My son has been to several summer camps at the Middlebury Studio School. He was fully engaged in…read moreeach camp he attended. He loved going in the morning, and when I picked him up he looked forward to what they would do the following day. I thought his teacher was fantastic. She kept the kids thinking and creating all week and I always felt that my son's experience was fully about him, and not about finishing something to be brought home to a parent. Now, he did bring home amazing creations, but they were completely from his imagination (not from a pre-packed arts and crafts dealer!). This year summer classes were offered at St. Mary's School in Middlebury. We loved the location and much preferred it to the Gailer School, where they were offered last year.

Sprawling. Crowded. Pricey. As a longtime skier in the northeast, I lose a little bit of ski soul…read moreevery time I encounter the reality of $249/day window rate lift ticket pricing, like what Sugarbush and its corporate overlord Alterra have unleashed on former independent gems like Sugarbush. Yes, most people will never pay $249/day because they're buying $200 online tickets, but sit with that for a second... $200/day x 2 days for a weekend + food/gas/etc means at least $500 for an average weekend of skiing before you even get to lodging. And that's absurd. Its no exaggeration to say that setting day-of pricing to over $200/day is a marketing (read: extortion) ploy to advance sales of even more expensive multi-mountain passes like Ikon, intended to lock customers into a collection of other overpriced mega-mountains, ensuring customers never know what alternatives there are out there to the over-priced, over-skied, nickel-and-dime experience that modern corporate skiing with has become. And while most customers will mindlessly one-click renew their Epic (Vail) and Ikon (Alterra) passes each year, economically the only reason these passes makes sense is when you have plans for a week away at a different exotic ski resort under the same corporate ownership that epouses equivalently over-priced day rates. In case you missed it, that's an increasingly large array of Vail and Alterra's mega resorts, as consolidation within the ski industry continues its supernova trajectory, targeting any mountain nearing triple-digit trail counts as the next pin in their corporate hats. If that sounds extreme, it's not. It's the reality many of us who've been around a while have seen play out. And it's important to understand because of the very real, far superior options available to the mainstream corporate pass skiing experience. Let me illustrate by a simple comparison: one day at a local independent mountain (Bolton Valley) vs one day at a corporate machine (Sugarbush). SUNDAY AT SUGARBUSH: riding up high-speed 5m lifts with few lines, but dumped into crowded trails laden with bumpy pockets of snow atop an icy, unpredictable base - a natural consequence of pushing hordes of skiers faster and faster up a mountain without any ticket limits that might ensure a better skiing experience. I consider myself an expert skier, who's skied some of the steepest terrain in the world, but skiing icy, unpredictable slopes like Sunday at Sugarbush force-limits anyone's ability to improve, by defaulting to minimum viable slopes stripped of any natural snowfall. It's the equivalent of the mafia offering to fix your garbage problem that it, itself, created. It's the false claim of fixing over-crowded, over-skied trails with more snow-making and faster lifts... which just put more bodies, scraping more snow, creating more of a problem than existed before. However, more bodies on mountain = more food/bev sales for corporate coffers, which ever-present signage reminding you of $1/paper cup charges won't let you forget. Heaven help anyone who just paid $249/day at the window is not also paying for double-digit drinks and $38 pizzas - the horror! SATURDAY AT BOLTON VALLEY: riding up 10m lifts with zero lift lines, skiing uncrowded glades/trails laden with soft, natural powder atop zero ice - a natural consequence of force-limiting ticket sales with smaller parking lots, less traffic, and a family-friendly, independent focus. Window pricing $49 - $109/day, but equally skiable for an entire weekend on a modest $300 season pass (Indy). TL;DR: a split-view compare of independently-owned resorts who prioritize experience over exploitation, independence over incorporation, and presence over pace. Most folks reading this review will assume it's an advert for competitors. It's not. It's a rare insight into two mountains 45m from each other who've taken entirely different paths to profitability and achieved radically different outcomes: one driven to maximize pricing and bodies on the hill, another by nearly six decades of family ownership that's driven by affordability and great experience. As with all things consumer, we all have a choice of where to spend our dollars. Having spent decades skiing the mega-mountains, traveling across the world to ski other Alterra/Ikon resorts like A-Basin, Mammoth, Stratton, and Palisades I can legitimately say the experience is the same: over-crowded, icy weekend skiing in the corporate Frankenstiens trying to solve an unsolvable problem of over-sold slopes with fake snow and higher pricing vs the still-here, uncrowded Indies indexing for reliability, affordability, and uniqueness. There's value in slowing things down, taking in stunning vistas, and paying a lot less to experience a lot more. See beyond trail counts and lift speed and you'll find an entire world of better skiing by generations of family-owned resorts beholden to a different master: your enjoyment, not corporate's bottom line.

