Homegrown Roots. Handmade Futures.

Mill Hollow Works began as an idea rooted deeply in New Hampshire soil — a place where creativity and self-reliance have always gone hand in hand. Founders Heather Holloway and Wade Smith grew up surrounded by artists, craftspeople, and homesteaders who knew how to make what they needed, repair what they had, and stretch limited resources with skill and imagination. Those early lessons in resilience, beauty, and community became the foundation of their shared vision: to return home and build a place where others could rediscover the same.

From Homegrown Kids to Coming Home

Heather and Wade’s story starts at Fall Mountain High School, where they met as teenagers before life took them in opposite directions — Wade to the trades and Heather to the arts — and across the country for nearly two decades.
When they found their way back to one another, they also found their way back to New Hampshire. Together, they founded Mill Hollow Works, a heritage craft school and working community dedicated to preserving and reimagining the skills that shaped New England life.

A Name That Works

Heather’s earlier venture, Mill Hollow Productions, took its name from her hometown of East Alstead, NH, once home to a village lined with water-powered mills. That name reflected the blend of artistry and industry that defined 19th-century New England — where craftsmanship served a purpose, and beauty was born of hard work.

When Mill Hollow Works was founded, “Works” captured that same spirit — a place where people create, learn, and support one another.
Our campus embodies a working community: woodworking, boatbuilding, metalwork, fiber arts, gardening, and food preservation all share space here, alongside the belief that skill and creativity grow best when shared.

The Founders

Heather Holloway

Heather is a digital storyteller whose career began locally in theater and media before taking her across the country as a Story Producer for national television networks. Over 15 years, she worked in 48 states and 4 countries, creating award-winning docu-series and visual stories rooted in real life. Now back in New England, she focuses on short-form documentaries celebrating local history, folklore, and innovation.
Teaching has always been central to her work — from helping teens mount their own plays through the Young Writers Project, to teaching media literacy and counter-advertising with Writer’s Block, to running creative workshops in Los Angeles and beyond.

Wade Smith

Wade is a wood boatbuilder — a trade that merges artistry with engineering. His work spans woodworking, metalworking, casting, machining, and rigging, as well as design and historical research. He has taught at the WoodenBoat School, Mystic Seaport Museum, The Apprenticeshop,GreenWood, and Kroka Expeditions.
At Mill Hollow Works, Wade brings his deep technical mastery and lifelong commitment to teaching — helping others discover the fulfillment that comes from working with their hands.

Building Community, One Skill at a Time

What began as two people returning home has grown into a vibrant community of makers, learners, and teachers. Mill Hollow Works hosts courses that extend far beyond boatbuilding and media — from traditional crafts and homesteading to modern creative trades, taught by some of the most skilled artisans in New England and beyond.
Our campus in Keene, NH, offers a farm-based setting where adults, teens, and children can come together to build skill, confidence, and connection.

Rooted in Heritage. Growing in Community.

Mill Hollow Works was born from a belief that the most meaningful things we create begin with our own two hands — and that when we make, we connect.
Our mission is to restore the spirit of self-reliance, creativity, and community that once defined everyday life in New England. Through hands-on craft, shared experience, and a sense of place, we help people rediscover the satisfaction of capability — the quiet confidence that grows when you learn how to build, repair, and create.

Our Mission

At Mill Hollow Works, we teach people to live and make with intention.
By offering immersive, hands-on courses in woodworking, boatbuilding, carpentry, fiber arts, metalwork, basketry, and more, we help students reconnect to life, land, and community.
We believe that learning traditional skills is more than a hobby — it’s a way of restoring balance, purpose, and joy in a world that often feels disconnected.

Our Vision

We envision a world where craft, creativity, and community are woven back into daily life — where people know the satisfaction of working with their hands, the beauty of self-sufficiency, and the strength of belonging to something larger than themselves.

At Mill Hollow Works, our guiding values echo the old 4 Corners of our founders’ childhood home — where art, music, food, and fellowship came together in one small patch of New Hampshire grass. Those four corners have become the foundation of our school:

  • Sense of Self – Building capability, confidence, and creativity through craft.

  • Sense of Place – Honoring the landscape, heritage, and craftsmanship of New England.

  • Sense of Community – Connecting people through shared work and learning.

  • Sense of Connection – Linking the past to the future, the hand to the heart, and each of us to one another.

The Work We Do

Our workshops are taught by master craftspeople and working tradespeople, bringing deep skill and real-world experience to each class. Using traditional hand tools and modern methods, we offer a curriculum that celebrates both heritage and innovation.

Our barn-style workshop in Keene, New Hampshire, is more than a school — it’s a living space of creativity and camaraderie. Here, beginners and seasoned makers alike come to learn, to build, and to find the joy of making something real.

The Heart of Our Work

We believe that learning to make things by hand is an act of hope — a way of reweaving what modern life has unraveled.
Each class, each conversation, each project adds a new thread to that fabric.
Our hope is that you leave Mill Hollow Works carrying more than a skill — that you leave with a renewed sense of belonging, a deeper appreciation for the handmade, and a spark to pass those gifts along.

Welcome to Mill Hollow Works.
May it be your place of purpose, learning, and connection — your modern-day 4 Corners.