Trailer

Speakers: Mike Giordani, Julie Benjamin, Doug Coomer, and Marlee Newman

MIKE: When it comes to things we use day to day, I believe that it matters where something is made, how it's made, and who made it.

JULIE: There's a certain quality that you can pick up on when something is done in a small-scale way. When you go to things that are mass produced or  are on such a big scale, that personal feeling is kind of gone. It loses something, and it sort of doesn't have this depth to it.

MIKE: I'm Mike Giordani. Welcome to Making Us, a podcast about makers, artisans, and creators. We'll dive into their story, how they approach their craft, and the meaning behind the things they make.

I'll be sitting down with people like Doug Coomer from North Bay Candleworks:

DOUG: It's kind of cool to be able to make something. As a kid, I always enjoyed fragrance stuff. I remember buying incense and burning that because, you  know, you liked the smell and things. And now I was able to make a candle that did the same thing.

MIKE: Marlee Newman from LOONA Seeds:

MARLEE: It's so meaningful to have support from people when you're early on and starting out. I just think about, like, the joy, like when I get an order, it's like: "Oooh! You know, you're like, doing a little happy dance."

MIKE: And Julie Benjamin from Farm Alley:

JULIE: It's really about providing a resource, and growing that resource, like a type of flower, like coreopsis, which makes a dye, to solely have it be for someone else to create with.

MIKE: These are the people behind small independent businesses who had a vision, and then the courage, to bring something new to life.

They often take unexpected paths to get to where they are, and no matter what they're making, there's something deeper that gets made in the process — a sense of connection and community, and that's really what this show is all about.

So go ahead and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

And if you want to say hello, you can find us at MakingUs.com.

Thanks for listening, and see you soon.