Play 05
Mel Calver || Intentional Play
Being a multi-hyphenate, a polymath, has become more than idea of late, it has become an ideal for many. More and more people want to have a variety of strings to their bow, a variety of mediums in their tool kit, a variety of communities and clients. But very few truly achieve this accolade. Today’s guest is the most wonderful example. Mel Carver is someone who acts on her ideas.
Mel Calver has a creative life that is a delightfully unexpected tapestry. She is the founder and creative director of Melanie Giles - a a collection of three hair salons across Somerset. All fizz with energy, buzz with hairdryers and yet which offer a sanctuary of great coffee and conversation. Alongside this she runs ReRooting, a cutting and kitchen garden where she plays and happens to supply herbs and flowers to Landrace Bakery, and herbs to Margaux Henderson’s Three Horse Shoes.
“I don’t want the flowers to become a big enterprise.”
Image Credit: Hana Snow
Image Credit: Mel Calver
Mel’s drive and ambition is quiet. Perhaps even enigmatic. And yet its outcome is abundantly clear. Every conversation with her is peppered with adventurous ideas and plans. It’s infectious. Her sense of play is independent and built on an intuition I admire immensely. I can assure you that Mel’s story will get you thinking about your own talents, ideas and sense of play, who you surround yourself with and the promise of what might be possible. We are going to talk about plants and hair and baking, the delight in working in contrasting disciplines and how to protect play for the sake of play in the midst of it all.
“I love the contrast of putting my trainers on and doing hair, and then coming back to the garden and cutting the herbs. ”