happy halloween

Happy Halloween from the creepiest kid on the block, circa 1983!

a few new things...

I wanted to share with you some of the new things that I've been working on as I'm getting ready for holiday craft fairs and online shop updates. All of these pieces are available in the Sadie shop (don't forget to use coupon code: GOLOLAGO for free international shipping). Some of my new favourites stones are featured in these pieces: pink jasper, aquamarine, and tiny raw peacock ore nuggets. I've also been making more pieces using vintage chains and have been hammering lots of brass, much to the dismay of my neighbours, I'm sure.

If you're in Vancouver and can make it to Portobello West at the end of November or Got Craft? on the Drive on the first Sunday in December, I'll see you there! My next big project is making swag for the Got Craft? show. I'll share my project as it progresses...first I have to get the supplies in the mail! Have a great weekend, everyone. Lola has her surgery tomorrow. We really appreciate all of your encouraging comments!

caiti's five friday favourites

Today's guest post comes courtesy of Caiti at Life is a Canvas. As part of my new series featuring bloggers and makers that I admire, Caiti has offered to share some of her favourite links for your enjoyment! Be sure to check out her blog, it's always full of inspiration. Thank you, Caiti!

First of all, thank you to Sarah for inviting me to guest post for her while she is recovering from her vacation in Montreal! My name is Caiti and I am a designer of paper goods and blogger at Life is a Canvas: Creative Musings from CaitididDesigns. On the Life is a Canvas blog, I explore all the ways that we can celebrate creativity in our daily lives — not only through artistic pursuits like art, graphic design, crafting and writing, but also by infusing creativity into everyday activities like cooking, interacting with friends, our jobs, where we choose to shop, and the way we present ourselves to the

world. I am committed to the notion that we are the artists for our lives, and I know that I want to create a life full of color, vibrancy, passion, exploration, and authenticity.

One of my most popular blog series is a "Monthly Faves" post in which I pick several of my favorite links from around the interwebs to help inspire your creativity. I've picked out my five current favorites to share with you today.

{READ}

-Although this post is written by a photographer, I think Alex Beadon's 

"13 things I have learned as an artist" can be applied to any creative person's life.

{WATCH}

- The series of "Live the Language" ads for EF International Language

Centers give me a serious case of wanderlust, including the desire to

visit Sarah's hometown of Vancouver.

{LISTEN}

- I'm in love with the subtle, moody sounds of Gem Club -

Breakers. Perfect for an autumn stroll.

{DO}

- Make these gorgeous DIY gradient napkins with not much more than Sharpies and rubbing alcohol.

{LOVE}

- Running a tea shop out of a

vintage trailer is basically the most perfect, dreamy job I could

imagine.

Thanks again, Sarah, for letting me share some of my favorite links with your readers!

a little lola fundraiser

Hi friends, just dropping in with a quick post to share some news. Lola (our seven year old staffie/border collie x) has to have surgery on Sunday on one of her front legs. We suspect an abscess got infected and now it needs to be fixed up so Lola can get back to her old (crazy) self. To help us deal, I'm offering free shipping in the Sadie shop with the coupon code GOLOLAGO until she's feeling better.

This is Lola's second surgery since we adopted her from the Cochrance SPCA in 2007. Her first was in the first month we had her when she brilliantly knocked out some teeth while playing in my parents' backyard. Do you have your own adopted pet? Tell me a little about them! And thanks for your well wishes this weekend while Lola's having her surgery. She's such a sad cone head right now.

shelburne farms, vermont

In the light of day, the fire pit that you sit around at American Flatbread still looks pretty great. And the farm cats are cute, too. After we had breakfast at the Lareau Farm Inn (cottage cheese pancakes with lemon honey butter) we drove to Shelburne Farms in Shelburne, Vermont. From what I could tell, Shelburne Farms is famous for it's cheese (I loved the cheddar spread) and the huge property is laced with beautiful walking trails. Camilla tells me that this is and always was a hobby farm, which perhaps partly explains the amazing barn that is now home to a small cadre of pettin' animals: goats, donkeys, and fancy chickens, included. My personal favourite was this badger-faced goat. If you can swing a visit to this farm I highly recommend you go. It is ridiculously beautiful and the barn itself is so much bigger and grander than these pictures can convey. It made me realize that there is this whole part of this continent that I know very little about and that has a rich history and amazing architectural traditions. I definitely want to spend more time exploring New England soon!

I'm already looking forward to my next trip, which will likely be back home to Calgary for Christmas. Jeff and I have a busy month ahead of us because we're moving (again!) and so I'm glad we took this time to chill out with friends and goats between the craziness of getting married and the annoyance of moving. Our move will be worth it, though! Lots more space and even a fireplace to call our own! Do you have any fall or winter vacations planned?

vermont vacation

While we were out east, Jeff, Camilla, Marigold and I seized the opportunity to head to Vermont for an overnighter. I've been to Vermont twice before, once with my family when I was pretty young and once before with Camilla on an adventure of unmatched proportions in an early-millenium February snowstorm. I feel like since those visits both Vermont and I have changed.

