Wallspace Gallery: One of Our Favourite Haunts

November 14th, 2011

On Halloween weekend, Ayan (3 years old) and I got up, costumed ourselves, and instead of going to a party or having brunch, we headed out to Wallspace Gallery where the lovely Carmella Karijo Rother was busily teaching the neighbourhood kids how to felt.

Now, I’m sure many of you know Wallspace Gallery and can appreciate what a wonderful space it is to begin with. Add felting kiddies and a bit of face painting (by NSCAD grads too, no regular face painting here). And then add the tantalizing and textured  work of Nava Waxman.

It was almost too wonderful and stimulating all at once. I wanted to get my sleeping bag and camp out there so the feeling of creativity and serenity wouldn’t escape. Luckily for them, my sleeping bag wasn’t nearby.

If you haven’t yet checked out Nava Waxman: Mapping A World Beyond Reason at Wallspace, go soon because this opportunity to see her gloriously unusual pieces ends next week!

Thanks wallspace, for a wonderful afternoon!

A Hippo for Ella

November 11th, 2011

Ella is flock’s lovely and fun co-op student. here she talks about one of her favourite flock pieces in her own words.

“what first drew in my eye to this one of a kind plush hippo was the beautiful fabrics. on one side the brown patterned fabric is sturdy and sophisticated. it reminds me of skyscrapers and businessmen on a coffee break. this strong material is then married to a joyful blue, pink, ivory and green floral fabric. the flowers remind me of fresh gardens in the middle of summer. the pale blue is comforting and relaxing all at the same time. the cherry on the top of this wonderful mixture is the pop of coral, which pulls everything together.

as if these colours and patterns were not the only things calling out to me, they have been put together to make a hippopotemus! the random combination of flowers, brown, coral and a hippo may seem weird to some. to me, it is completely genius. not only is this plush hippo easy on the eyes, but it can also be used as a comfortable pillow. and comfort isn’t all – on one side a pocket a provided for safe-keeping of small, important items. think about it, no one will steal your candy again!

with that kind of protection, this plush hippo is not just a decoration, it is also a necessity!”

Ella, co-op student, flock boutique

 

Better than a Convertible

November 10th, 2011

Sometimes our designers make convertible pieces that are so creative and fun that I just can’t imagine not buying them and this is really one of those times!

What is it? A scarf, a wrap, a cardi? The most perfect Christmas gift ever?

Yes, yes, yes…and yes!  (I’ve already put one on hold for myself and one for my mom!)

We have carried this button wrap for a few months now and we loved it a lot.  Recently, however, the designer sent us a video of the many ways you can wear it and when I popped into flock yesterday afternoon I found a bunch of girls – with Laura and Emily right in the middle – staring mesmerized at the mini digital frame she sent, trying the wraps on, laughing and messing around (there were guffaws)!

p.s. the scarves are bamboo and wool…yummmmy!

Workshop’s Unbirthday is Coming up Soon!

November 9th, 2011

the poster pretty much says it all, so mark the date: Nov 16th! as part of apartment 613′s support local month, we’re throwing a birthday bash for workshop!

in addition to birthday party staples like cake (courtesy of raw sugar) and ice cream (pascale’s…mmmm!), we are going to be giving away a bunch of great stuff (think raffles and other goodies): no one loves a good party like the ladies of workshop!  i have even heard that pascale may be bringing her old school ice cream bike to the event (christina was measuring the workshop door yesterday, want to make sure it fits in)…that’s a must-see!

we’ll also have all kinds of fun discounts and such for pre-holiday shopping, so now is the time to make your list (and check it twice, and then there’s that part about being naughty, but we’re willing to forgive almost anything)!

click here to join the facebook event and be updated regularly with all of the weird and wacky things christina comes up with for the party!

 

We’ve been featured on Local Tourist Ottawa!

November 8th, 2011

katrina, one of the lovely writers of LTO, Local Tourist Ottawa, one of my favourite blogs, wrote a great piece about our de-stash! here’s an exerpt:

Does Remai have any advice for the craft junkie searching for that perfect button or bead? Hint: There’s no need for elbows! “Bring time,” she advises. “There are probably a hundred bags of beads I’ve put into inventory already and every single one is different so you’re gonna wanna take time and look through the Ziploc and take a look and see what you actually want.”

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for the challenge! Flock Boutique is located at 1275 Wellington St. W., so if you’re in the neighbourhood, go check out this great event! Happy browsing and good luck with your crafting endeavours!

You can the article, the pics and the story here! thanks katrina!

Stay Toasty at Work: Lesson 1

November 7th, 2011

we just got these lovely new felted wrist warmers and today just happens to be the perfect day to wear them! i love how you can still grip your bike handle, hold your keys and tie your kiddie’s shoes without taking your mittens on and off all the time!

the funny thing about these lovelies is that people love them even more once the weather gets too chilly to wear them outside…weird? not at all, they are an essential accessory to a daily job at the good ‘ol government of canada!

keep your wrists warm (and the rest of your body toasty) while you sit at your desk this winter, happily typing away.  at $20, they also make great gifts! each pair is handmade with love in ottawa.

A Pop of Colour

November 4th, 2011

a few weeks ago i was complaining about the lack of brooches in our shops. after all, how else are you supposed to spice up that black/grey/brown winter coat?

i’m not saying that dark colours don’t have major benefits (after all, they are super-sleek and also hide mud splashes well), i’m just saying that dark, dark and more dark is drab, drab and seriously drab.

quick, inexpensive fix? try these lovely, colourful (and plentiful!) brooches from local ladies twiss & weber, $8-$14, they are guaranteed to perk up any winter staple! (-:

not just pretty faces (-:

November 2nd, 2011

sometimes i find it funny when i arrive at the shop in heels and a cute dress and my job for the day is setting up furniture, cleaning the basement or sorting the recycling.  the even funnier thing is that i know days before that these jobs have to be done, but somehow i just can’t bring myself to show up at the shop in sweatpants.  to be truthful, i don’t actually even own any sweatpants.

in 2005 christina and i opened workshop because we loved indie designers, we wanted to support handmade and we wanted to make a living selling our own collections…but the real reason may have actually been that we wanted to wear cute dresses all day. every day. no exceptions.

so, today i will be showing up at the shop wearing a lacy black and purple annie 50 cocktail dress and i will be helping our co-op student finish priming and painting some shelves. clearly the paint fumes have gone to my head.

The Great Crafting De-Stash is ON!

November 1st, 2011

The shelves are meticulously organized…hundreds of teeny tiny and not so teeny tiny ziplock bags are all lined up and ready to go! The Great Crafting De-Stash is now on at Flock and will last for 2 weeks…come on down and find yourself some treasures!  (-:

De-Stash Starts Tomorrow!

October 31st, 2011

the lovely ladies of flock spent much of the last week tagging, rolling, bagging and pricing fabric, tools, beads, boxes, crafting books, paper…the list goes on!  the big de-stash event (see earlier posts) starts tomorrow and is the ultimate place to shop for great deals on crafting supplies, courtesy of about 20 of flock boutique’s designers and friends!  don’t miss it!

just to give you an idea of a few of the things that are up for grabs, i have taken a few pics.  for more sneak peeks and pics of stuff at it comes in, check out our event page on facebook here! see you tomorrow!  (-: