MANY HANDS:
An Arts + Crafts Retreat for Making and Being Made, Together
A 5-day spiritual arts + crafts retreat for making things in company, and leaving with something that holds them all
November 23-27, 2026
Nectar Retreat on Bowen Island
Are you so bone tired that even if you slept for 100 years, you'd still need rest...
Is your fatigue the kind that comes from having to possess a strategic mind, which is a beautiful and terrible thing to live inside; it is never not scanning for implication, for subtext, for translation. Or perhaps your fatigue comes from editing yourself into legibility, from code-switching and performing well in rooms. Or from being good at carrying others. You become very lonely, as the burden feels asymmetrical.
What I want, when I am like this, is not to be fixed. I don't want to be witnessed in the therapeutic sense, which still requires you to perform your wound with some coherence. I want to be set down somewhere warm. I want to make something with my hands. I want to be near people who are also making something, and for it to feel comfortable. Comfort is the precondition for return. We can each just be here, unfinished, and for it not to cost us anything to not be finished. What becomes possible when restoration is not something you have to earn?
That's the premise of this retreat.
The act of making is one of the oldest available forms of return: to the body, to attention, to the ordinary pleasure of a thing becoming.
Many Hands is a five-day arts and crafts retreat on Bowen Island from November 23-27, 2026 for people who create, who practice, who carry a great deal and are in need of refreshment; who are ready to set some of it down for a few days in the company of others doing the same.
Led by Mimi Young, occultist, predictions consultant, and maker, she holds a design degree from Emily Carr University of Art and Design, attended an artist residency at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, and has been published in Rice Paper magazine.
Nectar Retreat Centre sits on 20 acres of temperate rainforest on Nexwlélexwm (Bowen Island), a twenty-minute ferry ride from Horseshoe Bay (Vancouver).
Many Hands Arts Retreat Highlights:
Each day holds one art/craft activity and one ongoing one. The ongoing project is the Charms Box: a beechwood box that begins empty on the first afternoon and leaves full on the last morning, filled by everyone in the room. Each participant contributes to every Charms Box. What you leave with is part cabinet of curiosities, part keepsake chest, part ritual object; a box of compartments holding small, beautiful, strange, or useful things that other people brought or made with you in mind.
The daily art/craft practice will change each day, working through materials that are simple enough to begin without experience and deep enough to lose yourself in creativity and play. The witchcraft layer is present for those who want it and invisible to those who don't. Ritual is designed into the structure of the days.
HIGHLIGHTS OF MANY HANDS RETREAT:
Traditional ink making
Relief printing, botanical printing and stamping on papers
Stationery making
Bookbinding by hand
Multi-media collage work
The Charms Box: a collaborative cabinet of curiosities built across the retreat, filled by every person in the room, taken home by each
Charm Box preparations and charm assembly
Daily animist divination and tea ceremonies
Evening “camp style” circles by the fire telling fun ghost stories
Solo time for self-reflection and creative flow
Daily functional movement sessions led by Andrea Clark
A session of forest bathing and contrast therapy at Mist Thermal Sanctuary
Time by a covered fire pit surrounded by the forest
You will leave with a full Charms Box, a rested body and spirit, a few things you made with your hands that you did not expect to love, and some people you will want to keep.
What Each Day is Made of
day 1
Arrive and Steep
day 2
Make Your Mark
day 3
Tend and Cultivate
day 4
Gather and Bind
day 5
Full and Returned
INCLUDED IN THE RETREAT
5 days (4 nights) accommodations at NECTAR RETREAT CENTRE , Bowen Island, BC (just a 20 minute ferry ride from Vancouver).
Organic, nutrient-dense, and delicious plant-based traditional meals.
Daily course programming and handouts
Their own Charms Box container made out of beechwood
A selection of raw ingredients and materials for arts and crafts making. (Participants will also receive a list of additional supplies they need to source themselves).
Daily Daoist tea sits (herbal tisanes also available)
Solitude and stillness for personal art making
Group gatherings with life-direction mediumship messages by Mimi Young
Morning gentle, functional movement sessions with Andrea Clark (see below)
Hot Sauna and Cold Plunge Circuit at Mist Thermal Sanctuary
A gorgeous covered fire pit at Nectar for between/after session hang-outs
OPTIONAL PRIVATE SESSIONS
Opportunities to work privately with Mimi via private sessions are offered in three pricing tiers, based on your current financial situation for SHAMANIC READINGS, FIVE ELEMENTS ZODIAC READINGS, and PRIVATE MENTORSHIP SESSIONS during the retreat. Attendees will also receive an additional 15% off on any tier they select.
WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED
This retreat does not include transportation to or from the venue. Attendees are responsible for arranging their own travel.
