwise have great difficulty finding jobs.  Home Free Bagels is contributing to increased employment opportunities for people experiencing homelessness by providing fresh, delicious, locally made bagels to coffee shops and cafes, gourmet grocers and independently owned restaurants in Asheville, NC.  All profits go toward ending homelessness in Asheville. 


You can now find Home Free Bagels at more locations in and around Asheville, and every month you can meet them in person at the 2nd Saturday Artist Market in east-West Asheville.  This Saturday, May 14, you can also purchase their new t-shirt and support their efforts to secure a retail store front!

soon to be on a t-shirt near you!

Home Free Bagels is good for Asheville - it's social entrepreneurship that shows you can have a profitable business and work to solve community challenges.  And it's not just benefitting the homeless issue or HFB themselves, it's good for the businesses who support them as well!  

Chris Sullivan of Home Free Bagels, along with some of the bagel crew

This will be the first in a series of mini-interviews with some of those businesses who sell Home Free Bagels.  By visiting and supporting these businesses, you may discover yet another great local business you didn't know about before, and you're not only keeping your dollars working in Asheville, but working toward ending homelessness. Go get a tasty bagel and read on!


Firestorm Cafe & Books was an early supporter of Home Free Bagels.  Worker/Owner Libertie Valance was kind enough to speak informally on the topic of Home Free Bagels.  Drop by the shop and talk with anyone behind the counter if you'd like to learn more!

About our business
Firestorm Cafe & Books is a worker-owned and self-managed business in downtown Asheville that aims to provide community space, critical literature and an alternative economic model based on cooperative, libertarian principles. We have twelve collective members and operate democratically, welcoming an extremely diverse cross-section of the community.

How we heard about Home Free Bagels & why we support them
We've been working with the Asheville Homeless Network since mid-2009 when they moved their regular meetings to our cafe.
As a downtown organization committed to challenging class and privilege, we want to provide an environment welcoming to people regardless of their housing status while acting as allies to grassroots community advocacy organizations. When Chris Sullivan first floated the idea of setting up a business to employ and empower homeless folks, we were really excited! And to our surprise, it came together remarkably fast.

Impact of Home Free Bagels on our business
Like other cafes, we'd been sourcing our bagels from Bruegger's, the only game in town following the closure of NY Bagels on Merrimon Ave. Despite a higher per-unit cost, moving our business to Home Free Bagels was a no-brainer. In addition to offering a business model informed by social justice and community empowerment, Home Free Bagels demonstrated early on that they could make a better product while providing superior service, including free delivery.

We knew that the community would like Home Free Bagels, but we've been overwhelmed by the response. For the first couple weeks, we kept running out. Our bagel sales increased by more than 30% overnight!

Favorite way to eat Home Free Bagels
We serve a variety of bagel sandwiches but my personal favorite is our Portobello Bagel which combines homemade, spiced black bean spread with grilled mushrooms, thin sliced red onion and wilted spinach. And for variety, I sometimes like to substitute grilled tempeh, sourced from local producers at Smiling Hara Tempeh, for those mushrooms. Ridiculously delicious!


Firestorm Cafe is located at 48 Commerce Street, downtown Asheville.  They're open Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 10:30pm and Saturday from 10:00am - 10:00pm.

So much to do in the neighborhood(s) this weekend!

We're in that time of year in Asheville when there's always something happening, and this weekend is a perfect example!

My apologies in advance for what I'll inevitably leave out - feel free to comment and add your event to the list - here's a sampling of what's happening ... you'll find me at some and wishing I could go to others:

You'll find me tomorrow at the Rocket Club for the 2nd Saturday Artist Market.  This month we've got a couple of new artists and for the first hour or so you'll also find live music at the door!  We'll also be collecting as usual for MANNA FoodBank - check out the Market Blog for details.  And I think I've mentioned that you can get the best bloody mary in town here.

Those who follow me on Facebook may also know that I'm having a little 'Lori needs a new car' sale at this month's Market.  Yes, my faithful volvo, George Bailey, has gone to the great volvo farm where he can run free.  You'll meet his heir, Harvey George, in a future post.  For now, you'll find deals on all sorts of pretty potteries as I try to create a budget from which I may fund Harvey's addition to the family.  Come by and check out the premium gifties available with certain purchases!

