2015 Plaid Friday Photo Booth

Here’s a sneak peek of the photos from Monadnock Buy Local’s Plaid Friday Photo Booth with Kimberly Peck Photography.  Stay tuned for more! Photographs will be available for purchase at www.kimberlypeckphotography.com.

 

 

 

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6th Annual Plaid Friday Event

Individuals across the Monadnock Region pledge to wear plaid on November 27th to show their support for the local economy.

Monadnock Buy Local’s sixth annual Plaid Friday Event is set for Friday, November 27, 2015.  Individuals are pledging to wear plaid on Plaid Friday to show support for the local economy and their commitment to choosing gifts from locally owned businesses this holiday season. Last year, over 250 community members committed to participating in Plaid Friday. RSVP on Facebook today!

Plaid Friday celebrates the diversity and creativity of local and independent businesses. It’s a fun and festive alternative to the “Black Friday” consumer frenzy perpetuated by big box stores. It’s also a great way for the community to show its support for Monadnock Buy Local — a network of locally owned businesses, organizations and individuals working to build a stronger local economy.  This event originated in Oakland, CA with the intent to bring back the times when shopping for friends and family was a pleasurable and leisurely activity.

Plaid Friday is part of the “Shift Your Shopping” Holiday Campaign in the Monadnock Region.  From November 1 to December 31, Monadnock Buy Local encourages residents to choose local and independent businesses for more of their holiday purchases.

Last year, a survey conducted by the Institute for Local Self Reliance found that, nationally, independent retailers experienced a 4.8% average increase in holiday sales, beating many competing chains (holiday sales for all retail businesses fell 0.9% last year). Retailers surveyed in the Monadnock Region experienced a 10.8% average increase in holiday sales.

“The efforts of Monadnock Buy Local to promote the benefits of shopping at locally owned businesses are certainly evident in our stores,” stated Willard Williams, co-owner of The Toadstool Bookshops.  “Many, many people told us they were doing all their holiday shopping locally.  Plaid Friday, Shift Your Shopping — I’m confident all this contributed to the 11% increase in December sales at our bookstore in Keene.”

Fifteen locally owned businesses will serve as Plaid Friday Hubs, photographing customers decked out in plaid and answering questions about this event.  This year’s Plaid Friday Hubs include: Brewbakers in Keene, Cheshire Horse in Keene, Dragonfly Shop in Keene, Hannah Grimes Marketplace in Keene, Inn at Valley Farms in Walpole, Life is Sweet in Keene, Monadnock Food Co-op in Keene, Monadnock Oil & Vinegar in Peterborough, One Stop Country Pet Supply in Keene, Terrapin Glassblowing Studio in Jaffrey, Toadstool Bookshops in Keene and Peterborough, Walpole Mountain View Winery in Walpole, Walpole Valley Farms in Walpole and Your Kitchen Store in Keene.

Kimberly Peck Photography will set up a Plaid Friday Photo Booth outside of the Toadstool Bookshop in Peterborough from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Three local farmers will set up their own tables next to the photo booth, including Holland Homestead Farm of Hillsborough, Woodard Sugar House of Surry and FiberDreams Farm of Temple. Photographs will be available for purchase through Kimberly Peck Photography via kimberlypeckphotography.com or kpeckphoto@comcast.net.  Monadnock Buy Local will add all the photos taken to our annual collage, celebrating all who wore plaid.

The Monadnock Region’s Plaid Friday event is sponsored by Brown Computers, Cheshire Horse, Hannah Grimes Marketplace, Howard’s Leather, Jeni’s Skin Care, Joseph’s Coat, Keene Door, Korvin Appliance, MB Massage Studio, Monadnock Food Co-op, Monadnock United Way, New England Everyday Goods, Of Moose and Mountain, One Stop Country Pet Supply, Small Business Journal, Ted’s Shoe & Sports and W. S. Badger.

Event updates can be found at monadnocklocal.org/plaidfriday/.

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Plaid Friday Photo Booth

With Kimberly Peck Photography
November 27, 10am – 2pm
Next to Toadstool Bookshop, 12 Depot Square, Peterborough

Wearing plaid on Plaid Friday? Be sure to get your photo taken with Local Photographer Kimberly Peck. Monadnock Buy Local will add photos to our annual collage, celebrating all who wore plaid and showed their support for locally owned businesses and our local economy.