The farmhouse rental and ski repair shop which is the sugarbush ski service shop did a great job…read morewax and tuning the edges on my skis. I felt as though I had a new pair of skis after they worked their magic (took about a half hour in the morning). The grooming of the slopes and the friendly lift operators and mountain representatives were also great when I visited the mountain yesterday. The Ted's beef chilli stew topped with cheese and Jalapenos was a great lunch.

The school has two nice playgrounds: one more appropriate for children under 5 and the other for…read moreolder kids. Well kept and clean. Easy parking.

I took a pottery lesson at Blockhouse, and it was a wonderful experience. The people were friendly…read moreand kind in helping me out as someone new to the pottery wheel, and I created a number of pieces I decided to keep. The front shop has pottery pieces from a number of different artists, so there are many different styles. Highly recommend for classes and for shopping.

My first time making pottery and I couldn't have picked a better place! I had a private lesson with…read moreLeigh and she was amazing! I made a few pieces which they finished and shipped to me. The shipping was quick and the packaging was great! Looking forward to starting my pottery making journey! Thank you blockhouse studio and a special thanks to Leigh!!!

I did not attend a workshop onsite, instead I was lucky enough to live near a Whole Foods that…read moreoffered a cheese making seminar with the couple that owns Three Shepards. It was an amzing experience, a short overview of cheese making. Enough to get you started with the basics and wanting to know more! They really know there stuff and use the best organic ingredients. I'd highly recommend learning from them when they go on the road and hopefully someday I'll make it to their farm in Vermont for the longer workshops they offer!

Knowledgeable and friendly staff. Extremely expensive for what you get. They charge you $8/night…read moreto sleep in your car on the property, in an abandoned parking lot. Food is moderately expensive but delicious and farm fresh, the cook Heidi rocks. The courses are around $700/week and move very slowly, with a large range of people all wanting different things. The property has a lot of junk on it and many of the buildings are half finished. So while the website depicts the school as an ambassador for green design, when you get there it is more of a hippie (for lack of a better word) center for building. If you're looking for something laid back and have the money to spend, it is a good time.

Yestermorrow is a great learning environment and mind-expanding atmosphere…read more I have attended three courses: from hands-on tools, to design & prefabrication, to business oriented. All three were a great source for knowledge and somehow life changing. The instructors practice what they teach on a daily basis and there seems to be no limit to what one can learn from them. The accommodations are very appropriate for the school size, courses, and crowd it gathers. My bunk bed was, twice, a smart choice, that gave me the chance to interact during and after dinner with different people. The food is super healthy, and delicious. I'm not vegan or that stuff, and I always had seconds. In case of going on a scheduled field trip, master chef Heidi will make sure you get a great lunch and even snacks. The staff are the most laid back, friendly, yet professional people. Classes and tours follow an appropriate schedule, and they adjust to follow to people with different backgrounds. I am a registered architect with over 20 years of experience, and I always felt the pace to be very comfortable. I look forward to my upcoming eight-day certification course!

Always willing to help. Amazing customer service. Can't recommend highly enough…read more If you're thinking of buying a sewing machine, there's no better place. Free service on your new machine in the first year after you purchase it there. Class instruction on your new machine for $25 which is refunded after you take the class.

I had a sewing machine that decided to break down in the middle of a major project and was looking…read moreat at least 6-8 weeks before anyone in the Burlington area could even look at it ! Someone suggested these guys so I called made a same day appointment and they were AMAZING!!!! They had my machine fixed in under an hour and well under the quoted estimate!!!! Well worth traveling a little over an hour to get there and if I could give over 5 stars I would! Thank you so very much for your wonderful customer service!!!

If you're looking for a great teacher Bob is your guy! I studied in that studio for years and proud…read moreto be doing music professionally.

Great place to study for all ages and abilities. Bob has cranked out a lot of talented musicians in…read moreVT!