An Interview with Teahouse Studio

Welcome, friends. I have a very special guest here with us today...Miss Tiffany Moore of the Teahouse Studio. For those of you who do not know about the Teahouse Studio, it is an art studio and workshop space in Berkeley, California, run by Tiffany Moore, Stefanie Renee and Mati Rose McDonough. I wanted to share this with you, because I know so many of you who want to start non-profits, art studios, craft collectives, or curated wedding vendor groups. I, too, have a dream of someday working in a collaborative, creative environment!!! Tiffany is here to share her story and give some advice on this exciting venture.

Without further ado, I give you...Tiffany Moore! Welcome Tiffany!

{All photos by Stefanie Renee}

The Teahouse Studio: An Interview with Tiffany Moore

When you first dreamed up the idea of the Teahouse...what did you envision?

We wanted two things: the first was a workspace for ourselves ~ two painters and a photographer. In addition, though, we wanted to create a space that would foster community and bring people together. We wanted to be able to offer workshops, classes, and gatherings to help other people tap into their own creativity and meet others hoping to do the same.
 

What steps did you take to realize your vision for this space?

 

Not too many, honestly. We didn't really know what we were getting ourselves into it until we had actually signed the lease and were paying the bills. We did talk to a few people about space and did some research on commercial real estate prices. We also talked with Flora Bowley about teaching a workshop (our very first!) and actually had people signing up before we even had the space! That gave us the faith that we could make this work and we leapt on that faith.

Were there any hurdles you had to leap during the process?

 

We had to learn a lot on the fly. When we first moved in, there was this horrible office carpet in the front half of the space (where we knew our workshops were going to be held) and we immediately had it taken up without much of a plan of what to do NEXT. We learned a lot about flooring in the next few weeks ;)
 

How did you raise money to get the studio running?

 

We all tapped into our savings and pooled resources to get things going. We were able to negotiate a free month's rent with our landlord which gave us a little bit of a cushion as well.

Did anything change along the way?

 

Yes and yes and yes! Since none of us had ever undertaken a project like this, we had to change things all the time! It really helped to go into everything with an experimental mindset since we had no idea what would work and what wouldn't. In fact, we are still figuring it all out and adapting all the time!

What advice would you give to others trying to work toward a collaborative environment?

 

Be flexible and trust your partners. We have learned so much about each other throughout this process, and one of the biggest things is that we all have different strengths and have had to find ways to help them complement each other rather than compete.

Also, if you're going into this with other people, get really clear on how you all want to be with each other before anything gets started. There will be tough times and you might even drive each other a little crazy every now and then, but if you come to the relationship from a place of love for each other, it will make everything better.  Mati and Stef have become my sisters, and I wouldn't trade them for anyone in the world!

What have you learned during the process of building this dream?

 

SO much! We had no idea what we were undertaking when we signed on, and honestly, if we knew what was in front of us, I don't think that we would have signed on. We have learned a ton about running workshops, contracts, and marketing.

I think that the biggest learning has been the value of jumping in and figuring out things later. We followed our passions and now we have this amazing space and are getting to meet such wonderful people!  This might not have been the best-advised way to do it, but it was the only way we were going to be able to make it happen.

Would you say that your dream came true?

When I step back and look at things, I would say absolutely! Doing something like this was such a crazy dream of mine, and sometimes I can hardly believe that it's actually happening.

When you're in it, it's easy to get bogged down in the hard work and everyday tedium. We definitely try to do things to make it fun, including daily dance parties and happy hours out on the lawn! 

What big plans are on the horizon for the Teahouse Studio?

So much!  We're still figuring things out and working out all of our kinks, but we have a full schedule for the fall and have some amazing (stay tuned!) peeps booked for the Spring!

We have a lot of BIG dreams for the space, but are definitely trying to take things day by day since we still all have our other businesses too! 

Thank you so much Tiffany for such a lovely interview! The space is so gorgeous and inviting...I cannot wait to visit someday when I finally make a trip to San Francisco again. You can read more about the Teahouse Studio by visiting their website, Facebook page, or following them on Twitter. They are always adding exciting new workshops and fabulous guests! If you're in the Bay Area, you can even visit them on location at 1250 Addison St, Ste 208 in Berkeley!

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In addition to being a co-founder of Teahouse Studio, Tiffany Moore is a coach, artist, change agent and magic maker who believes that everyone can live their happiest, most sparkly life, starting now. Find out more at her website, on facebook or twitter.