Three local farmers will set up their own tables next to the photo booth, including Holland Homestead Farm of Hillsborough, Woodard Sugar House of Surry and FiberDreams Farm of Temple.

Photographs will be available for purchase at www.kimberlypeckphotography.com.

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2015-2016 Monadnock Buy Local Guide is Here!

The sixth annual Monadnock Buy Local Guide is out and features the Toadstool Bookshops.  This publication lists 163 locally owned enterprises by business type and promotes the positive benefits of supporting locally owned businesses in the Monadnock Region.  Guides can be found at Monadnock Buy Local members’ place of business and online.

“I’m excited for more businesses to join Monadnock Buy Local and feel the thrill of this movement,” shared Willard Williams, Co-Owner of The Toadstool Bookshops.  “Together we can do so much more.”

Studies find that when money is spent locally, up to four times more of that money recirculates through the local economy — generating more jobs, charitable contributions and other community benefits.

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Greenerborough is this Saturday, May 2nd

See 40+ vendors all celebrating Farm, Food & Green-er Living!!
Greenerborough
This Saturday * May 2, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Downtown Peterborough, NH

Kimberly Peck Photography invites you to come see her awesome booth featuring:
– My Farm. Food. Life. book!
– Handmade Wool Potholders!
– Farm + Food Fine Art Prints!
– And, my Famous Flourless (100% gluten-free!) Chocolate Cake!

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2015 Farm Food Life CALENDAR

Now available from Kimberly Peck Photography:

2015 Farm. Food. Life. Wall Calendar

* 12 Featured New England Farms * Includes January 2016 *

Description:
11 x 17 inch (when open) 2015 Wall Calendar.
8.5 x 11 folded.
Full Color + Black and White Photographs.
Each calendar is shrink-wrapped for protection.
Printed on fabulous recycled paper + printed in Maine!

Shop Local * Shop Handmade * Shop Happy

As a continuation of her on-going Farm. Food. Life. series, and her first book (Farm. Food. Life: Photographs + Recipes Inspired by Local Farms, published 2013), her new 2015 Farm wall calendar features 12 New England farms with color and black + white photographs. A visual monthly chronicle of New Hampshire farms, her focus, as always, is on the hard work that farmers undertake to produce the vegetables, dairy products, eggs and meat that we eat every day.

The Calendar will be available at these places:
Via phone or email orders: 924.6556 or kpeckphoto@comcast.net
My Etsy Shop (with FREE shipping until December 1) (click to purchase + more photos!)
Toadstool Bookshop : Peterborough NH

Local Craft Fairs:
Monadnock Waldorf School Fair, Keene NH : November 14 + 15
Broke Affordable Arts Fair, Peterborough NH : November 22
Monadnock Food Co-op, Plaid Friday Photobooth, Keene NH : November 28
Living Local Art Fair, Peterborough NH : November 29
Antioch Winterfest, Keene NH : December 11

Kimberly Peck, photographer
Portfolio: kimberlypeckphotography.com
Facebook: facebook.com/kimberlypeckphotography
603.924.6556

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Local Photographer Releases Book Celebrating Local Farms

With the launch of Farm, Food, Life, Kimberly Peck hopes to inspire people to think more about the food on their plates, who produced it, and how local it can be.

Kimberly Peck, a seasoned photographer who launched her farm photo-documentary series “Locally Known” in 2011, is pleased to introduce her newly published book, Farm. Food. Life: Photographs + Recipes Inspired by Local Farms.
The 86-page book is a visual narrative of 12 New England farms, focusing on the hard work that farmers undertake to produce the vegetables, dairy products, eggs and meat that people eat every day.

In addition to the photographs, Peck has included 12 recipes – one for each farm – that showcase a featured ingredient produced by each farmer, such as milk, chicken or vegetables. The book also includes 12 farmer profiles, complete with answers to five key questions: why do you farm; what is your biggest challenge; what is your favorite crop/product; what is your most under-appreciated product; how would you describe your farm in three words; and what is in your farm’s future. “Every farm is different – what they do and how they do it.  The book captures each farms’ unique characteristics,” says Peck.

