I admit it, I sport a ponytail more days than I’d like. If I had some of Melissa Abram’s fun hair accessories, I might feel a little happier about that fact!
A simple, organic print
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A splash of pretty brocade on this headband
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Okay, here’s another confession – I cannot make bobby pins do what they’re supposed to do. They just don’t stay in my hair… but if I ever figure it out, I’d like to add these pretty kimono pins to my collection, please!
Little black dress, red shoes and these in your hair? Gorgeous.
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Robots are, shall we say, “trending” these days and this handsome little dude is featured on one of Melissa’s necklaces and more retro robot styles on rings as well!
Robot!!
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Melissa hails from Quadra Island, BC and has a great line of semi-precious jewellery as well. Be sure to drop by her website, her Etsy shop or her Facebook page to see more of her designs including earrings, rings, bracelets and more hair accessories.
Enjoy!
~Sarah
P.S. I found Melissa via the Artzi Stuff shop in Nanaimo, BC! If you’re in the area, definitely check it out – over 40 Canadian artists are featured!
Beat those February blahs with these fun, brightly coloured accessories from Quebec’s Button Infatuation.
Spring in button form!
Love the monochromatic look of this white set, and the sweet flower in the middle is lovely!
Sweet and fun, with a vintage-looking twist
The creator behind these lovely pieces is Marylène, of Saguenay, Quebec. She obviously has a passion for buttons, and yellow! You can see some of her other favourites on her Tumblr account (also? Yellow!)
These bright colours are just so... fun!
I really like the asymmetrical styling of these necklaces, and the little birdie on this “Pinkish Pistachio” necklace is a nice touch.
Perfect hit of colour with a t-shirt and jeans. Simple, but fun and unique!
You can check out Marylène’s shop here, visit her Tumblr blog or find and follow on Facebook!
Happy Thursday!
~Sarah
P.S. Spring is only 33 days away. Yes, I’m counting now.
Our eldest daughter has developed a fascination with Angelina Ballerina, a TV show about a little mouseling in pink tutu and ballet shoes. Most days, she can be found spinning around the house, practicing her version of “grand jetées” and she has recently requested that I make her an Angelina costume (mouse ears and tail!) for her birthday.
So, when I saw the artwork of Wendy Schmidt, I couldn’t help but smile. For every dancer, small or big, there are memories in these shoes.
“All Together”
In Ms. Schmidt’s experience, dancers are reluctant to part with costumes and shoes from past performances and hours of practice and often have closets full of treasured pieces. Thus, her series called “In my closet” was born.
"In my closet: Ballet"
Wendy has studied watercolour, acrylic, oil and sculpture but most often prefers to work with oil. She also explores abstract and still life themes, such as the set of three canvasses in the Prairie Summer piece below.
"Prairie Summer"
To see more of Wendy’s work, visit her online gallery or her retail space Lakeland Art & Framing in Sherwood Park, AB.
Enjoy,
~Sarah
There is something special about writing in a lovely journal – even if it’s just jotting down the day’s to-do list, it feels more “permanent” to me when it’s written on paper (and yes, I know how strange that sounds coming from a girl who spends most of her limited free time with a keyboard in front of her!)
I saw the notebooks from Edmonton’s Sushi Papercraft at a Handmade Mafia event back in the fall, and loved the vibrant colours! I wanted to scoop them all up and immediately start writing the great Canadian novel, or some angsty teen poetry. These journals, notebooks and sketchbooks are all created and bound by Jenna O’Flaherty, and some even feature her original artwork on the covers.
If you’ve been following along for a while, you’ll likely know that I’m partial to maps. Jenna is after my heart with her lovely Africa and European map journals, perfect for a traveller… or someone who’s just dreaming. I love the clean edges, the coptic binding which lays flat (the better to write close to the center of the book) and that the pages inside are blank to accommodate doodling and sketching!
This is also the perfect time of year to start making good on that New Year’s resolution to finally get organized. Sushi Papercraft has some lovely agendas available that are undated, leaving you with a flexible start date and lots of room for notes and planning.
Jenna has a lovely way of looking at her notebooks – born of a love for writing and drawing, and wanting to surround herself with inspiring places to record her thoughts, Sushi Papercraft journals are…
“…a place for people who get joy out of putting marks on a page. There’s something about the immediacy of a book, and setting pen to paper, that can’t be recreated by technology.”
I agree wholeheartedly.
For more on Jenna’s notebooks, you can visit her blog (and soon-to-be new website!) or check out the selection at her Etsy shop.