Right down the street from the Rocket Club, the E-W-A's newest member, 444 Gallery Cafe, will celebrate their Grand Opening.  In addition to the great deli sandwich menu, featuring house-roasted meats, breads from West End Bakery, coffee from Dynamite Roasting in Black Mountain and wicked good cake from Short Street Cakes, they also offer the work of more local artists on an ongoing basis.  And, word has it that a certain musician who will play in front of the Rocket Club may also play at the cafe.  You'll just have to come see to find out!  444 Gallery Cafe is also having drawings all day for great prizes - food, coffee, gift certificates toward the purchase of some of the art and more!!

Backing up a bit, on Friday, you would have found me at Echo Gallery at Biltmore Park, where the show "Threads" closes this weekend. Some of the guest artist work has already been taken down, but you've still got time to see fabulous work by Jen Swearington and Libby & Jim Mijanovich.  And mark your calendars because next Friday Echo Gallery will open a new show featuring and celebrating the work of member artists Genie Maples, Barbara Fisher, Susan Finer, and Cindy Walton.  It's called 'Paint'. :)

If you don't want to wait to see new work by Genie and Barbara, then head down to the River Arts District for Studio Stroll - everybody's been working hard, making new pretties and cleaning up their spaces.  You'll find demonstrations, performances and some mighty fine hand crafted work in just about every medium imaginable!  Not playing favorites, but Echo Members Genie Maples, Barbara Fisher, Laurie McCarriar, Anna Koloseike and Dawn Dalto all have studios in the RDA.  As well, you'll find current and former guest artists Heather Tinnaro, Alex Stevens and Barbara Zaretksy in their respective studios and/or galleries too!

Now if you're bugging out of town to avoid the heat, you should head up to the Toe River Studio Tour - follow the link and go for me, I'll be basking in the warmth of east-west-asheville artist love but I'm already making plans for the fall Tour!

So that's a lot to do and I've only mentioned a few possibilities - there's also a great event tonight at Harvest Records, then over the weekend you'll also find Art in the Park, the Downtown Market ... and more to be sure.  Don't let the heat slow you down - you know you can refresh yourself greatly if you find your way to the EWA - cool bevvies, great sammies for the body and an array of beautiful hand crafted goodness for the soul (and the wall, the shelf, the cabinet, the arm, the ears....).

Welcome to the Neighborhood, 444 Gallery Cafe!

 the new kids in town! (photo by Zen Sutherland)

We who live and toil in the E-W-A are very pleased to welcome 444 Gallery Cafe to east West Asheville, and I'm very excited to share this coming 2nd Saturday with them as they celebrate their Grand Opening on June 12!

 Glasswear at 444 Gallery Cafe

444 Gallery Cafe is just what it sounds like, a little gallery, a little cafe.  In the gallery you'll find some artists you've seen at the 2nd Saturday Artist Market, some other familiar creative talents from our neighborhood and you'll also see the work of new, emerging artists.

 terrariums in all sizes by Tristan & Rikki

photography by Zen Sutherland

In the cafe, you'll find great deli sandwiches, salads and soups.  You'll find house-roasted meats, breads from West End Bakery, excellent coffee from Dynamite Roasting Company in Black Mountain, dessert selections from Short Street Cakes, for starters.  

 paintings by Mike Reardon adorn a cozy corner

Owners David & Scott are also committed to being as environmentally friendly as possible, so you'll also find biodegradable and compostable take out products.  And one of my favorite things to see at a coffee station - dried pasta coffee stirs!

Come by the 444 Gallery Cafe and be sure to hit The Rocket Club for the 2nd Saturday Artist Market - we welcome 444 Gallery Cafe to our 'hood and look forward to future events and collaborations!

2nd Saturday Artist Market starts tomorrow!

2nd Saturday has finally arrived, and we're all very excited about the start of this season's Artist Markets. 

Excited to be in our new space inside The Rocket Club.

Excited to get the page up on FaceBook and welcome new friends.

Excited to welcome back good friends who were here last year, excited to welcome talented new artists and crafters joining us for the first time. 

Excited to feel the creative vibe of all these incredible artists and sharing that vibe with the community. 

