Simplified: It can be easy to miss the behind-the-scenes effort – the people brewing your coffee, arranging the flower bouquet for your table, putting candy out in the office candy bowl. A new video series from two local business owners aims to spotlight that unseen labor and build appreciation for "The Effort Aesthetic."
Why it matters
- Sidney Borrill-Patch, owner of Tea event venue Wynn + Wonder, said started "The Effort Aesthetic" video series out of a desire to highlight intentionality and community. Her inspiration was, in part, her own grandparents and the small things they did that made her stays with them so special – a beautifully set table, cider in crock pot, an always-full candy dish.
- Borrill-Patch teamed up with the husband and wife duo behind Brase Images to capture the stories of local business owners who put in that extra effort to make something beautiful.
- Each of the videos comes with a little challenge for viewers to put in their own effort. The idea is it takes work to be a part of a community. As Brase co-owner Brayden Peterson put it, that if people want to build a village, they have to be willing to be a villager.
"I want it to become a ripple effect," Borrill-Patch said.
Tell me more
The first episode of the series was released on Instagram last week, and it featured a conversation with InFlower founder Stephanie Thi in her downtown floral shop.
- The episode features Thi's personal journey in the industry, how she decided to start her own business, and a candid conversation on flower arrangements, their impermanent nature and the overall vibe and aesthetic of InFlower.
Future episodes will feature other local business owners, particularly those with a strong passion for beauty and quality in the products and services they're bringing.
"You don't start a business going, 'meh,'" Borrill-Patch said. "They do it because they have the heart, and they see a need. When things in life are just transactional, it's hard to separate that little blip in your day from (the business owner) being a whole person behind it."
The videos also aim to reflect on some of the behind-the-scenes work that goes into those little "blips" in the day.
"I think it's important to come back to those little parts of our day and magnify all that went into putting that together," Peterson said.