Happy journaling,
~Sarah
Ah, mais oui. Il me fait du bon quand j’ai occasion de parler francais, et à Vancouver il y avait plusieurs vendeurs Québecois tellement doué. One of those vendors from the fair province of Québec was Oöm Ethikwear.
I’ll be honest, I fell in love with a little dress that is currently out of stock (but I’m keeping my eye on it, because there are certain little people who have birthdays coming up!), but the rest of their line intrigued me as well. Lovely designs, and the fabrics were gorgeously soft!
"L'amour ne se calcule pas"
Penseur
Flamenco!
I love that their tagline is “Ethical Organic Canadian”… and they really do stand by their clothing. Not only are they made with organic and environmentally responsible fabrics (recycled cotton etc.), but Oöm offers a $5 gift card for every piece of clothing that the buyer returns to them at the end of it’s life cycle in their closet. This means that they carry the responsibility for their products and their impact on the environment right through it’s life span and ensure that the clothing is integrated back into the marketplace by donation or recycling. It’s also nice to know that since their inception in 2005 they have donated 1% of profits to several chosen charities. All around, the folks at Oöm seem like they’ve got a great attitude about working within, and for, their larger community and environment. Plus, they make really cute clothes!
Robe 60's Dress
The "Astronaut"
Their children’s line (Bébé Oöm!) is really adorable – I love the superhero jammies, and the designs are young and hip (although I really don’t like that word. Hip. We need to think of another word that means the same thing!) Whatever word we use, any little one sporting Bébé Oöm will be just a little bit cuter than the generic-clad youngster nearby ;) The messages passed on through Oöm aren’t just in the fabric and the business, I also love the little taglines on the clothing – positive, reinforcing, something I’d be proud for my daughters to wear.
Superhero bébé!
The key to my heart...
"Mes souliers sont fait pour marcher et ils iront loin!"
You can find out more about Oöm on their website at www.oom.ca (mostly in French) and shop in their online boutique (which is bilingual). They are also on Facebook and Twitter, like everyone else these days :)
Enjoy,
~Sarah
This post is part of a series related to the C+H Handmade Holiday Shopping Challenge. This holiday season, I am attempting to purchase all of our family’s gifts from Canadian handmade sources. I have plans to make a few gifts as well, and have allowed myself the exception of purchasing books (because I can’t imagine a Christmas without new books) from a local independent retailer. You can see all the details in the original post here! Update #1 is here.
We waited until December 1st to decorate this year, and suddenly as I pulled out our “countdown” Santa from his tissue paper bundle yesterday, I realized there were only 24 days left until Christmas. 23, as of today! Eep. So, time for a little update on the Handmade Holiday Shopping extravaganza that’s been going on over here. Part of our goal for this year was to give less, but give better – better quality, more thoughtful, lovely things. I think we’re meeting that goal and I can’t wait for Christmas morning!
A few of our favourite finds so far, for the little people in our lives:
Cute little ponytail bobbles by OnceUponAButton
Puzzle from an original print by Monika Brint (CranberryLicorice)
Gorgeous, snuggly housecoats by Pixie Dust Kids
And for some of the adults on our list this year:
Great teacher gift, don't you think? Mini Chai Tea Kit by Purpose Design
Custom magnet tile set by Dombots
Mmm, deliciously yummy smelling! African Red soap by Olive Bath & Body
I can’t give away all my gift-giving secrets before the 25th, so you’ll just have to wait to hear about the “big” stuff :) Let it be said, though, that I’m having so much fun with this challenge and I think I’ll start even earlier next year so that I might have more time to source some of the ideas that are giving me trouble! I also haven’t had as much time to work on the handmade gifts that I’d like to make myself, but I’ve finally got a work space back and will be putting together some projects over the next couple of weeks.
We’re also making a concerted effort to bring the focus of the holidays back to family time – to that end, we’ll be doing a “12 Days of Christmas” advent at our house, with a different family activity every day for the last 12 days before Christmas. I’d love to hear the ways that you bring family and tradition into your holiday season – do you always watch The Grinch when it’s on TV? Do you make a special trip out to look at the lights? Do you drink hot chocolate with marshmallows on Christmas Eve? Do you have a special Hannukah or Kwanzaa tradition that you’d like to share? Do tell!
I’ll be back in a couple of weeks with one last update before the jolly old elf makes his appearance – until then, happy handmade shopping!
