Since March, Khaula Kai and Tim Walsh have been catering to a growing clientele eager to learn how to produce hand-made leather crafts, candles and other timeless items at the Local Makery, a craft workshop they opened at 2289 Ludington Ave. The couple's business also has a liquor license, so they can serve wine to their students during lessons, which are by appointment only.
Business has been growing steadily, and one of the unexpected draws has been the space itself. The intimate front room where the workshops are conducted — its wood work benches surrounded by an eclectic mix of hand-made decor — has been so popular among students that some have suggested it would be fun place just to come relax, perhaps with a glass of wine.
The workshops still are the bread and butter of Local Makery, but Kai and Walsh also have applied for a conditional use permit from the City of Wauwatosa to allow them to offer the space as a wine bar when workshops aren't in session. A public hearing on the permit request is set for 7 p.m. Sept. 30 at the Wauwatosa Common Council meeting.
And despite the presence already of quite a few adult beverage businesses in Midtown Tosa, the business district along North Avenue east of Swan Boulevard, Kai and Walsh think their Local Makery wine bar will fill its own niche.
"We're new to the area, but we're also testing a lot of things," Kai told Tosa Forward News in an interview at the shop. "We want to see if people like it and then expand on it. And some of the feedback was, we'd like to just come hang out here."
The Local Makery is just south of Fiddleheads Coffee on North Avenue and a few blocks from Ray's (liquor store), Club Tap (traditional bar) and Lion's Tail Brewing (larger gathering space). The space where Kai and Walsh lead their workshops is something completely different. Cosy but not claustrophobic. Unusual but inviting. And every detail feels like a personal touch, from the moss art on the wall (one of Kai's specialties), to the hand-crafted book shelves and the replica axe that Walsh created to look like something out of Middle-earth.
"It's sort of like a 'Harry Potter,' 'Lord of the Rings,' magical earth vibe," Walsh said. "It should feel a little mystical, a little whimsical, very comfortable. Not a lot of harsh lines, more organic shapes."
For now, wine can only be served during the workshops themselves, because of the way the city regulates businesses. Those regulations require the Local Makery to go back to the city for an additional permit to serve wine during other hours.
After the Sept. 30 public hearing, the permit request will be taken up by the Plan Commission and then return to the Common Council for final approval.
In the meantime, the Local Makery offers its workshops Wednesdays through Saturdays. Details can be found on its website. If Kai and Walsh receive the permit to add a wine bar, they expect to still open the business on those same days, while juggling the schedule of wine bar hours and workshops. Evening hours will extend no later than 10 p.m.
