Handmade Happiness

[Unglued: Craft Fest, Retreats & Summer Camp]

Story by Tracy Nicholson
Photography by M.Schleif Photography

As Unglued's founder, Ashley Morken will tell you, crafting can change the world - especially in the dead of winter. On the eve of Unglued: Craft Fest's 10th Anniversary, we took a trip downtown to visit the store, make her pose on a giant spool of thread, and get the lowdown on what's coming up. Mark your calendar for February 21-22 and get ready to meet the makers that drive Morken's passion. Taking over all three levels of Plains Art Museum will be 70 carefully curated, handmade makers, artists, and crafters, along with handcrafted food, free workshops and a craft beer garden. When Morken sets out to cure your cabin fever, she takes aim with the big guns - well, glue guns, to be more accurate.

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DIY or Die

Located on bustling Broadway in Downtown Fargo, Unglued's store is a charmed and vibrant mecca of modern crafts representing over 200 regional makers. Admire Morken's ever-changing window displays or take a tour inside and explore the handiwork you likely won't find anywhere else.

​Seven-and-a-half years ago, Morken made the transition from a career in nursing to a career in boutique retail. She had already been hosting crafting events for a few years prior, and her stress-relieving hobby had quickly turned into her passion. Morken creates environments and ongoing events focused on redefining the concept of modern crafting. The result is a rekindled interest from people all around the Midwest. She encourages every generation to unplug and unwind - teaching people what it feels like to create something with their own two hands. Between her workshops, fests, retreats, and camps, the goal is to set aside what ails you and find harmony in what's in front of you. 

Yeobo Sweet Shop

Inside Unglued, you'll find the sweet treats of her sister-in-law, Kristina Lau. Made-from-scratch cupcakes and a wall of 60 unique gummy candies pave a sugary path to an array of lollipops, giant jawbreakers and everything in between. Her gourmet cupcake selection uses whole, natural, quality ingredients and is available in-store in four flavors and by special order.

Wondering what Yeobo means? According to Morken, Yeobo (여보) is a term of endearment in Korean meaning “Honey” or “Sweetheart”. The name was brought home from a trip Morken's brother and sister-in-law took to study abroad in South Korea - it also happens to be where they got engaged.

Unglued: Craft Fest 1.0

"I was a nurse, before I started the store, and was getting together with friends to make and sew things. We just thought it was amazing to get together at night after our boring nine-to-five jobs and make stuff," laughed Morken. "Some of my friends even started selling at craft fairs and traditional shows. Their work was insanely high quality and had this cool, modern twist, but it was still getting overlooked," explained Morken. "We then started to meet a few other pockets in these traditional fairs that were indie or alternative and they were having the same frustrations."
​
This challenge is what eventually spurred Morken to create her own craft fest in Fargo, catering to their distinct style of high-quality work, with a modernized appeal. "I really felt like our community needed this and I wanted to do it after the holiday shows were done, in the dead of winter," said Morken. Afterward, her fate would snowball with Unglued: Craft Fest becoming an annual event, a pop-up shop, and eventually a permanent storefront.

Happy 10th Birthday, Unglued: Craft Fest!
​

"We did our first craft fest at the American Legion building 10 years ago and it was never intended to become more than that," said Morken. Now, on the verge of Unglued: Craft Fest's 10th Anniversary at the end of February, it's time to celebrate with all things over-the-top.

This year will feature 70 makers, including 33 who are new to the fest. "We are going to have a big throwback to the past vendors, so we'll fill the skywalk with a nod to the 650 vendors that we've had over the years. They're mostly from North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota - with some in Iowa, Montana and Mississippi," said Morken. To make sure the vendor and shopping experience is new and progressive, Morken will once again rely on a jury of fresh eyes to help curate. 

"This will be a huge celebration with a massive sheet cake and a lot of birthday fun. We're planning an extra-loaded, free Creativity schedule that will be released shortly after February 1st," said Morken. "These will be free workshop opportunities for kids and adults to get creative, especially in the Center for Creativity at the Plains Art Museum. We will also have a caricature row, craft beer garden, flash tattoos, and locally made cupcakes, bread, cookies, hard candies and jams."

"At Craft Fest, we always try to have creative experiences for people to add to the shopping experience; it puts the focus on the makers. If we can get others to be creative, it gives them even more reason to come out and support makers, but also maybe find their own fulfillment in crafting," said Morken.

"You can expect to see the Plains Art Museum packed full of incredible makers. Three floors of modern, unique and handmade items. Here you get to meet the maker, learn their process, and try out workshops for yourself. There are plenty of free classes, crafty experiences (including beer), and awesome energy throughout," said Morgan Schleif, an Unglued crew member & photographer.

Get your Tickets!

​The event is scheduled for February 21-22 at the Plains Art Museum. Friday night will be a ticketed night and that will continue as a crafty preview party, but as a birthday present to you, they're dropping the ticket price to $15 for pre-bought tickets and $25 at the door. Tickets will include three projects to make on all three levels with screenprinting on the top floor and $5 in Unglued cash to spend at the booth of your choice.

Unglued Retreats: Winter & Fall

On a whim, after the holidays last winter, Morken held Unglued's first Winter Retreat at Sons of Norway in Downtown Fargo. This casual, one-day event is currently scheduled for March 7, 2020, and might just leave you fully recharged, going home with a new skill, rekindled relationship or a few new friends. The goal is to enjoy the process as much as the result. When it comes time to take your place at the craft table and you'd rather buy than try - that's ok too. Her events cater to every skill level or no skill level at all.

