This series is now over. Please visit the Winter-Spring series  page for current classes!

Powell River, BC
Multiple Sunday and occasional Saturday afternoons Sep 22 to Oct 20, at Sycamore Commons (Townsite Anglican Church) and other Powell River locations.

This series of workshops, classes and demos covers a variety of homesteading topics including food growing and preservation, baking, and crafts. Many sessions are hands-on and all are taught by local experts. You can attend as many classes as you wish.

UHSPR operates workshops in co-operation with the Sycamore Commons permaculture project and the Skookum Food Provisioners’ Cooperative.

Class Schedule

Date
Sun Sep 22	How to Knit Socks	FULL Sour Dough- yes it really is that easy!
Sun Sep 29	Make your own fruit and herb vinegars
Sun Oct 6		FULL Beginner Cheese Making (Seniors Hall)
Sun Oct 13
Sun Oct 20	Sprouts and Microgreens – Grow your own winter salads	Learn to Make Water Kefir

These sessions aim to be zero waste and support local producers. Please help us reduce our carbon footprint by carpooling, biking, walking or using the bus to get to and from the sites.

Location

Most sessions take place at Sycamore Commons at the Townsite Anglican Church, 6310 Sycamore St. Please enter through the rear basement doors. Bus route 1 stops right outside, or across from, the church.

Cost

• Each workshop is individually priced. Materials fees are included in the price.
• Part Scholarships are available – contact Kevin directly: 604 483 9052 or kevin@kevinrwilson.ca
• Work trades are available

Deposit of $20 on registration, please – see registration form

Class Details 

FULL Sour Dough- yes it really is that easy!

Sun Sep 22, 2 pm

Why not make bread the way it’s been made for eons. Not only is it richer tasting and fun, but it’s also better for our health. Sourdough uses wild yeast from the air to ferment the bread.
We will learn how to take care of our wild yeast starter, how to trouble shoot the stages of making bread and then bake it. We will talk about different flour, different ways to bake, and the benefits of sourdough versus conventional quick yeast breads.
Students will get some starter to take home.

Cost: $35 includes ingredients
Length: 2 hr
What to bring: Jar to take home starter
Instructor: Kelly Von Bargen
Location: Sycamore Commons

How to Knit Socks

Sun Sep 22, 2 pm

This session will show you multiple different ways to knit socks. You’ll get to try out double pointed needles, two circs, and Magic Loop on one long circular needle: see different kinds of toes and heels in-process: discover the difference between toe up and toe down (and why you might choose one or the other): demystify “Two at a Time”: and knit a simple heel, the part that scares people most about socks! You should be comfortable knitting, purling, increasing and decreasing to get the most out of this class.

Length: 2 hr
Cost: $30
What to bring: note-taking equipment
Instructor: Kevin Wilson
Location: Sycamore Commons

Make your own fruit and herb vinegars

Sun Sep 29, 2 pm

Vinegar “wants to be”, and making it is easy! Learn to make apple cider vinegar and other fruit vinegars from juice or scraps, and how to flavour them to make other fruit and herb vinegars.

Length: 2 hr
Cost: $35 includes ingredients
What to bring: TBA
Instructor: Kevin Wilson
Location: Sycamore Commons

FULL Beginner Cheesemaking

Sun Oct 6, 2 pm

We will make delicious Paneer, Ricotta and some Chevre. Making all of this is shockingly easy for a beginner cheesemaker and doesn’t involve the long wait times that more advanced cheesemaking does. There will be lots of time for instruction, answering questions and socializing. We will be finishing off the class with some snacks and a tasting of all the cheeses we make. If you bring a mason jar and a small container you’re welcome to take the whey home as well as some cheese!

Course comes with a small booklet of recipes and beginner information, including where to buy ingredients and supplies.

Cost: $65 (due to expensive materials and expensive venue!)
Length: 3 hr
What to bring: containers
Instructor: Samantha Sherman
Location: Seniors Hall large kitchen, in Cranberry

Sprouts and Microgreens

Sun Oct 20, 2 pm

Winter greens are easy to grow at home. Sprouts will grow on your kitchen counter or windowsill, while microogreens are happier with a little extra light, but both give you a great return for not much effort. Kevin will show you the process, describe equipment, and provide seeds to start your own sprouts in class, along with greens samples to take home.

Cost: $40 includes sprouts, microgreens and seeds
Length: 2 hr
What to bring: Wide mouth canning jar with lid to hold started sprouts. Lidded container for microgreens.
Instructor: Kevin Wilson
Location: Sycamore Commons

Learn to Make Water Kefir

Sun Oct 20, 2 pm

Learn how to make simple, delicious, fermented water kefir. No dairy, just fruit, organic sugar, water and a few days only to brew. It’s a wonderful and healthy beverage that’s one of the easiest to make and you reap the benefits of a variety of vitamins, minerals, enzymes, antioxidants and more. Kids and adults alike love it.

Cost: $35
Length: 1.5 hr
What to bring: 1 litre jar with tight fitting lid, 1/4 cup sugar (preferably organic), 1/2 cup fresh/dried or frozen fruit, wooden/silicone spoon to stir.
Instructor: Lisa-Marie Bhattacharya
Location: Sycamore Commons

Registration

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Please send your registration using the button above, then pay your $20 deposit per workshop using one of these methods:

• Email bank transfer to uhspr-payments@kevinrwilson.ca
• Paypal:
  
• Cash or check (made out to Kevin Wilson): send to or drop off at 5865 Mowat Ave, Powell River, BC, V8A 4C2

Cancellation policy
50% refund up to 2 weeks before
No refund after that but you are welcome to send a substitute

Part scholarships and work trades are available – contact Kevin directly: 604 483 9052 or kevin@kevinrwilson.ca