Prince George workshop blends Indigenous artistry with natural bath bombs

A bath-bomb workshop at Two Rivers Gallery became something bigger than a standard DIY class: participants made natural fizzy soaks and small beaded earrings in the same session, a pairing that gave the event both wellness appeal and Indigenous artistic weight. Held at the gallery’s temporary location at 1322 Third Ave. in Prince George, the May 8 class ran from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and drew on a format that mixed self-care, hands-on making and cultural storytelling.

The workshop, titled Beaded Earrings & Bath Bombs, was led by Crystal Behn, whom Two Rivers Gallery described as an award-winning Indigenous artist. The bath bombs were built around all-natural, toxin-free ingredients, including cedar, sweetgrass water, fireweed, rose petals and devil’s club oil. On the jewelry side, participants worked with traditionally smoked moosehide to make small beaded earrings. The ticket price was $31.50, and the program was open to ages 12 and up, which made it feel more like an art-forward family workshop than a kids’ craft table.

That blend matters for bath-bomb makers and organizers because it shows how the category can stretch beyond scent and fizz. In this case, the bath bomb was not presented as a novelty gift or a spa-shop add-on. It was tied to land-based ingredients, careful sourcing and a sense of place. Two Rivers Gallery said the project used sustainably harvested materials and framed self-care as something that can support balance and mood, not just indulgence. That gives the format a stronger story than a typical workshop centered only on color, fragrance and mold shapes.

Behn’s background explains why the session carried that extra depth. The BC Achievement Foundation identifies her as an artist of Dene and Carrier ancestry who was born and raised in Treaty 8 territory. She learned beading, moccasin making and traditional harvesting from her grandmother, and she received the 2021 Fulmer Award for First Nations Art. Two Rivers Gallery has also used Behn for other hands-on programs centered on Indigenous art and natural materials, so this was part of a broader pattern rather than a one-off collaboration.

The event also fit the gallery’s temporary programming during HVAC repairs at its main site at 725 Canada Games Way. The temporary space opened on April 15 after the city began a $2.74 million HVAC project on April 7, with construction scheduled through June 23 and reopening expected in June 2026. Two Rivers Gallery says it sits on the ancestral and unceded territory of the Lheidli T’enneh, which gave the workshop an added sense of place as well as purpose.