"With our events, we try to combine all of the really good things in life. We believe people need to get busy with making things with their hands, but they aren't always up for trying that, so we include things like cocktails, yoga, or doing something outside of an Unglued venue to draw people in," said Morken. 

"The Retreats are perfect for exactly that, retreating," said Schleif. "Breaking your routine for the day and enjoying all the goodness the season has to offer. Whether it’s taking a sauna in a blizzard, learning blacksmithing in the fall breeze, knitting hats, making lefse in a farmhouse or just getting cozy AF in sweats while you color a snarky swear word filled coloring book. It’s so easy to get caught up in your day-to-day, but the fall and winter retreats remind you to embrace the changes we have here in the Midwest."

Unglued Summer Camp

Started in 2015, Unglued Summer Camp is the brainchild of Morken and her husband who wanted to create an adult camp fusing the nostalgia of their youth with the perks of adult life (aka, cocktails and fancy food). "We had been doing kid's day camps in our tiny backroom here, and we still do those, but we started hearing a lot of adults say that they wanted to go back to camp. We had been looking into camps for ourselves on the west coast, just for fun to get away and get into the outdoors. Those two ideas came together, and we realized that this thing we wanted, didn't exist, so we thought we should just do it," laughed Morken. Unglued's Summer Camp is held over Labor Day weekend, and the weekend prior.

This is a quirky paradise on Cormorant Lake where adults choose their own adventures and go to bed in actual YMCA cabins and bunk beds. Wake up to the trumpet calls or opt to sleep in for a fancy pants breakfast and mimosas planned by Food Network's Molly Yeh. Campers can learn a new craft in one of their many workshops, play kickball or spend your afternoon sunbathing. At night, campers can take in themed dance parties with DJs and cocktail bars, or sneak off for unlimited s'mores.

"The hype is real,” said Schleif. "You’ll quickly learn that Ashley makes sure that magic exists at every Unglued event. Each experience is it's own and brings you back to the idea that your child-like sense of wonder can still exist. Whether its fireworks behind dancers with unicorns on their heads, a giant blow-up swan in the middle of a lake, an alpaca happy hour, an event where the dress code is sweatpants, or simply sitting next to strangers and leaving as friends - it's always fun to see what surprise lies around the corner."

"Campers earn merit badges throughout the weekend, so they're motivated to do workshops, and keep it creatively focused. We never want it to be one of those camps that are only made for creative entrepreneurs, makers or bloggers. We want this camp to be for people like me when I was a nurse and needed this more than anything else in life; a break from routine and a chance to connect with so many things, like the outdoors and new people. I've met people from all over the Midwest, even California who have come to the camps and they're really enjoying Fargo and Minnesota in a new way, and not writing it off. It's been huge; I think these events really help people to love living here and love the people and makers they meet."

Pull Quote:

"Unglued Summer Camp is everything you wish camp was as a kid. It’s this crazy universe where work doesn’t exist and you see adults of all ages crafting, dancing, learning, merit-badge earning, slip-n-sliding, and leave feeling a sense of 'I can kick ass at anything'. It’s the best!"
Morgan Schleif, Unglued crew member & photographer

Get your Tickets!

The 6th Annual Unglued Summer Camp is coming back this year with two weekends, Aug 28-30 or Sept 4-6 at the beautifully campy YMCA Camp Cormorant in Lake Park, Minn. Registration is by two rounds of lottery and opens on Memorial weekend. ​

The Making of Unglued

While most know Morken as a creative leader and avid supporter of the arts, her ambitions almost took her elsewhere. She was raised on the Iron Range in Minnesota and blames her upbringing for her big ideas. "I grew up in a smaller town and you were never told that things weren't possible," laughed Morken.

"I didn't really consider myself to be a maker, but more so someone who loves the activity and takes pride in connecting talented makers to people within the community. When I was younger, I wasn't really involved in art and I was never sewing beyond Home Ec. It wasn't until I moved to Fargo that friends started talking about getting together and having a sewing night. The first night I got made fun of because I didn't even know how to carry the sewing machine or realize that it had a handle on top of the case," laughed Morken.

While her husband of 12 years, Justin Morken, often assists with her window displays and events, he is also a full-time employee of Hope Lutheran Church, managing three campuses as their Technical Arts Director. "I didn't think I'd stay here in Fargo, but then Justin and I got to know the community and fell in love with living here and what we could do here. There's just something about the magical sides of Fargo, where it's still in that sweet spot; if you're driven to do something, you can do it here," said Morken.

Our creative community is growing, but I think there should be more opportunities for makers than there are right now. There's been a driving force to keep doing the Craft Fest, workshops, camps and things like the Drekker Craft Markets and Creative Mornings at Drekker Brewing Co. - this is where we can help to connect businesses to makers for their own purposes and events. Helping people find makers in the community became my purpose and passion. It's not just fulfilling to me - over time it became a mission that I felt our community needed to help add to our creative culture. That's what I always wanted in life, something that would make a difference using what I knew how to do."

[ Save the Dates! ]

10th Anniversary Unglued: Craft Fest

• Feb 21-22
  
• Plains Art Museum, Fargo, N.D.

Unglued Winter Retreat 

• March 7
  
• Sons of Norway, Fargo, N.D.

Unglued Summer Camp 

• Aug 28-30 and Sept 4-6
  
• YMCA Camp Cormorant, Lake Park, Minn.

Unglued Fall Retreat 

• October 2020
  
• Crooked Lane Farm, Colfax, N.D.

For more information, contact:

​Unglued 

• 408 Broadway, Fargo
• 701.205.1597
• ungluedcraftfest@gmail.com
  • ungluedmarket.com 
  • Facebook: Unglued
  • Instagram, Twitter & Pinterest: ungluedmarket

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