I wanted to send big THANK YOU to PoppyTalk for featuring us in their Toronto City Guide today and Jen at Toronto Craft Alert who was so kind to come in last Friday to take some pics of the shop!
We found this relic of a building (above) on the wrong side of the tracks on our way to the Distillery District (below) where Alice scored this Koziol "Alice" bag...
And we had these delicious treats at Soma Chocolates...mmm...sea salt and caramel...
And memories of the calm before the storm, one pinky-hued evening after a quick meal in Korea Town...
We spent the day at Harbourfront Centre celebrating Canada Day after a leisurely BBQ lunch
at home with family.
It was really amazing being among this sea of people of all ethnicities, ages and creeds - the real beauty of being a Canadian.
What a way to experience "Canada". That's Alice's Canadian flag that she made at an event hosted by the AGO.
The Bunch Family always put on fun events for families. I had to drag Alice away from the dance floor and the dancing doughnut and moose, who were, by the way, the best dancing Canadian icons I've ever seen. Their renditions of the "David Suzuki" and "Margaret Atwood" moves were endearing and entertaining.
Happy Canada Day Everyone!
An hour spent in the dark during Saturday's Earth Hour was not so bad. Lots of cuddling and making shadow puppets with our flashlights, listening to our radio (I would like to say solar-powered, but no, battery-operated). The lesson worked. The next morning I was reprimanded by Alice for leaving the light on in the bathroom for a brief moment.
On Sunday, we had a hankering for some Jumbo Empanadas in Kensington Market. It's such a great neighbourhood, so lively and boisterous, such a mix of people from the young and old, all the ethnic shops with the multitude of smells and flavours. Go hungry because you can get a taste of everything. We feasted on empanadas and Chilean salad, great coffee, the girls got treats of dried fruits and nuts (not one packaged, sugary confection in sight...okay, except for the square of home-made Turkish Delight that Alice had spied and the nice lady behind the counter gave to her) and a trip to the market is not complete without a visit to Global Cheese.
You want a sense of Toronto, head down to the market...
Installation by Pascale Girardin
This past Sunday was supposed to be my "design" weekend. I had all intentions of going to the Interior Design Show, Come Up to My Room at the Gladstone and the Radiant Dark curated by Made at the Burroughes Building. I think 3 shows trekking around Queen West was a bit ambitious on my part, even sans daughter in tow.
We made it to IDS. My favourite areas were the 10 Innovative Canadian Designers area, which included a very cool sauna/ shed structure by Castor Design and this installation by ceramicist, Pascale Girardin, pictured above. Other notables were the fantastic exhibits by students of the University of Alberta and the Studio North area. (My pictures did not turn out, hence the lack of pics. I take them so hastily because I feel like some sort of fake reporter ;) For more detailed info. visit the IDS site.
I also enjoyed Sarah Richardson's showcase room. I first caught wind of Ms. Richardson, oh, about 10 years ago when she was set-designing and way before I caught the decorating bug. Her style was so refreshing and a lot of her appeal was the D.I.Y. This exhibit was a more evolved, grown-up version of her earlier style. The layers of colourful fabrics on the upholstery, cushions - the whole coziness of the cottage lent by the piles of books everywhere. Included in that pile, Kevin found one entitled something along the lines of: How to live like a WASP - inspiration comes from everywhere, I guess.
It would have been nice to hear Tom Dixon speak, but that seminar was for Trade only, sadly. I know much of the appeal of the show is as a consumer show, but it would have been nice to see more "styled" booths, other than those of large corporations who can afford the booth space. It's nice to see the innovation in products and design but I see an incongruity in the availability of the raw materials to the finished product of the furnished room. As noted, there is a wealth of Canadian talent who would have been up for the job if given the chance. It would be nice to see something fresh. I don't know, is no one tired of the "loft" or "hotel chic" look?
I felt a twinge of both joy and defeat as we drove by King St. to discover that a DWR (Design Within Reach) was opening its first international location right here in our city. Joy - because now we have access to a great design store and defeat - well, another American retailer has joined the countless ranks of other American chain stores crossing our borders.
We used to have Caban to roam around aimlessly and admire all things design-related, from the latest denims to those "Eames-style" chairs. I say this a bit facetiously, because it was a bit silly trying to buy a dining room table from someone who knew more about the label on my back jean pocket than of interior design. Still, their demise brought a lot of sadness to shoppers.
But has anyone been in any high-end furniture shops lately? Be prepared for the service to be a bit chilly if you don't bring your interior decorator with you. And someday we will outgrow our Ikea fixation. It always surprises non-Toronto natives that we have 4 Ikeas in the Toronto and 905 area.
So, I will give DWR a try. I visited DWR's site. To debut their foray into the Toronto market, they are partnering with the Design Exchange and donating 10% of their sales in efforts to create public awareness of design.
I know from blogland, DWR has always partnered with and fostered all design talent. They have hosted many a Biz Ladies night via Designsponge, and recently a Modern Craft event in Portland. (Modern + Craft may seem like an anomaly to some, but I love it as a design movement)
Reading further on their site, they got me at "Authenticity is something we're proud to do; elitism however is not". I think their concept is in agreeance with the philosophy behind the Eameses and their peers. I'll let you know after I check it out - I'm on the hunt for dining room chairs to replace those chairs I bought from Caban...
We awoke to the news of our Queen West neighbourhood set ablaze in a 6 alarm fire. The fire is just east of Bathurst Street to Portland. Our shop is well out of harm's way (thanks to those who expressed concern). There is no news of any fatalities and we hope that everyone involved comes out unharmed and that the fire will soon subside. My thoughts go out to the residents and business owners of this unfortunate event.
If you have been walking along Queen Street West this past month, you may have noticed some snowmen in storefront windows lately. We are having a friendly competition to raise money for St. Christopher House for the holidays. So go out there and vote for your favourite snowman with a donation - ballots close Friday, Dec. 21!
I'm sure it looked like this everywhere this past weekend.
A glimpse of Queen Street...
View of Trinity Bellwoods Park...
For all of you who were wishing for a White Christmas, you certainly got your wish!
I'm not the kind of person who goes overboard with holiday decorations and paraphenalia. Still inspired by the yellows and the warm weather, we picked up some hydrangeas and greenery at Jaiden's Petals, a great place to go for simple arrangements totally focused on the beauty of the flora at hand.
After a lovely dinner with family, we spent the following day doing what has now become a tradition in Alice's whole 3 years - apple picking! For the 2nd year in a row, we chose to go to Chudleigh's. Alice loves it because of all the great things for kids - petting zoo, wagon ride, weird play structure thing (sort of like a jungle gym, i think, more of a death trap) and delicious apples. I highly recommend trying a honeycrisp apple if you can get your hands on one. The weather was strangely very warm, 32 degrees Celcius! Sadly, the bright autumn colours and crisp autumn air were missing. It was sort of refreshing to welcome the cool rain today.