First off, I thought that the Pacific Northwest was food crazy. Wow! Vermont shows that us West Coasters don't even know about food crazy. Or maybe it's another kind of crazy. How can fancy bakeries survive in small places where the town itself appears to be for sale? The word "local" is omnipresent and, to my mind, even has a bit of a sinister ring in Vermont. Like, local or else... Okay, okay, I'll eat the undeniably delicious local honey butter on my local cottage cheese pancakes with locally roasted coffee and locally preserved preserves in this room filled with, well, non-locals. We hit up Vergennes Laundry, a cider mill (where I ate three apple cider doughnuts!!!) and had dinner at American Flatbread in Waitsfield. While waiting for your table you can take your drinks outside and sit around a bonfire with other guests. Such a great idea for a rustic restaurant! And the pizza is much more than great. It is amazing. The one pictured above (featuring Camilla's "pizza claw" whizzing through the frame) is covered in sharp cheddar, apple cider glazed butternut squash, beets, and more. And yes, the toppings are all local.

Since Jeff and I won't be back in Vermont anytime soon we are so happy that we scheduled so many great stops. Thank you, Camilla, for organizing it all! We can't imagine a better place to spend time with friends over delicious food in the autumn. And for all my jokes about local, the focus on local production really did make this a special visit and I loved seeing the pride that Vermont's residents have in their beautiful part of the world. The effort they put into making the most delicious things I've eaten in a while is really impressive and I will be dreaming of some of these places for months to come, I'm sure. 

from montreal

A few pictures of some of my favourite parts of our Montreal visit: amazing coffee, great friends, good shoes, and Wu Tang Bixis bringing da ruckus! Oh, we did eat a million delicious things. Thanks to Marigold, Jesse and Camilla for showing us around the city! Pictures of our Vermont trip and a little DIY tutorial to come!

back from montreal

Hello hello! It's been a while. I'm back now from a super fun one week vacation in Montreal and an overnighter in Vermont! New England and the east of this country is kind of paradise this time of year and I have lots of great photos to share once I do some editing. The one above I took from my Bixi (the inexpensive, convenient bike share program in Montreal) in Parc Lafontaine. In the meantime, let's take a look at my autumn to-do list. It's coming along nicely:

1. Go camping on the coast DONE

2. Visit a pumpkin patch (and conquer a corn maze while I'm there)

3. Bake a pie from scratch

4. Go apple picking

5. Visit friends in a different city DONE

6. Have a Thanksgiving feast DONE x 2!

7. Revamp the blog for a new season DONE

8. Knit something (I'm thinking chunky yarn and big needles) DONE

9. Go for a forest hike on the North Shore

10. Take photos with a new camera

11. Clean up the garden one more time

12. Walk home from work (it's a pretty long walk)

13. Ride the Stanley Park Halloween Ghost Train (Ivy and Jamie, I'm going to miss you guys this year!) DONE with Laura, Jeff, and Mike

14. Check out the Parade of Lost Souls (Halloween seems to be Vancouver's favourite holiday) - October 28


What did you get up to this past week?


Here's one of the songs that was part of our soundtrack during this trip. Enjoy!

a few new things before I go

Before I head to Montreal I really wanted to get the Sadie shop updated. I haven't been home on a weekend day in three weeks and today was my one and only day off here in Vancouver to get things done. Jeff and I had a nice day walking around the city, but I also made sure to get to the post office to send off Etsy order #299 and take some photos while it was light out so I could do some editing and put some new listings together tonight. I'm also taking a few pieces with me to Montreal in the hopes of finding a shop to carry my work. Now I have finished editing photos, researching the metaphysical properties of unikite (what are you doing tonight?) and there are lots of new things in the shop. Quartz earrings, aquamarine necklaces, rutilated quartz point necklaces, antique pressed tin earrings, and more. Check it out and have a great weekend! I'm off to New France!

P.S. Thank you all so much for your comments on our wedding posts! We really appreciate all of your kind words and that you've enjoyed us sharing the details of our wedding with you. More to come, though I promise not to talk about it forever!

taking five

Jeff, Lola, and I spent the Thanksgiving weekend in Powell River at the cabin. The cabin is actually our friend Grady's house, which he shares with his awesome daughter Clancy and their cat, Mittens. We spent the weekend in a town of 20,000 without a whole lot to do. So we drank a lot of coffee, we made some delicious food (including a Tofurkey and cranberry sauce, which I love), and hung out with a lot of horses, dogs, and even a cat or two. It was pretty much heaven. Above you can see a picture of me with my giant dog friends, Honey and Bear (a.k.a. Chunkstar and Leo). You can also see our black and white dog, Lola, taking five. We took a lot of fives, too. Have you seen Fubar? You really should. Most of it was filmed in the city Jeff and I used to live in. It's kind of a must-see movie, whether you're Canadian or not. This trailer is definitely not suitable for work:

I'm going to Montreal this weekend to visit with friends and to spend some time in a fun city that I haven't been to in over nine years. It's a long overdue visit and I can't wait to hang out with Jeff, Jesse, Marigold, and Camilla all week long. I'll be back when I can with pictures and stories!

getting ready

Before the wedding I got ready with my best woman Heather, friend (and wedding sax player extraordinaire) Clancy, friend and make-up artist Jill, and my parents. Friends and family were coming in and out of the room we were in at the Sylvia Hotel and it was all beautifully captured by the amazing photographers we had. I will definitely be sending some of these photos on to the wonderful Jill who did an amazing job with my make-up. She even curled my eyelashes for me when my hands were shaking too much to do it myself. And that's what friends are for. All photos by Elle & R.