Ferry schedules can be found on BC Ferries’ website TO BOWEN, and returning TO VANCOUVER. It is advised to check BCFERRIES.COM frequently as the retreat approaches as BC Ferries update their schedules regularly.
Travellers arriving from outside Canada are responsible for researching their own eligibility to enter Canada, including any visa, travel authorisation, immunization, or entry requirements applicable to their citizenship, travel or medical history. Ceremonie is not able to advise on immigration or medical matters.
A complete list of materials will be provided upon registration.
MANY HANDS:
ARTS+ CRAFTS RETREAT ON BOWEN ISLAND
Itinerary
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Check-in and Venue Tour
Welcome Snacks
Orientation + Land Acknowledgement
Opening Tea Circle
First Gathering, Erecting Altar
Dinner
Gentle Somatic Movement Evening Practice
Quiet Time
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Gentle Somatic Movement Morning Practice
Breakfast
Tea as Portal: Opening to Receive
Many Hands Session 1
Lunch
Winter forest walks or Optional Private Sessions
Many Hands Session 2
Dinner
Open ended arts and crafts practice
Evening Fire Circle with ghost stories and laughter
Quiet time
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Gentle Somatic Movement Morning Practice
Breakfast
Tea as Portal: Opening to Receive
Many Hands Session 3
Lunch
Winter forest walks, Fluid Solo Time, or Optional Private Sessions
Many Hands Session 4
Dinner
Open ended arts and crafts practice
Evening Fire Circle with ghost stories and laughter
Quiet time
-
Gentle Somatic Movement Morning Practice
Breakfast
Tea as Portal: Opening to Receive
Many Hands Session 5
Lunch
Winter forest walks or Optional Private Sessions
Open ended arts and crafts practice
Dinner
Open ended arts and crafts practice
Witnessing + Celebration
Market (optional)
Quiet time
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Gentle Somatic Movement Morning Practice
Breakfast
The Charms Box Ceremony
Altar Releasing
Closing + Benediction
Schedule is subject to change.
LOCATION
MANY HANDS: AN ARTS + CRAFTS RETREAT FOR MAKING AND BEING MADE, TOGETHER is in November 2026 will be held at the acclaimed Nectar Retreat—featured by NYT and Condé Nast Traveler—on Nexwlélexwm (Bowen Island, BC). Set on 20 acres of pristine forest within the traditional territory of the Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) Nation, Nectar offers a tranquil, nature-forward escape with modern comforts just a 20-minute ferry ride from Vancouver. This retreat also includes a hot sauna and cold plunge at Nectar’s sister venue, Mist Thermal, for a memorable experience.
Four lodging options are available, along with payment plans. More under the Retreat Investment section.
MEALS
Immerse yourself in mouth-watering, plant-based global-traditional cuisine, prepared onsite at Nectar Retreat Centre with locally sourced ingredients that celebrate the season. These nourishing dishes aim to kindle warmth within, fostering a deeper connection to yourself and the land. Nectar is a meat and fish-free facility, and can accommodate meals to most allergies and dietary needs.
MOVEMENT
Gentle daily, functional movement sessions that focus on breath and alignment of the body in ways that feel easeful and just-enough-challenge for those we seek it. Andrea Clark blends various yoga disciplines with pilates, functional movement, and flowing motions of Gyrotonic that support ease and mobility for all bodies, and all ages.
Why I created this arts + crafts retreat
MEET MIMI
Hello! My name is Mimi Young, a Taiwanese Canadian animist spirit medium and the founder of Ceremonie. I hold a design degree from Emily Carr University of Art and Design and attended an artist residency at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. Making things with my hands has always been part of how I think.
I created this retreat for the person who is rarely centred in their own life. Who organizes, carries, translates, and performs, and does all of it well, and is exhausted in a way that ordinary rest does not reach. A few days of unhurried making, in the company of others who are also here to rest and to make. Perhaps for you, it’s the thing you have been needing for a very long time without knowing how to ask for it.
The comfort of making things alongside people who understand why that matters.
INVESTMENT
This 5 days, 4 nights retreat is open up to 16 participants. For the list of what is included in the retreat, refer to the “Highlight of What’s Included” section.
Four lodging options are available, available via a payment plan, or save by paying in one sum. The fees below include everything listed in the “Highlights of What’s Included” section.
Please note that most supplies and raw materials are included in the pricing.The prices reflect also, to a degree, the labour associated with researching, sourcing, vetting processes, preparations of each of the sypplies, and other time factors. As such, they are not negotiable or adaptable. Thank you for understanding.
Clients signing up for retreat
must read and consent to this agreement.
International travellers are responsible for ensuring they meet entry requirements for Canada.
GST is applicable for all transactions.
EMERALD ROOM
Shared - Most Affordable, In Lodge
2 spots available
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Located in the Main Lodge, the Emerald room features the option of a solo room with a double bed or as a shared room with separate twin beds, and shared attached bathroom.
