Why a Virtual Retreat (Built for YOU) Matters

Is it not incredible to be able to say, “I’m going to a retreat at an Italian villa for a week to paint!”?

Of course it is. We’re not trying to take anything away from that experience, especially if it works for you. Especially if the vacation is needed. Especially if you’re supported in your creative work before, during, and after the retreat. 

Unfortunately, it’s not always the break, vacation, or lasting inspirational journey we need. Post-retreat crash and malaise are common, not the least of reasons being there’s rarely any support of your craft after the retreat ends. There might be a friendly check in from the folks you attended with. And a plug for the next retreat of course. But rarely does anyone follow up in the weeks after to see what you’re working on now, how that new painting schedule you proclaimed on a sun-soaked terrace was absolutely going to stick because of all the inspiration you’ve found is going.

Inspiration is great. 

It’s also unreliable. And fleeting. Building skills and consistency based on inspiration alone is never sustainable.

So why do it this way? 

One day, we hope to have a physical retreat space (or several, we can dream). We know that the screen can be a barrier for some folks and deep, personal moments are often more difficult to achieve in a short span of time via webcams. 

However, we want to be as accessible as possible to anyone wanting to experience our services, without spending even more money and time on travel. 

Virtual retreats are also more accessible for those who struggle with in person meetings, physically and/or mentally. For some, a chronic condition or disability might make not only the travel to but experiences planned at a gorgeous villa with mountain views unattainable due to accessibility limitations. For others, small group retreats create more anxiety than space — whether it’s the ‘freedom’ of an unstructured retreat for those needing set schedules, or the possibility of personality clashes with fellow attendees, or the retreat guide(s), or an inability to feel comfortable creating in a space with people they don’t know, freezing their creative muscles in a place they should be able to relax. 

The alternative: a retreat built for you — just you.

There’s a lot of issues that can sour the group travel experience when a) you don’t know anyone else in attendance and b) the retreat experiences sound good in theory but ultimately are designed to make group activities easy (and the addition of excursions, sharing time, meals, etc.) for the organizers. Any good retreat organizer wants to ensure their attendees have a good time, but at the end of the day, you’re there for the experience they have curated, not one you helped curate for your specific needs, goals, projects etc. 

That’s different with us. We work with you to build a retreat that has structure, but ultimately is about you. 

You may love hiking. Most of us could use a refreshing walk to fire up the creative synapses on a more frequent basis, but is that really something you want to pay for during a time when you’re not only supposed to find inspiration but be able to capture that experience and carry it with you beyond the hike, beyond the group meal where we reflect on it, and beyond the couple photos snapped at the top? 

Movement, getting out in nature, and using it as fuel for your work all helps cultivate creativity. But is the group walk also addressing what’s keeping you from engaging with your creative practice and projects once you’re back home, staring at a blank page or canvas or guitar or pile of art supplies you haven’t touched in months?

Crafting a retreat for you, personally, designed for your needs, your goals, your life circumstances, we believe is a valuable investment. And we absolutely include moments of fun, exploration, revelation, and movement. But in a way that suits you best (and a time that does, too).

That’s what we want to help you find — the ability to create consistently and sustainably while life keeps happening around you. Not a once in a lifetime escape to try and capture moments to possibly fuel you for a short time after the experience. 

We lift you up during your retreat, set up goals for after, and actually follow up with understanding and compassion if those goals haven’t settled into your everyday life. We want your creative practice to become as natural a routine as brushing your teeth, and we’ll help you find adjustments so creating doesn’t feel like a chore.