About Us:

Who is us?  Husband and wife team Scott Gruber and Jill Bryant.  Scott is an artist (sculptor).  Jill is a numbers wizard (bookkeeper).  Together, we create and grow.

FAQ: How do you do all the stuff you offer as products and services?

Answer : 1) We don't like the possibility of getting bored.  2) But, really, one skill and activity has led to another in a very organic, natural progression and we prefer to offer smaller quantities of many very special things rather than large quantities of the same thing over and over.  3) We just do, because it doesn't occur to us that we can't.

Our History:

   Our business started with Scott, with a newly minted BFA (not easy to use, but fun once you get the hang of it) degree, making vitreous enameled copper jewelry and stone, wood and metal sculpture for a living in Minnesota in the mid-1980's (back when you could attach a hook to a bowling ball, call it an earring, and someone would buy it and wear it).  Jill and Scott met in Seattle in 1990 and jewelry expanded to decorative hardware (knobs, light switch plates, etc.).  That led to making sculptural interior accessories (clocks, candle holders, mirrors, etc.).  The wholesale business grew through the 1990's as we purchased another artist's business (Ramsay Studio, from the fabulous Heather Ramsay) and produced four distinct product lines including Interior Accessories, Jewelry, T-shirts, and Sculpture.

   In 2001 we moved to Tacoma and opened a retail store and nursery in the building with our studios.  The idea of a plant nursery sprang up thusly...  Jill's daughter, Amy had worked for several years at a nursery in Portland, Oregon and was unhappy about the lack of time off.  Jill said "well let's start a nursery here and I'll give you all the time off you want!".  This serves as a lesson on being careful what you say around us...  So we started Calendula Urban Garden, Nursery & Gallery where we sold plants, art, gifts, body products and basically anything we darn well felt like making and selling.

   Our landscaping grew out of the nursery operation.  In Scott's mind, the equation was simple ( P+d+cR x tdt² = bhs ) where P= plants, d= dirt, cR=cool rocks, tdt=three dimensional thinking, and bhs=Big Huge Sculpture.  Experience with a wide range of materials, good construction skills, and total immersion into the world of plants created Calendula Landscaping.  That, and the second day our nursery was open, a customer came in, stood on the balcony overlooking the nursery and display gardens, gestured broadly and said "I want all this in my backyard!".  She meant it.  Literally.

   After about five years of running our studios, store and nursery, we simply ran out of space for what we wanted it to do.  We sold the building that housed all this activity and searched for a bigger, better space.  The idea was to find a larger space in town where we could still do the Urban Garden & Nursery thing.  No luck.  As we expanded our search geography, we stumbled upon a small farm just on the edge of town.  It felt like being 30 miles out of the city, but was (and still is) just about three blocks from the city limit.  We fell in love with the property and 1925 farm house and decided to create a bigger, better nursery.  While we were at it, we figured since it was a farm, let's raise a few animals and grow some fruit and berry crops so we can control the quality of our food.

   We had been selling our plants at the Proctor Farmers Market in Tacoma since 2002, and when our customers found out we were raising sheep and chickens for meat, wool, and eggs, they wanted in on it too.  As our farming and landscaping operations grew, the wholesale interior accessory business was finally put to rest in 2008 and we decided to not operate the nursery on a retail level.   The farm continues to expand its scope.  We currently raise sheep for meat and wool products, goats for meat, chickens for meat and eggs, pigs for meat, food-producing plants as well as ornamental plants and trees for our landscaping projects and for sale at the Proctor Farmers Market.  The Proctor Market is currently our only retail outlet each Saturday.

  We are now starting a wide arc of activity toward one of our previous incarnations - we are expanding our online store offerings, and it is slowly, but surely going to start resembling our old brick & mortar store near Wright Park in Tacoma.  We will be selling our meats, pet treats, wool, essential oils & body products, plants, and art.

Current Updates:

   Jill's Daughter, Amy Bryant-Aiello and her husband Michael Aiello are both artists in Portland, Oregon.  They have a retail store called Artemisia where they offer eclectic gifts, fine art, and unusual houseplants.  Amy had a book published this year on the art of creating terrariums.  It just made it to the NY Times list of 100 most notable books of 2011!  The book is called 'Terrarium Craft' published by Timber Press.  Info on the book, store, terrarium craft, Amy, and Michael can be found at http://www.artemisiaon28th.com .  Seriously, this is amazing stuff.

  Amy's husband, Michael Aiello is a print maker and painter who makes soulful, poetic art with deeply personal and iconic imagery.  His art can be seen regularly at their store as well as other venues around Portland.

   Amy & Michael's daughter of nearly 2 is showing tremendous promise as an artist as well.  At this point her scope is limited mostly to fairies and princesses.  At the moment, in Chiara's world, if it isn't a fairy, princess, pink or maybe a dinosaur, it ain't #%@!

   For those of you who might remember Heather Ramsay and her original company called Parvenue, she is currently making jewelry and accessories.  She sells wholesale through http://www.billmccartney.net .