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Sleeps either 1 solo guest with a double bed or 2 shared accommodation guests with separate twin beds
Ensuite bathroom
Natural, locally-made toiletries
In-room Wi-Fi
Smart TV
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Shared Accommodations (save $768 each compared to Solo):
One (1) payment of $2190 ($1990 + $200 materials fee + tax per person). Save $105 + tax when paid in lump sum.
Solo Accommodation:One (1) payment of $3290 ($3090 + $200 materials fee + tax per person). Save $100 + tax when paid in lump sum.
SOLD OUT!
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Clean, non-smoking facility
SHARED
SOLO
AMBER/TURQUOISE ROOMS
Private, In Lodge
2 spots available
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Located in the Main Lodge, this option features private rooms with double bed, with shared detached bathroom.
One room left!
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Each room sleeps 1 guest, double bed
Shared bathroom between both rooms
Natural, locally-made toiletries
In-room Wi-Fi
Smart TV
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One (1) payment of $2390 ($2190 + $200 materials fee + tax per person). Save $85 + tax per person when paid in lump sum.
Amber and Turquoise Rooms are now sold out!
The prices reflect not only the hard costs but also the labour, knowledge, sourcing of materials, and other time factors. As such, they are not negotiable or adaptable. Thank you for understanding and supporting my work as a sole operator. -
Clean, non-smoking facility
A-FRAME CABINS
Private - Detached Units, Minimal
SOLD OUT!
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Double bed in private A-frame cottage with shared detached washroom in separate Main Lodge.
Two A-Frames left
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Each A-frame sleeps 1 guest, double bed
Covered front deck with year-round seating
Shared detach bathrooms, with showers (10 meters outside walk away)
Natural, locally-made toiletries
Wifi available in the Main Lodge
-
SOLD OUT!
One (1) payment of $2488 ($2288 + $200 materials fee + tax per person). Save $92 + tax when paid in lump sum.
The prices reflect not only the hard costs but also the labour, knowledge, sourcing of materials, and other time factors. As such, they are not negotiable or adaptable. Thank you for understanding and supporting my work as a sole operator. -
Clean, non-smoking facility
DELUXE COTTAGES
Accommodations with Enriched Amenities
SOLD OUT!
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Guests have the option to select solo or shared accommodations (with savings for shared options).
If solo accommodation is selected, you will have a queen size bed to yourself, with the ensuite bathroom for yoursef.
For those who select shared accommodations, beds will be srranged as single beds in semi-private cottage (max capacity 3 in each cottage), with shared ensuite bathroom.
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Each cottage sleeps up to 3 guests, twin beds (see ‘Sleeping Arrangement’) OR if you’ve selected solo accommodation, you’ll have the entire cottage all to yourself!
Ensuite bathroom (double sinks, indoor shower, toilet)
Outdoor shower (available when temperatures are above 0 degrees Celsius)
Natural, locally-made toiletries
Mini fridge
Kettle, mugs, assorted teas
Indoor reading nook overlooking the forest
In-cabin Wifi
Private deck with reading chairs
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SOLD OUT!
Shared Accommodations (save $1438 each compared to Solo):One (1) payment of $2350 ($2150 + $200 materials fee + tax per person). Save $95 + tax per person when paid in lump sum.
Solo Accommodation:One (1) payment of $3988 ($3788 + $200 materials fee + tax per person). Save $137 + tax when paid in lump sum.
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For those who select the shared accommodation option, we encourage guests choosing this lodging option to book as a couple, with friends, or are open to making new ones.
Please also note one of the beds is located in the cottage’s loft; the guest staying in the loft must have full mobility and is comfortable going up and down a ladder. Please indicate at the time of registration if you are not comfortable with sleeping in the loft.
Clean, non-smoking facility
SHARED
SOLO
PARTIAL SCHOLARSHIPS - NOW CLOSED
Please help us provide community care by holding yourself to a standard of personal honesty. Our Partial Scholarship is intended for those facing financial hardship and would otherwise not be able to attend a wellness witch retreat.
Ceremonie, in collaboration with Nectar Retreat, is humbled to offer metaphysical scholarships, known as Partial Ceremonie Scholarships, available in limited quantities and reserved for those encountering obstacles or systemic biases hindering sufficient income for survival. We encourage individuals facing financial challenges, including those from marginalized racial, ethnic, and LGBTQIA+ communities, individuals with diverse neurological abilities, over-stretched single parents, or anyone else facing extenuating circumstances, to apply when the program is open.
In an effort to ensure that community care funds are directed to those who need it most, please note that Partial Ceremonie Scholarships are NOT meant for folks who can comfortably meet survival needs, own assets or investments, or have privileges based on class background.
