Meet Our Team
Kathleen
Kathleen Jardin, owner of Purple Sage Gallery and Methow Reservations, opened Purple Sage Gallery in an effort to help local and regional artists by showcasing their work. Along with running two businesses, Kathleen applies her interior design skills to Methow Reservations, creating unique and beautiful spaces for guests visiting the Methow Valley.
For the gallery, Kathleen buys art outright, rather than consignment, thus being a reliable income source to artists. Possessing and living with art and handmade creations is a way of life, posing as an excellent alternative to products mass produced.
"Art Made by Hands You Can Shake" sums it up in a phrase Kathleen coined years ago.
"I've been blown away by visitors' comments every single day...it astounds me, people constantly say they Love the store, “ she said. “As I overhear this from my work cubby around the corner from the main part of the gallery, my face flames with enjoyment. More than one person has said, "You always have what speaks to me.”
Kyrie
Kyrie Jardin, husband to Kathleen, constructs the art displays in the gallery. His work deals with less of the business side and more so in the architectural elements of the gallery. He created their unique shelving — made out of old doors — and installed a screening on the ceiling to hang art and double the gallery’s space.
“Old, found materials are my art, I guess,” he said.
The most fulfilling part of working in the gallery, however, comes from the people who visit the gallery. Many visitors are from several different parts of the United States or have journeyed from different countries in the world, but they all share an appreciation for the art on display.
“There’s a variety of people that will come in and turn around and walk back out; there’s a lot of those folks,” Kyrie said. “But every once in a while there’s someone that comes in and they just stand and look and we have conversations…that’s the best part.”
Stacey
Around five years ago, Stacey was teaching a yoga class that Kathleen and Kyrie Jardin attended. When Kathleen mentioned that they were looking to hire another person, Stacey immediately said yes. Juggling both her yoga practice and working in the gallery/Methow Reservations, handles the reservations and the calls that often come with them. She often answers questions about the artists whose work is shown in the gallery as well.
“People always love hearing something personal or something eccentric about an artist or personal contact or something like that,” Stacey said.
The most fulfilling part of working in the gallery is her co-workers. While yoga is her form of art, Stacey recognizes the positive impact the gallery has on area artists.
“A lot of the artists that we have in the gallery are friends of Kathleen’s, and some of them are older, and they're only surviving on their art,” she explained. “So there's that aspect of it too, that, you know, she's supporting people that are really only supporting themselves to their art, which can be hard.”
Halley
Halley saw an ad in the local newspaper for a position at Purple Sage Gallery/Methow Reservations a few years ago, and the rest is history. She stays busy working on Methow Reservations, working on vacation rentals. At the gallery, she answers questions about the artists, collects items that customers may need, and completes transactions.
“What I like at the gallery is just to see the imagination and creativity of so many different artists who have been long time friends of Kathleen,” Halley said.
For Stacey, the most fulfilling part of working in the gallery is seeing local and area artists supported by Kathleen and the gallery.
“She just supports these artists who are making a living from their work,” she said. “And people want local and regional art when they come to a different place and things that are different.”
Nadia
Nadia, the newest member of the team, recently moved from Wisconsin to the Methow Valley. While looking for a job, someone suggested she reach out to Kathleen, which in turn led to her working at Methow Reservations/Purple Sage Gallery.
Nadia helps customers book their reservations, emailing them with options for different places to stay. Working at Methow Reservations has helped her garner an appreciation for the history of each house in the area. It’s also helped her meet people.
“I don’t know anyone here or know anything about the area,” she said. “So I feel like it’s helped me jump into plugging into the community a lot faster.”
In regards to the gallery, Nadia answers questions about artwork and rings up purchases. Nadia explained that while she doesn’t have “a creative bone in her body,” she loves to admire the art and talk to customers about the variety of art for sale at the Purple Sage Gallery.
“It’s all so unique,” she explained. “I have an appreciation for people who can do creative stuff.”