Excited to add food to the overall menu ... excited that our first guest at the 'kitchen table' is Zeytoon. 

Excited to welcome Homeward Bound as our first guests in the Community Booth.  Excited to roll out the red barrel to accept donations for MANNA FoodBank. 

Excited too that right across the street, Drive-By Press will be printing t's at Asheville BookWorks.

Excited we got to flash our 'Asheville Grown' t-shirt and show off samples of the great creations that will be available on MY40 This Morning with Victoria Dunkle.

Let's face it, we're sitting on shpilkes here, we're just a little excited!

Come join us - Saturday, March 13 from 11:00am - 5:00pm (and the 2nd Saturday of each month following, too!).  The Rocket Club, 401 Haywood Road in east-West Asheville!

February Studio Schedule

Well after saying how fast January seemed to be going by, you'd think I'd be ready for February ... but nope, it snuck up on me good!

No special reasons to change the schedule this month - now that doesn't happen too often! Of course, if we're having severe weather, you might want to give a call before you come, but since I live blocks from the studio, if I can't get anywhere else I can always walk to the studio!

And speaking of the weather:

Echo Gallery at Biltmore Park: we bow to the weather gods, and we'll try for Friday, February 12 for the opening reception of our new show (5-8pm). Several Echo Gallery member artists will be adding new work, and we'll be welcoming new work from guest artists Brian Fireman and Tekla, as well as new guest artists Jenny Mastin and Dawn Dalto. The show is almost up now if you want a sneak peek (but call first this weekend if there's 'weather'), but make sure you come by next Friday for the reception and meet the artists, enjoy some tasty nibbles from Travinia and sip on lovely beverages.

I'll be adding a few new things, but my firing will follow the opening so just plan to make another visit to the gallery to see some new trees.

And in other news:

Applications are now available for artists, crafters and community organizations for the
2nd Saturday Artist Market. First Market date is coming up in March, and notifications will start going out in about a week. Artist/craft vendors get space for up to a 6' table/display for $25. Community organizations may apply for a free space to promote their programs. This year we'll also feature food from some very talented local eateries, and as always we'll be a collection point for donations to MANNA FoodBank. Check the blog at the link above for more details.

Crazy Green Happenings in the New Year...

Whew - it's still just January, and I'm still getting used to 2010, but does feel like it's already later to anyone else? Maybe it's that combination of year end wrap up meets new planning - my head is months down the road and it's startling to see the calendar still on '01'.

And before we get into the business, a moment of love and deep appreciation for all the kind words, thoughts, hugs, chocolate, beers and love after the passing of my sweet pup. It means the world and I thank you from the bottom of my crazy green and still dog-hair covered heart.

So here are some developments in the works and on the books I wanted to share:

2nd Saturday Artist Market will be back this year! We had great response to the Market last year, although we did suffer from being 'hidden in plain sight'. Well hopefully that will no longer be a problem as I'm very excited to welcome The Rocket Club as a primary sponsor and the new home of the 2nd Saturday Artist Market. Since we'll be indoors, we don't need to wait for the weather to play along so we'll open this year's Market on March 13. Applications are now being accepted for table space, and this year we'll also welcome some food vendors for when you need a snack! We'll continue the Community Booth and will no doubt unveil more treats and surprises as wel go along. More information is on the 2nd Saturday blog, and application materials will be available on the blog soon (till then you can email me for them).

Workshops! Last year I conducted some custom, one-on-one workshops and they were a big hit, so rather than trying to offer specific formats and agendas, I'm offering that up for the full season. These workshops are for the beginner to intermediate potter-type, for one person or up to five people, and are for anywhere from 3-5 days and include all materials and firings. They also include studio visits to other working potters and guest critiques (and can be customized beyond that too!). Check my website for more details.

Weekend Workshops: In addition to the custom workshops, we'll soon be offering fun weekend workshops that explore the combination of fused glass and clay. I'll be partnering with Noel & George of Glasswear NC for these workshops. We'll play with fused glass projects, we'll play with surface design for tiles in clay, then we'll put the two together and see what we get! Final projects may include mosaic and/or glass-glazed tiles. We're still working out the technical aspects, but space will be limited so if you're interested go ahead and let me know so you can get on the list.

