January 2021 Digital Edition

Renovation: noun (modernization  restoration  redecoration  refurbishment  revamping  makeover  reconditioning  rehabilitation  repair)

There’s a common thread that pulls together many of this issue’s articles—renovation. For starters, it can be through the way we relearn to care for others or help others emotionally and physically heal.

Through their book, These are My Pants, Jane and Katelyn Plank use storytelling to encourage children to reconsider the way they think about possessions and how they treat those who don’t have quite as much as they do. “The single act of kindness and sharing leads to giving on a bigger scale,” Katelyn says on page 16. “Possessions that make us happy can make us even happier when we share them with others.”   

Susan Grothe is using her talents in paramedical tattooing to help clients feel more confident and, in some cases, emotionally stronger. Some of her work includes addressing clients’ needs for scar reduction or camouflage, 3D areola regimentation and more. “I really wanted to be a service to people that made an impact and changed their lives,” she says on page 18.

Renovation in the literal sense is leading to a business boost in Excelsior and a new way of living for a Minnetonka family.

On page 14, discover The Bull and Finch Gastropub, the latest entry to Water Street scene, backed by co-owners Zach Brown and Victor Claffey. Though 2020 served up a heaping platter of uncertainty to businesses, the duo remained undeterred. “… we felt the town of Excelsior and the space itself was too good of an opportunity to turn down,” Brown says.

Like owners’ lives, homes evolve—accommodating changing lifestyles and evolutions in home designs and décor. For the Gaard family, it was time to reevaluate how its Minnetonka home blended with the young family’s growing needs. Boyer Building Corporation moved in and created an updated modern farmhouse vibe. The results are spectacular. Read the digital edition here

In this month of resolutions, what are you renovating? Habits. Thoughts. Home. Career. What’s on your Redo List?

Until next time,
Renée Stewart-Hester, editor