Peck strives to show readers not only the passion that farmers have for what they do, but also the hard work involved in producing real food on real farms in New England.  “I am in awe of farm life, the ever-evolving, deeply-rooted connection between human, animal and plant. Farms are part of the backbone of New England,” says Peck, “I am captivated by the historical tradition, as well as the passion and dedication it requires.” Peck hopes that the book will connect viewers to this chosen way of earning a living and providing sustenance to their communities.

Farm. Food. Life: Photographs + Recipes Inspired by Local Farms is printed in the U.S. on recycled paper and is available online, as well as the Toadstool Bookshops in Peterborough & Keene, NH. It retails for $22 and makes an excellent holiday gift.

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Raised in a small Vermont town, Peck has been photographing the “messy, silly happy chaos called life” for more than 20 years and is passionate about documentary photography. Taking inspiration from such well-known photographers as Dorothy Lange and Peter Miller, Peck is drawn to farms and their down-to-earth approach to living.

In 2011, Peck launched Locally Known, a project exploring local farms and community agriculture. Inspired by her artistic desire to create a visual documentary of hard-working New England farmers, Locally Known deepens the connection between local farmers, producers and consumers. Originally featured in The Monadnock-Ledger Transcript, Locally Known continues to evolve into an inspiring and creative exploration of local agriculture. In 2014, Peck plans to expand the project by photographing more farms in Vermont and Maine.

Peck’s photographs have been exhibited throughout New England, including the Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery, Griffin Museum of Photography, South Shore Art Center, and the Sharon Arts Center. Her work has appeared in Taproot, Monadnock Table, Yankee Magazine and Monadnock Living.

Peck photographs for a diverse range of clients including Taproot Magazine, Monadnock Table, Cherry Hill Designs, The Cornucopia Project, Little Duck Organics and the Monadnock Food Co-op.

When not at work on her next project, Peck is available for photographic assignments. For more information about Kimberly Peck, visit her portfolio: www.kimberlypeckphotography.com.
Kimberly Peck lives in the Monadnock Region of New Hampshire with her husband and three children.

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Plaid Friday at Mayfair Farm

Photo by Kimberly Peck Photography

Who says holiday shopping has to be at a mall?

On Friday, November 29, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mayfair Farm in Harrisville, N.H., will transform into a holiday bazaar as part of Plaid Friday, the national celebration of local and independent businesses.

Shoppers at Mayfair’s on-farm store will find an abundance of gift ideas.

Shopping for a coffee and tea lover? Look for the Mayfair-made biscotti nestled in a hat box from Sarah’s Hat Boxes of Hancock, N.H.

Interested in giving a friend exquisite soaps or lotions? Holland Homestead of Hillsborough, N.H., will be at the farm with their handmade goat’s milk soap and lotion — and even a few cute goats to pet.

Christmas trees, plus a delightful selection of local crafts and goods, will be  available for purchase. Shoppers can warm up with hot cider and hot chocolate topped with heavenly house-made marshmallows, too.

Mayfair will be fully stocked with gifts for food lovers as well. Alongside Holland Homestead’s luscious goat’s milk fudge, shoppers can pick up Mayfair’s gourmet sausages, made by farmer Craig Thompson in the farm’s commercial kitchen, and their GMO-free pork, beef, lamb, and eggs. Holiday hosts will also find Mayfair’s bake off hors d’oeuvres to make Christmas cooking breeze. Mayfair will offer samples of their handcrafted food, including delectable holiday hams available for sale.

This Plaid Friday celebration gets even more fun. From 1 to 3 p.m., local photographer and author Kimberly Peck will be at the farm selling and signing copies of her new book, “Farm, Food, Life: Photographs & Recipes Inspired by Local Farms.”

This gorgeous new book features Monadnock Region farmer photographs and profiles, as well as recipes showcasing local ingredients produced by the featured farms. Mayfair cook Sarah Heffron collaborated with Peck to create these approachable recipes for all levels of cooks and bakers.

Peck will also be selling notecards, prints and wool potholders made from upcycled materials.

Plaid Friday is a fun and enjoyable alternative to the big box store “Black Friday,” and it’s a way to show support for Monadnock Buy Local, a network of locally-owned businesses, organizations and citizens working to build a stronger local economy.

