Dedicated to all who love bread, Flourist is a thoughtful, responsive space that was designed to naturally inherit deeper meaning over time, much like a collection of memories within a Prairie farmhouse. Not simply a Bakery or Cafe, Flourist is a community-based artisan flour mill encouraging customers to bake at home as much as indulge in-store, all while ensuring farming remains a family business in Canada. Built on the principle of Canadian-based farming, close-knit communities & transparency, Flourist offers local artisanal provisions that are 100% traceable - grains, beans and freshly milled flours - with the pillar of “fresh is best”. In an industry dominated by opaque supply chains and mysterious origins, Flourist endeavours to re-connect people with the sources of their food. This notion of transparency is attentively carried into the design process. We began by turning to the guiding principles of 18th-Century Shaker communities: simplicity, utility and honesty. An isolated, egalitarian sect, the Shaker communities in North America were largely self-sufficient. Members grew their own food, constructed their own buildings, and manufactured their own tools and furnishings in pursuit of creating their own heaven-on-earth. Building off of the Shaker principles and pastiche, the interior of the Mill + Bakery highlights abundance and warmth with a straightforward approach. A palette of malty tones taken from Flourist’s grains and pulses lay a foundation for the built space. Strategically lit to highlight these golden tones, the space has a buttery glow that evokes the feeling of standing in a wheat field on a perfect sunny day - a counterpoint to the frequently grey skies of Vancouver. The emotional seed of the interior is bread and sunshine, but it was imperative that the space somehow reflect the two who started Flourist: fun and bright, but also clever, focused, thoughtful and delightful in unexpected ways. Upon entering the bakery, a sculptural community table of mixed natural stones and blonde timber complete with small sink fosters community connection by offering space for bread-making workshops. Dowelled shelves at the retail space extend in front of the window, allowing the bounty to creep into the public realm and beckoning curious onlookers to come inside. Backing the space and fronted by glass, the functional flour mill is a clear articulation of the transparency that informs Flourist – uninterested in the delineations between design and function. Designed to foster community connection, the natural stone table piques the interest of curious onlookers, while the room that houses the functional flour mill synthesizes the intention of informed, clever and focused design with the building block of Flourist: transparency.