For as long she can remember Sarah Parker has loved crafting.
"I've been crafting for eons, I think my first Christmas craft market was when I was in Grade 6," she said. "My kids nicknamed me the Craft Ninja. I make just about everything."
About five years ago, she started making Christmas wreaths and this year is sharing that skill with people in her community of Horsefly, where she moved a year-and-a-half ago from Pender Island.
"This is the first year I've actually done workshops. I had people mention it before and thought about doing it and just kept kind of brushing it aside."
It was during the Horsefly Christmas Market that one of her friends told her she knew of some women who wanted to sign up for a class, telling her "it would be really fun."
"I decided sure, and they came up with a group of eight ladies and we had an awesome time."
Word got out, and she ended up doing quite a few workshops leading up to Christmas.
"It has been a lot of fun. We do them in my shop, which is heated. It's a nice atmosphere, we have some Christmas music going, some hot apple cider and goodies. It's been really nice."
The wreaths are made out of burlap and with the Canada Post strike she's struggled to get supplies, but has been able to source some in shops in Williams Lake.
When asked about decorating her own home, Parker said she's one of those people who likes to do it as soon as possible.
"I've been working on crafts for markets since August," she explained, noting she makes candles, soaps, lip balms, lotions, oils, plaques, custom vinyl for hoodies, ball caps and mugs with the tagline of "Fly town," referring to Horsefly. Her business is called Parker Craft Ninja.
She grew up in Vanderhoof with her two sisters and their single mom.
They spent time on the North Arm of Quesnel Lake at a cabin their mom purchased after seeing an ad in a newspaper.
"My mom has always been the adventurous type," Parker said.
They would get to the cabin with Betty Frank, a famous guide-outfitter in the area.
One time Barry Robertson, who worked for Frank, transported them into the cabin in a big 4x4 truck.
"He ended up staying with us for that whole week because we were out there in grizzly bear territory with no gun or anything."
About five or six years ago, Parker was chatting with her mom and sisters and remembering how much fun they'd had at Quesnel Lake.
Parker asked her mom if she had ever heard from Robertson and her mom said "no."
"I said, 'I should look and see if he is on Facebook.'"
She found Robertson, they connected, and when he saw a photograph of Parker with a chainsaw for International Women's Day, he asked if she was looking for work.
"I went to work for him on Pender Island, we ended up getting together. Then when we were talking about where we wanted to move, both of us wanted to move to Horsefly. It's kind of funny how everything turns around into a big circle," she said.