Cheers,
~Sarah
I’m not sure why it is, but it seems to me (through very unscientific observational methods) that many woman return to their creative roots after they become mothers. Maybe these days it’s the desire to stay with our babies and not go back to the office grind, or maybe it’s simply a function of those maternal instincts kicking in. Whatever it is, I think it’s pretty amazing that so many women are running their own businesses and pursuing their creative talents – Stacey from nisse.works is one of those women. After the birth of her daughter, she revived her childhood sewing skills and turned a hobby into a growing business.
From her home in Brandon, Manitoba, Stacey creates lovely little bags and pouches, all with a touch of hand embroidery and sweet details – perfect stocking stuffers, or gift bags for a small token of love (boys, if you’re buying your lady something sparkly, these would make a cute package!)
For the sewing enthusiast, these little needlebooks and pincushion pairs are pretty adorable!
Stacey’s graphic design roots are showing up in her shop, too – she has some animal alphabet and desk calendar printable files that you can download and print out yourself. No excuse to be without a calendar when she makes it this easy. I think I like the “Leavings” design the best, and each month is slightly different.
You can find Stacey’s work on Cargoh, Artfire, her own website nisseworks.com, Facebook and Twitter!
Cheers,
~Sarah
P.S. In the interest of full disclosure, I’ve already purchased one of Stacey’s little tote bags for my daughter for Christmas and it is really adorable!
Jacki, the creative mind behind Plushoff, obviously has a great sense of humour! Her shop has had me giggling for the last little while, and I just had to share.
If you have a child who has trouble sleeping, maybe the Sleepy Marshmallow Bed Bug would help them snuggle in a little more…
Do you love ice cream, maybe want to impart that love on your little one early? Let them play with this plushie Strawberry cone!
Better yet, combine the ice cream with a jar of dill pickles for your pregnant friend ;)
Thanks for the smile today, Jacki from Kamloops! To see more of her work, check out her Etsy shop, visit her website or chat it up on Twitter and Facebook. She’s also been known to do custom orders, and wouldn’t these make adorable stocking stuffers?
Cheers,
~Sarah
Updated: Just discovered there’s a Plush Off shop on Cargoh, too :)
My personal style is pretty simple, but I like to splash it up with a special detail here and there… a simple dress with an unusual back detail, or a gorgeous ring to add a little pizazz to jeans and t-shirt.
So, when I saw the rings at Brilliance Found, I stopped and did a double-take. This floating butterflies piece is so lovely, and I’m not sure that I’m going to be able to resist buying it (my budget is arguing with me!)
The artist is Nyne, and she is currently living in Vancouver, having just escaped the cowboys and spring snowstorms of Alberta back to her hometown! From her designs, it’s clear that Nyne is a creative spirit who takes inspiration from nature and the world around her – many of her pieces feature leaves, butterflies, flowers and even this spectacular dragonfly:
Lest you think her shop is filled only with gorgeous rings, let me show you my favourite necklace:
And for something completely different… this felted flowers necklace!
Nyne has a history of creating specialized jewellery pieces for your specific needs, too – sensitive skin options, earrings for un-pierced ears that don’t look anything like your Grandma’s clip-ons as well as large gauge earrings. You can find her all over the internet with a shop at Artfire and Etsy, as well as on her blog, Facebook and Twitter!
Enjoy,
~Sarah
Jenn and I grew up with a handsome fellow in our house. Sure, our brothers were pretty cute (don’t tell them I said that!) but that handsome guy I’m referring to was Sunshine, our long-ish haired, sweet-faced, softest-kitty-ever.
When I saw the original artwork in Tara Anderson’s Gingercatpress shop, I couldn’t help but grin. She posts a new “Meow of the Day” original piece each day, and today’s reminded me of our Sunny.
Her daily artwork pieces are available for 7 days only, so if you see one you like, snap it up quickly! Tara’s shop is full of adorable little feline creatures – some stealing beans from the plate on the table, some looking super-proud to have caught that little felt mouse, others (like Red, below) looking for a little romance!
Gingercatpress also offers greeting cards and art prints or her original artwork, perfect little pieces for the cat lover in your life. I just love the look on Misty’s face!
Red has eyes only for Misty, but Misty's a little shy ;)
Benjamin is one cute little dude!
After time spent as a bookseller, Tara has returned to her fine art and illustrator roots. She takes inspiration from the many kitties that live on her 200-acre farm, house cats and barn cats alike. Having grown up with a regal-looking prince of a cat, who was born in a barn but who’s favourite spot was on our laps or in a patch of warm sunlight, I’m sure there’s plenty of personality on her farm to inspire many more paintings!
You can also find Tara online at her blog and on Twitter.
Enjoy,
~Sarah