Studio Membership: We have a spot open! If you've always wanted to try pottery, or if you've tried it and always wished you had a place you could go from time to time, with just enough instruction to keep you going and a whole fun with other like minds, this could be for you! More details on the website or contact me.

Echo Gallery at Biltmore Park: I'm working on a new batch of work that I hope to have in the gallery in another month or so. A few teaser pieces may be ready for our next opening on Friday, February 5, and you should come to that anyway to see new work by our other core artists and to see work by our new guests artists: Jenny Mastin, Dawn Dalto, Tekla and Brian Fireman. Travinia will be providing some of the catering for the reception, so after you've had a taste, you can walk up the street for dinner, maybe even a movie! And while you're at the Park you can saunter over to the Hilton to see Asheville Area Art Council's opening of work by Norma Bradley and Calvin Edney - they have a reception as well from 5-8pm.

One final note about some area happenings:

There are many locally produced events happening all over town to raise funds to help relief efforts in Haiti - another reason I love this city! Here are a couple happening this weekend:

Humbly Helping Haiti is a locally grown benefit to raise funds for relief efforts in Haiti (donations to the Red Cross Haiti Relief Fund). Hanger Hall is the location, Saturday January 23 is the date and 7PM - 12Midnight is the time. Live local music by Greenway, Alex Krug w/Ashley Cofield, Joy Jansen and Eric J. Cool prizes including local art, crafts, massage, etc. Tasty eats from Roots Cafe and Laurey's Catering. Tasty beer from the Wedge Brewery and a silent auction of some very nice treats of other sorts. I've donated some work for the auction and raffles, and a very generous anonymous donor will double all funds raised at the event. Modest $5 cover gets you in the door.

Rosetta's Kitchen hosts a Community Cauldron on Sundays from 6-9pm, and this Sunday, January 24 all proceeds will go to Herbs for Orphans, Common Ground, ARRR clinic in Haiti. Go hungry and go generous!

And just for fun and to celebrate those who populate over half the workforce (myself included!):

Tressa's Celebrates Asheville Businesswomen - a great party you can check out after the benefit. Fun starts at 10pm at Tressa's, with Laura Blackley hosting and musical guests The Funk Messengers. There are amazing local business women nominated for awards, including the fabulous Jen Charlton of Sensibilities Day Spa and Sparrow Spa (yes, we favor our friends and clients!). It'll be a great girls night!

Thanks for Shop West Asheville Fun!

We were quite the close group in Crazy Green Studios for the 2nd Saturday Holiday Art Market and Shop West Asheville, and we welcomed a nice stream of people throughout the day. I'm so grateful to the very talented artists who joined me, and to all the neighbors, friends, clients and first time visitors who came through the doors. Thanks to all!

Thanks also to Matt and Steven for getting a camera to capture the event, as I forgot to charge my battery and found out only when I went to take the first picture! Here are some images of the day:


it was warmer out than expected, but we were
still a nice, cozy place to hang with a cup of
hot cider


much of the day the studio was filled - at the right end
of the picture you can see the Potter's Skin Food lotion
by Cara Mia Naturals - it was a huge hit and now
available at Crazy Green Studios if you missed it on Saturday.


sorry that Gabriel Shaffer couldn't be with us, but thrilled
to have his beautiful wife Suzy repping his work, and giving
us the scoop on Zeytoon. Next to Suzy is Diane, Lady Di herself
with her sexy dancewear creations behind her



Noel & George of GlasswearNC with colorful and fun ornaments,
bottle stoppers, jewelry & more. I have the coolest bottle
stopper in my bottle of wine as I type!


Roberta of Piece Blossom, with her beautiful
felted dolls (one sweet doll will soon have a new home
with someone I know in Atlanta!)


yep, yours truly, with Renee of Repose Jewelry
helping a customer try on her beautiful earrings
(this may be right before I got my own lovely
butterfly wings)


the closest we could get to show Repose Jewelry,
as it was often a crowded corner


Mr. Big Crafty hisself (l) checking out the work of
Crazy Green Studios member Matt, who was having
the first public showing of his work at the Holiday Art Market
(and many pots have happy new homes!)

2nd Saturday/East West Art Walk/SHOP WEST ASHEVILLE!

