Dearest
Naturalist,

Welcome to the wonderful world of strange plants and collected treasure!

 

The Naturalist is a botanical studio and vintage shop in Northeast Ohio. Inspired by Victorian conservatories, walks through the wetlands and treasure hunting at estate sales, The Naturalist is an invitation to slow down and soak in the wonder of what’s already around us.

 

I’m Rachel Gonzales, a designer and former market farmer. I spent nearly a decade working as a graphic designer before realizing I wanted more than fluorescent lights and cubicles. In 2021, I left the corporate world to reconnect with myself and my neighbors. I wanted to better understand what connects us. Why are we all drawn to blue skies, sunsets, and unfurling fern fronds? How do complete strangers seem to speak the same language when they stop to admire a mushroom or a field of wildflowers?

 

Several years farming vegetables and flowers along the coast of Lake Erie helped me understand. When we notice the beauty of the natural world, we connect more deeply with ourselves. We are nature too, after all.

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Through nature crafting workshops, I invite people to spend an afternoon learning, observing, and creating. At markets, I bring together my favorite vintage finds alongside the botanical artwork and living pieces I spend my afternoons making.

 

More than anything, I hope you’ll find a moment to be delighted. Or astounded. To remember what it felt like to be a kid in the woods discovering your first jack-in-the-pulpit. Or, if you never had that experience, to make those memories now.

 

Welcome, Naturalist!

 

I can’t wait to wonder alongside you.

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