Treehouse Yoga, 108 Main in Joplin, has only been open since Jan. 20, but owner Sharlotte Fedewa has been living the nomadic, minimalist life of a true yogi for years, so it’s no surprise that at only 24 years old, she decided to open her own yoga studio.

Her age isn’t the only thing that makes Fedewa a unique business owner; she’s only been settled here since July.

“When I got here I looked and tried to find yoga and there really wasn’t anything for me,” she said. This realization led her to open her own place.

The variety of classes Fedewa teaches certainly is new to the area. Her weekly schedule includes meditation, Ashtanga (or more traditional yoga), power flow, restorative, prenatal and hot yoga (vinyasa).

Her go-with-the-flow attitude infuses every aspect of her upstairs studio. She made the front door sign herself, painted the walls and sewed her own room dividers. She proudly pointed out that the eclectic mix of furniture in the lobby came from the Salvation Army.

“I think that my studio is different because it doesn’t really have a corporate-y feel,” she said. “I had to pick out everything on a budget. I think that it’s more like you would compare it to hand-crafted to corporate.”

I attended her first hot yoga class on Thursday, Jan. 23 at 7:30 p.m. There was a large turnout, considering it was her first class— I would say about 15 attendees — which made me realize how much Joplin really needed a yoga studio like Treehouse.

Fedewa has decided to add a hot yoga class on Tuesday nights as well. Her teaching style is very laid back, and she makes it a point to let her students know they don’t have to be perfect. As the class went on, we found ourselves laughing and generally having a good time. It was much different than the more serious yoga lessons I’d been to in the past, and I left that night feeling invigorated and in a great mood.

Fedewa began doing yoga as a freshman in college in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Mich. In 2011, she and her sister flew to Italy to earn their yoga teaching certifications. She completed 200 hours of training in one month. Since then, she’s traveled the United States as part of the Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) program and has taught yoga in a number of states including Hawaii.

Treehouse Yoga is a great place to unwind through stretching and poses, meditation, or even just being around Fedewa’s contagiously positive personality.

She is using a survey, available on her website, to build her class schedule to fit the needs of her students. Taking the survey by Feb. 6 results in one free yoga session.

For further information regarding class schedules, rates, to take the survey, visit the website www.treehouseyogajoplin.com.