As a Plaid Friday hub, Mayfair Farm will photograph customers decked out in plaid on November 29 and answer questions about the event and Monadnock Buy Local.

The Mayfair Farm store is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. Plaid Friday activities will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, write to info@mayfairfarmnh.com or call 603-827-3925.

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Kickstarter Project – Farm, Food, Life: Photographs and Recipes Inspired by Our Local Farms

Support this project on Kickstarter!

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Locally Known: A Photographic Celebration of Our Local Farms on Kickstarter

Originally published in the Monadnock Shopper News (MBL Media Sponsor)

Written by Tracy Tanner Craig

{From Monadnock Buy Local: We wanted to give the spotlight to one of our new members, Kimberly Peck Photography.  This month, Kimberly launched a Kickstarter Project – an innovative way for artists and others to raise funds from us!  Enjoy learning more about Kimberly Peck Photography and her Locally Known Series!}

When one meets Peterborough photographer Kimberly Peck, it is immediately obvious where the refreshingly authentic style of her fine art and portrait photography originates.   Since the opening of Kimberly Peck Photography in 2005, Peck has photographed hundreds of families, newborns, and the ever-popular “bellies” – mothers to be – in the Monadnock Region.  Her open and honest approach to photography is what keeps people coming back year after year.  What began as an enthusiastic 7-year old with a camera photographing her family, friends, and Barbies, Peck has evolved into one of the Region’s most sought after lifestyle photographers.

For Peck, the word “magic” still best describes the feeling she gets when the camera’s in her hands.  “From the very beginning, I was fascinated with the idea that a single moment in time could be held still in a photograph.  That moment of ‘stopped time’ is what I offer to the families that I photograph.”  Her passion for documenting the lives of others is her greatest source of inspiration.  “I love showing people who they are, and how they are together…that messy, silly, happy chaos called life.”

Peck’s artistic, light-filled images have captured the attention of not only families, but businesses and publishers throughout New England.  In addition to numerous publicity campaigns, her work has been featured in Yankee Magazine, Monadnock Table, Taproot Magazine and Monadnock Living, with exhibitions around New England, including the Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery, Griffin Museum of Photography, South Shore Art Center, and the Sharon Arts Center.

Raised in a small Vermont town, Peck naturally gravitates to farms and a down-to-earth approach to living.  “I love the beauty of farm life, the ever-evolving, deeply-rooted connection between human, animal and plant. Farms are really the backbone of New England,” says Peck. “I am captivated by the historical tradition, as well as the passion and dedication it requires.”

In 2011, she launched her regularly-featured series, Locally Known: a photographic celebration of our local farms, photo journaling over twenty local farms in the hopes of bringing support and awareness to the growing local food movement.  “With my Locally Known series, I wanted to connect farmers and communities through the visual narrative of documentary photography. I wanted people to see where our food is grown and to understand the hard work that goes into farming.  Looking at the photographs, it compels us to think about what’s on our plate.”

What has made the series exciting for Peck as an artist is the ever-changing nature of her Locally Known subjects.  “Every farm is different – what they do, how they do it.  I think the series has done well capturing the farms and farmers’ unique characteristics and sharing them with a larger audience,” says Peck.

The response to Locally Known has been nothing but positive by farmers and consumers alike.  As a result, Peck is now looking to expand both the region and scope of her work.  Beginning Friday, May 18, Peck launched a 30-day Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for the expansion of Locally Known.  “It’s my goal to not only photograph more farms and meet more farmers, but to create and organize regional exhibitions of my work where the farmers featured will attend the opening.  This would make the visual story all the more real to the viewer.  An authentic connection between farmer and consumer would be made.  I love that idea!”

The campaign seeks to raise $7,000 to cover the costs of travel, photography, regional exhibitions and the creation of a coffee table art book & 2013 calendar for sale throughout New England.  As Peck explains, “There’s so much more of this story to tell.”

If you are a local farmer and interested in being photographed in the 2012 Locally Known project, contact Kimberly Peck at kimberlypeckphotography@comcast.net. For more information regarding her Locally Known Kickstarter Campaign and how you can contribute, go to www.kickstarter.com/projects/1305370284/locally-known-a-photographic-celebration-of-our-lo or kimberlypeckphotography.com.

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