Crazy Green Studios is participating in three holiday events this Saturday and doing it all from the comfort of the studios on Domino Lane! How is this possible? Well, the stars are all aligned...

As faithful followers know, I've began hosting the 2nd Saturday Artist Market this past spring and summer, and this Saturday we'll host the Holiday Artist Market at Crazy Green Studios. This happily coincides with the 2nd annual East West Asheville Holiday Art Walk, which is ALSO coinciding with the first annual Shop West Asheville event! We're like the proton in the nucleus of the atom ... Events start at noon on Saturday December 12 and go till 8pm.

Visit the Shop West Asheville site to find details about more than 50 great local businesses participating, the other TWO artist markets, the window decoration contests, the raffles, the carolers, the MUSIC ... if you didn't already know West Asheville was the coolest, this will be the perfect day to check it all out! (also check out the mention in this week's Mountain Xpress)

And here on Domino Lane and in the EWA portion of the hood, here's what you'll find:

At Crazy Green Studios: I'll be hosting an abbreviated version of the 2nd Saturday Market inside the studio where it's warm and toasty. Joining me in holiday mayhem will be :

Gabriel Shaffer

GlasswearNC

Lady Di's Creations

Piece Blossom

Renee Gaudet, Repose Jewelry

Plus I'll have all sorts of stocking stuffers and great deals for holiday gift ideas in my pottery as well as some from Crazy Green Studio members. Live music is being considered, but there will be music and refreshments too! Check out the 2nd Saturday blog for more info on my guest artists.

And when you come, please bring some canned food or other non-perishables, as we'll be collecting for MANNA FoodBank to help them help our neighbors throughout western NC.

Next door at Mimi Strang Designs, you'll find great new work by Mimi Strang and that of her guests, Kim Dryden and Simone Wilson.

And while you're in this end of the neighborhood, check out 307 Flash Studio and see Christopher Mello and several great artists he'll be hosting. Down the street, Steebo Designs is another MUST on the artist studio tour, then you'll be right on Haywood and poised to start hitting the shops for more great sales and celebrations, not to mention music at the Rocket Club, dinner at The Admiral ... really I could spend pages and pages just on this small strip of Haywood, and then there's MORE throughout West Asheville!

Don't be afraid of the weather, it's gonna be a GREAT day to get out in the neighborhood, support local businesses and artists and have a great time!

December Open Studio Schedule & Events

'Tis the season' has officially begun, and December is upon us filled with special events and studio schedule changes.

For members, please know that some 'closed' days may still have time available - if you're finishing up holiday gifts we'll work out the kiln timing to make sure you get as much through as possible.

For anyone just wanting to visit the studio, if you can't make it during the posted hours, feel free to contact me to make an appointment.

Some of our highlighted dates:

Friday, December 4, 6-9pm: Echo Gallery at Biltmore Park is having a Holiday Open House to celebrate the season and to welcome some new guest artists. I'll have a smattering of new work in the gallery, and in addition to member artists Genie Maples, Laurie McCarriar, Barbara Fisher, Susan Webb Lee, Anna Koloseike and Susan Finer, come check out the work of guest artists Heather Tinnaro, Becca Floyd, Cindy Walton, Tekla, Alex Stevens and Brian Fireman. Come for a nibble and a cuppa, and see some incredible work by some of our area's finest!

Sunday, December 6, 12-6pm: The Big Crafty is back! I'll be at a table downtown at Pack Place with other Big Crafty types, and I'll be featuring super-savings on some great holiday gift ideas that will directly benefit the recent vet bills for Lissa the Wonder Dog and Studio Mascot. Actually, just about ALL sales go directly to benefit that cause right now!

Saturday, December 12, 12-8pm: The 2nd Saturday Holiday Artist Market is happy to coincide with the 2nd East West Asheville Holiday Art Walk which is proudly joining forces with the FIRST annual Shop West Asheville event! All to say that there will be a whole lotta fun, sales and holiday festivities all through West Asheville! And at Crazy Green Studios, I'll be hosting an abbreviated 2nd Saturday Market. My guests include Gabriel Shaffer, Glasswear NC, Piece Blossom, Lady Di Creations and Renee Gaudet. We'll have a raffle, some light refreshments and general holiday cheer abounding!

