Rooted in Craft, Connected by Purpose: A Collaboration with EarthSeed Farm

Some partnerships unfold by design. Others bloom exactly when they’re meant to. Our collaboration with EarthSeed Farm in Sebastopol, California, didn’t begin with strategy — it began with a shared intention: to honour Black artistry, land, and legacy through the things we choose to live with.

Founded by Pandora Thomas, EarthSeed is more than a farm. It’s a living, breathing ecosystem of healing, community, and intergenerational stewardship. Drawing from her Afro-Indigenous heritage and rooted in regenerative agriculture, Pandora has created a place where young people reconnect with the soil, ancestral wisdom takes root, and climate resilience is practiced in real time.    

Fresh produce grown at EarthSeed Farm.

In 2021, in EarthSeed’s early days, Pandora discovered Goodee and began bringing our pieces into the farmhouse — each purchase a quiet affirmation of shared values. As she shaped a space rooted in intention, she sought out goods that honoured Black-owned brands and celebrated craft. With care and vision, she filled the home with beauty and meaning — from handwoven baskets to richly textured towels and striking works of art, all sourced through Goodee. We noticed — drawn not just to what was being chosen, but to the quiet story unfolding behind those choices. There was something magnetic about it all, something that felt aligned. Still, it wasn’t until 2024 that we finally reached out. As it turns out, the moment was exactly right.

Around that same time, EarthSeed had been gifted a tiny home — a new addition to the farm meant to host artists, elders, and guests. The structure had been built, but the inside was still bare. As we started dreaming together, the vision for the Afro Art House took shape — a space that could reflect EarthSeed’s mission and offer rest, reflection, and beauty to all who passed through.

Over the months that followed, we collaborated closely with Pandora and her team to bring the space to life. We curated a selection of handcrafted pieces from across the African continent and diaspora, as well as from artisan communities around the world. Each item was chosen with care, meant not only to be used, but to tell a story.

In May 2025, Byron, our co-founder, and our Impact Manager Justine travelled from Montréal to Sebastopol — a cross-country trip to help set up the space in person. It was our first time on the land and our first time meeting the EarthSeed team face-to-face. From the moment we arrived, the energy on the farm was grounding and warm.

Justine and Byron prepare to hang curtains in the tiny home.

That’s also when we met Ayoade Balogun, EarthSeed’s 2025 Artist in Residence. Her practice — rooted in Black environmental relationships, indigo dyeing, and storytelling — felt deeply aligned with everything EarthSeed and Goodee both stand for. As it happened, she became the very first guest to stay in the Afro Art House that weekend. The experience left a lasting impression on her, and her written reflection moved us deeply.   

She wrote about the scent of cedar and wildflowers, weaving it together with reflections on the history and power of art as a form of storytelling in Black communities.

“The soft light of the lamp… the touches of indigo around me… and the lullaby of the subtle nighttime sounds of the farm… created a cozy hideaway,” she wrote. “I fell asleep thinking about the Black artists who came before me and made a way for me to be an artist today.”

- Ayoade Balogun 

Inside the home, you’ll find baskets handwoven in Bolgatanga, Ghana; pottery made and painted in Cairo; colorful curtains hand-dyed in Kenya; a trio of birds sculpted in Tunisia; and a mohair throw from Spain’s Ezcaray region. Taper candles made by a Black beekeeper in upstate New York, indigo-dyed cushions from West Africa, and colorful ceramic planters all speak to care — for home, for plants, for people. These pieces weren’t just styled into a space; they were placed with purpose.    

The upstairs bedroom of the tiny home, styled with Goodee decor.

Goodee decor featured in the kitchen of the tiny home.

That same evening, EarthSeed hosted their first dinner of the season to celebrate our partnership—an unforgettable gathering inside the farmhouse, filled with warmth and intention. Friends of the farm, local neighbours, and a few Goodee customers joined us for a shared meal and an intimate first look inside the Afro Art House. The evening began with guided tours of the tiny home and the surrounding farm, followed by a seated dinner in the heart of the farmhouse.

Photographer Baidi Kamagate beautifully captured the day and evening, preserving the moments with artistry and care. Meanwhile, chef Beve Julien and his sous-chef prepared a wonderful meal inspired by the farm’s own produce, bringing the land’s bounty directly to the table. The atmosphere was further enriched by the thoughtful curation of Ryan Royster, founder of Last Supper, — a creative house and culinary design studio that uses food as a technology for storytelling. The evening was more than a simple gathering — it was a celebration of community, creativity, and the shared intention behind this special place. 

Guests gathered for dinner in EarthSeed’s main farmhouse.

This project is the beginning of something more — a relationship rooted in shared values, mutual respect, and a belief that design can hold deeper meaning. What started with a few thoughtful orders turned into a full-circle moment: a space made by and for Black creatives, built to nourish rest and dream.

We’re deeply honoured to have played a meaningful part in EarthSeed’s evolving story. To know that our pieces live within this sacred space is a contribution we hold with gratitude. As we walk the land, read Ayoade’s words, or witness how each object has found its place, we’re reminded that land is not only something we tend — when met with intention and respect, it becomes a living partner, offering its own quiet gifts in return.