WHAT IS THIS PLACE?

Crowded Table Orchard (CTO) is an apple orchard, humbly nestled at the base of Leelanau Peninsula, overlooking Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The 50+ acres invite you to escape the city, breathe in the fresh air, and begin to relax. 

You can pick organic apples. Hike in the woods. Unwind on Lake Michigan's sandy beaches. Bird watch. Plein air paint. Stargaze. You'll be amazed at the magic. 

Here’s a video of me painting a mural on the side of the garage at CTO!

THE LOGO

The logo was inspired by the the namesake of the orchard, “Crowded Table”, a song by The Highwomen. The lyrics talk about wanting a house with a crowded table and a place where everyone feels safe, warm and welcome. I expanded the “O” in “Crowded” to represent squeezing into a crowded circle of people. And naturally, I had to turn it into a Michigan apple to show love for the home state!

APPLES & ART

Every fall, CTO hosts an Apples & Art event. Co-founder Jessica is a full-time artist and this event is a chance to celebrate the harvest season as well as the rich art community in Northern Michigan. For the past two years, I’ve been the live musician at the event, and helped with the brand and environment design. 

Here you can see the flyer I made for the event in Fall ‘23.

I made a collection of merchandise, merging our logo and flyer design, for last year’s Apples & Art event. 

I sourced the garments from a reused clothing store, took them through a deep clean, and printed our designs onto them using DTG printing.

The result was 24 unique pieces of upcycled merchandise that sold out during the day of the event!