All of December and a bit beyond: in Decatur, GA is having its annual Holiday Studio Sale, and if you've already gone, plan to go back as I'll be sending work down in December to join the show!

in EWA this weekend...

The kiln is cooling, and I'll have all the exciting details of the weekend of glazing, loading and candling and candling and candling and thermocoupling and firing, but while I move the glaze supplies back into my studio and shake off the last four (five, fifty?) days of fun, here's a little plug for some most excellent fun to be had in East West Asheville this weekend:

A bit about the Market and the Garden Stroll: CLICK HERE
Find out about some of the 2nd Saturday Artist Market vendors: CLICK HERE

September Open Studio Schedule and other cool events...

Ahhhhhhhhh....today I could FEEL the fall in the air, and it felt GREAT! Cool, just a bit breezy, leaves starting to take flight. It is my favorite season!

Here's the September open studio schedule, as always, subject to change! A bit about some of the highlighted dates:

Friday, September 4: that's First Friday! Get out and see some galleries or studio openings, have a little nosh, meet some artists and gaze upon and when ever possible fondle some very nice work. Crazy Green Studios closes early to encourage all studio members to do just this, and with any luck I'll do it too!

We're closed over Labor Day weekend - not so much for the holiday, although I hope all studio members have wonderful weekends, fire up the grill for the beginning of the cool-weather cookouts, hit the beach while the water's still warm ... have a little 'you' time. I'll be in the glaze studio, painting trees and letting brushes dance over a kiln load of pots destined for bridal registries, fine eating establishments and a new gallery, with just a little left over for show stock.

Saturday, September 12: 2nd Saturday Artist Market! This month the Market will be rockin' with many returning and many new vendors, and we expect extra buzz in East West Asheville as it's also the day of the West Asheville Garden Stroll. And we're just a little biased, but we think the hottest stop on the Garden Stroll will be Christopher's Garden, just across the end of Domino Lane, and featuring additional 2nd Saturday Artist Market artists vending in the garden along with Christopher Mello!

Sunday, September 13: OrganicFest! This will be the the fourth year that Crazy Green Studios will have a booth at this wonderful downtown festival celebrating all things organic, healthy, sustainable and local. We are very proud to be the unofficial potters of the OrganicFest!

Friday, September 18: ok, here's the first peep on the blog about the long-awaited new gallery! Echo Gallery at Biltmore Park will have a 'soft' opening, inviting friends and family (that's you!) to come check out our new Co-op gallery on Main Street in Biltmore Park. We're still hanging, painting, organizing and generally walking around going 'can you believe this is really happening?!', and some of us are trying hard not to think too much about all the work going into this one kiln next weekend that will of course come out gorgeous for the gallery. I won't way which one(s) of us who are trying hard not to think about this, I'm just saying...

Friday, September 25: this may change, but as a member of the coop gallery, I'll be working shifts at the gallery, and based on the studio traffic between Thursday - Sunday, when we'll initially be open, Friday is the best day for me to take a shift. It may not be every Friday, but I wanted to keep that one open.

So there you have it dear readers - a bit of the fun and excitement in store at and around Crazy Green Studios - hope to see you at one of this month's events!

2nd Saturday Artist Market this weekend!

It's that time! If you're in the east-West Asheville area on Saturday, be sure to visit the 2nd Saturday Artist Market on Domino Lane, and stroll over through Christopher's Garden and see what delights await you there!

In addition to the participating artists and craftspeople, both anchor studios will be open. At Crazy Green Studios, I'll have a table of 'clearance' items that really want to find a home, and next door at Mimi Strang Design, Mimi is also clearing inventory to make room for her new work, so you'll find deals on the decorative and functional treasures you've been waiting for!

And in the Community Booth, you'll find information on many upcoming community events, cards for other local merchants and as always, you'll have the opportunity to drop off canned food and other non-perishables for MANNA FoodBank. You'll also be able to purchase bowls that will support Imagine Render's 'Empty Bowls Project', which also benefits MANNA FoodBank.

Click the image above to visit the Artist Market blog for profiles on our vendors, and you can find your way here with the maps to the right (also available at the Market blog!).