Local Business & Talent In & Around FMH:
One of the best features of small mountain towns is they always seem to produce and attract more than their fair share of unique, creative, and talented people. Fernie is no exception.
This is one of the reasons we found ourselves attracted to Fernie as our chosen location for embarking on the new-build project that was, and is, Fernie Mountain House.
We are grateful to the town of Fernie for so many reasons, and are continually discovering more talent, while making new friends.
Guests of Fernie Mountain House are treated to the fresh, locally-roasted delights of Fernie Roasting Company (“FRC”).
Not only is it incredibly cool that owner Chris Lane and his family started this company experimenting with roasting beans on a cast iron pan on their deck, but FRC’s ongoing love for experimentation and creativity with their roasting makes its coffee a true delight.
This experimentation became FRC in early 2020. The results were inspiring, and FRC continued to roast fresh coffee this way for several months (even roasting on the campfire while camping with friends in the West Kootenays). With access to fresh coffee, and the ability to manipulate the flavours, roasting coffee became a daily passion. Over the following months, friends and family were requesting more and more coffee, and in late 2020 FRC started looking at options to move to larger capacity roasting methods. In early 2021 FRC purchased two Sonofresco fluidized bed roasters. Over the subsequent months, more experimenting occurred to dial in the roasters and get out into the public eye. During summer 2021 FRC live roasted outdoors under a canopy at the Sparwood, Fernie, and Baynes Lake farmers markets. As the summer market season wound down, FRC moved on to its next phase, a large utility trailer to be modified into a mobile roasting facility. Today, FRC’s focus is experimenting with various beans from around the world to bring fresh delicious coffee to locals and visitors to Fernie and the Elk Valley.
Upon checking into FMH, guests will find fresh coffee from FRC in their welcome basket!
Also featured in FMH are the soaps hand-made by Karey of Soco Soaps.
Karey’s story is inspirational. Originally from the tiny town of Elko, BC, Karey picked up soap making as a hobby, and promised herself she wouldn’t stop until she had mastered it. Making her first batches on her outdoor patio table in 2009, Karey says her first batches were terrible (although we hardly believe her!) but, remembering her promise to herself, she continued to make batch after batch, research, tweak and reformulate, ultimately culminating in the Soco Soaps we know and love today! Becoming a mother in 2011 made it so much more important to Karey to be able to provide natural products, and she could often be seen selling at the local Fernie farmer’s market, with her small baby in tow.
Phthalate-free, paraben free & sustainable, the handcrafted bath & body products of Soco Soaps not only smell delightful, but the essential oil soaps are 99.9% natural! FMH’s current favourite is the Rosemary & Mint Castile Soap, and we are also suckers for Karey’s adorable bar soaps, but clearly, all of Karey’s soaps and products are made with so much love and passion
Any guest of FMH will quickly notice the stunning work of local photographer, Matt Kuhn, throughout the property.
Matt specializes in creating happy, relaxed, and natural images of people – which is what makes him a fantastic choice to shoot your wedding, engagement, family, or any other type of event, (Matt does not shy away from different – book him for that “out there” shoot you’re contemplating! You can thank us later!). Matt also takes on real estate and architectural work for commercial clients, and happens to have an enormous landscape portfolio from his life in the mountains around the Kootenays.
His work is stunning, and he put much time and energy into the placement of his art, throughout the property, to fit and curate the desired atmosphere of the various spaces – from the calming colours and scenes utilized in each of the bedrooms, to the enormous scroll canvas chair lift print featured in the staircase leading up to the Great Room. Needless to say, we are big fans of Matt Kuhn!
Check him out here: Matt Kuhn Photography – Wedding and Lifestyle Photography (mkuhnphoto.com)
Since FMH’s completion last October 2021, we have also had the pleasure of collaborating with many local business owners, including:
Desiree Markewich of Moonlight Flowers & Boutique.
FMH hosted a ladies’ getaway in July, filled with everything all of the best ladies’ trips are made of: prosecco, matching PJs, late-night hot tubs, morning coffee with a (stunning) view, and a charcuterie picnic in the park!
Desiree of Moonlight Flowers & Boutique added her brand of charm and beauty to the picnic, and was an absolute joy to meet. Desiree is a wedding florist. her floral boutique, which is located just outside of Fernie in nearby Sparwood, is also a gift and consignment shop. Sourcing all flowers from within British Columbia first, for FMH’s event, Desiree even added some unique stems grown in her own backyard garden to her arrangements! Her obvious passion for creating an extra personal touch did not go unnoticed.
Check out Desiree’s beautiful work on IG: @moonlightflowers.bc
Chef Victor Spicer
Culinary artist Victor Spicer grew up in Calgary before achieving his Red Seal certification and traveling Australia for upwards of two years, honing his cooking skills through everything from backcountry horse packing trips in the mountains, to 2-hatted restaurants in Sydney and Brisbane. Following his adventures in Australia, Victor ended up in Fernie 7 years ago. Intending to stay just 1 ski season, Victor reports that he was sucked in by Fernie’s charm and adventure. He started out at Cirque restaurant in the Lizard Creek Lodge, helping to develop the catering and wedding program. Currently, Victor is the Executive Chef for Fernie Alpine Resort, and recently began taking on private catering gigs culminating in Victor’s very own startup catering business – Elk Valley catering.
One of our owners hosted an intimate fashion show at FMH at the end of May, and Victor did a fantastic job catering for the event! His culinary creations and presentation were delightful, and Victor’s easygoing yet professional demeanor was a perfect fit for the intimate event. Some crowd favourites from the event included savory goat-cheese cheesecake with a red onion jam, chicken peanut satay skewers & smoked bacon, and blue cheese-wrapped dates.
In addition to our own private canape event, several of our guests have booked Victor for everything from 3-4 course plated dinners for wedding celebrations, to big BBQs for a boy’s weekend. Victor even had his own wedding celebration at Fernie Mountain House! Victor enjoys cooking food that makes people happy, which requires creating unique cuisine to suit each function, and each group of guests.
You can find Victor on IG: @victorspicey or contact him at: elkvalleycatering@gmail.com
