Craftime

What if a miniature could hold a lifetime of memories?In this episode of Craftime, we meet Catheleen Clark, a California-based crafting enthusiast, and Miriam Reina, a Canadian crafting enthusiast and the creator of Minis with Mimi. Both are Brand Ambassadors for Rolife, a miniature brand, and met at Rolife’s 9th anniversary celebration in New Jersey last September, where they sat down for this special conversation.Through their personal stories, Catheleen and Miriam share how miniature crafting has helped them reconnect with their childhoods, revisit meaningful places, and rediscover the joy of creating.For Catheleen, a miniature sewing room brings her back to her grandmother’s home — one of the few places where she remembers feeling happy as a child. For Miriam, miniatures offer a way to recreate cherished memories, from early dates with her husband at Tim Hortons to the details of a childhood home that no longer exists.Their stories reveal how crafting can be more than a creative hobby. It can be a way to slow down, find comfort in familiar memories, and make room for the playful side of ourselves that adulthood sometimes leaves behind.Because growing older doesn't mean we have to leave childhood joy behind. Sometimes, all it takes is a little imagination to bring it back.Join us for a heartfelt conversation about memories, belonging, and the timeless joy of embracing your inner child.Links & Resources ​Craftime Official Website: https://www.craftime.com/enMiriam Reina's Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/miniswithmimi/

What can crafting teach us about the way we think, learn, and solve problems?In this episode, we meet Mark R. Nelson, PhD, MBA, FASAE, CAE, whose life sits at the intersection of analytical thinking and hands-on creativity. From a childhood surrounded by crafts and family traditions to a career in data analytics & emerging techologies, Mark has continued to explore different ways of learning and creating.Through woodworking, drawing, and other forms of making, he has found new ways to approach problems, develop his creativity, and connect with the people around him.Join us as Mark shares how crafting became more than a hobby — and how learning to make things can also mean learning to think differently.Links & Resources ​Mark's Social Media: Mark R. Nelson, PhD, MBA, FASAE, CAE | LinkedIn

What happens when a love for miniatures meets a journey through hospice and grief?In this episode of Craftime, we meet Sarah and Mark, two miniaturists whose lives have taken very different paths, yet share a common thread: a deep sense of love, compassion, and connection.Sarah is a mortgage broker, a mom, a gardener, and a relatively new miniature enthusiast. After experiencing the sudden loss of her father and sister, she first encountered hospice through its bereavement support services. What began as a search for help eventually became a journey of healing — and later, a desire to give back by volunteering with grief support groups. For Sarah, grief doesn't simply disappear. Instead, she has learned that grief and joy can coexist, and that connection can make an otherwise isolating experience a little less lonely.Mark's journey into hospice began much earlier. After working as a police dispatcher and coroner's assistant, he spent decades as a nurse, much of that time caring for people in the prison system. His hospice philosophy is rooted in a simple but powerful belief: everyone deserves love, compassion, and comfort, regardless of their past. Today, as the executive director of a hospice in Colorado, he continues to care for people and families through some of the most intimate and difficult moments of their lives.Their stories offer two different perspectives on hospice — one shaped by personal loss, the other by decades of caring for others. Yet both remind us that hospice is about much more than dying. It is about comfort, dignity, companionship, empathy, and being there for every heart in the room.And perhaps surprisingly, miniatures find their place in this story too. For Mark, working on a miniature kit offers a moment of escape and helps him leave the weight of the day behind. For Sarah, miniatures connect with the same creativity and sense of connection she finds in gardening and community.In the end, the things that seem unrelated — mortgages, gardening, miniatures, nursing, and hospice — may have more in common than we think. They can all become ways of connecting with ourselves, with others, and with the world around us.Join us for a heartfelt conversation about life, death, grief, joy, and the many forms that love and compassion can take.

In this episode of Craftime, we explore the magical world of miniatures with Karen Mason, a miniature artist and President of METminis — Miniature Enthusiasts of Toronto, who has dedicated over 45 years to this craft.From detailed dollhouses and handcrafted interiors to delicate petit point needlework, Karen’s creations showcase how miniature art brings together countless forms of creativity — from textile arts and design to woodworking and painting.Beyond the tiny objects themselves, Karen shares the deeper meaning behind this lifelong hobby: the joy of making, the patience of the creative process, and the connections built through a global community of craft lovers.As the world becomes increasingly digital, Karen reminds us why working with our hands still matters — offering moments of creativity, relaxation, and human connection.Welcome to a story where tiny creations carry lifelong memories.Links & Resources ​METminis (Miniature Enthusiasts of Toronto): https://metminis.ca/​Karen's Social Media:  https://www.instagram.com/masons.mini.maisons/​Karen's Needlework on Club's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/DYYXJciDtrO/

There was a moment during this conversation when I realized we weren't really talking about miniatures anymore.We were talking about home.Not the kind defined by walls or square footage, but the kind built slowly through shared routines, quiet evenings, and countless small acts of patience.When Hailey first moved from Canada to Florida as a teenager, miniature building became a way to navigate loneliness and uncertainty. More than ten years later, that same hobby has become part of a life she now shares with her fiancé, Justin.From beachside barbecues and shark-tooth hunting to tiny bookshops and color palettes, this episode follows a couple whose lives are shaped by creativity in both large and small forms.One paints houses.The other builds miniature worlds.And somewhere in between, they're building a life together.— Patrick

What do Baby Yoda, Jason Momoa, resin art, clay, painting, and 3D printing have in common?In this episode, Michelle—an "eternal student" and passionate maker—takes us on a journey through creativity without boundaries. From miniature worlds and gelato stalls to the challenges and rewards of learning new skills, we explore how curiosity connects seemingly unrelated crafts, why mistakes are part of the process, and how following inspiration can lead to unexpected magic.After all, even Grogu and the Mandalorian deserve an ice cream break.

In a world shaped by screens, notifications, and AI-generated text, why are people still returning to typewriters?In this episode of Craftime, Patrick sits down with Rodja Pavlik — a former journalist from Austria who spent more than 25 years working in media before rediscovering typewriters later in life. Through their conversation, they explore distraction in the digital age, the emotional connection between humans and mechanical tools, and why analogue hobbies still resonate so deeply today.Rodja, who runs the German typewriter blog Die Schreibmaschinisten (“The Typewriters”), shares his personal journey from typewriters to computers —and eventually back again.Together, they discuss focus, slowness, craftsmanship, nostalgia, and the search for more tangible experiences in an increasingly virtual world.The episode also touches on the newly released ROKR wooden typewriter kit, inspired by the classic Underwood No. 5, as well as ideas explored in The Typewriter Revolution by Richard Polt.Because perhaps the future of typewriters isn’t really about technology at all — but about how we want to feel while creating.

In our first episode, host & Robotime's content creator Patrick Wang sits down for a cozy conversation with Tina, a former office manager based in Indiana, and Liset, a wound care nurse from the Netherlands, as they share how a simple miniature crafting hobby, and how Robotime brands (Rolife and ROKR) have grown into something much more in their lives.