Pinterest Board- Earth Day

Thank you all for contributing your lovely items to this week's board! We have our first Pinboard ready for repinning. Someone on the team mentioned that she got an enquiry as a result of the pin/repin activity! Way to go team.

pinterest.com/ohcanadateam/earth-day/

Please follow the board above and repin ALL the items to your own boards, and maybe even use some of the 20 items in an Etsy treasury.

Happy Pinning!     

             

Copyright 2011 Oh Canada Team

Friday Finds: Ecco Friendly Shawl

This ecco friendly unisex shawl is named Breezy Pomegranate.  The creator is annymay.  In her shop you will find fashion clothing and accessories made from ecco friendly fibers and materials.  She designs and makes all her items, creating clothing that is comfortable and respectful to the body and the environment.  Some of the ecco friendly materials she uses is bamboo and tencel, which is woodpulp made from ecalyptus.  In her shop you can purchase such things as scarves, hats, dresses and jewelry.  

Copyright 2011 Oh Canada Team and annymay.
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Friday Finds: Breezy Mango Eco Friendly Shawl

Today's Friday Find is a gorgeous mango orange eco-friendly shawl by Anny May. Gloriously long at 94 by 13 inches when unfurled, this is the perfect accessory as the days grow colder. I imagine it would go equally well thrown over a beautiful sheath dress as it would with a cozy turtleneck and jeans. The bright colour is the perfect pick-me-up, and the 100% tencel yarn looks nice and soft.

Tencel is made from the wood pulp of the eucalyptus tree, and its production method is biodegradeable and non-toxic. Eco-friendly and beautiful. Who could ask for anything more? Visit Anny May's Etsy shop for more lovely handmade clothing and accessories made from ecological materials.

Copyright 2010 Oh Canada Team and annymay

Cupcake Pajamas Challenge Finalists

It’s time to vote for your favorite collection in our latest treasury challenge! This round our theme was an adorable pair of cupcake print PJ pants by Tarapparel. There have been some very yummy entries!

Our wonderful judges have narrowed down the entries to six beautiful collections. Have a look at each of these treasuries, then choose your favorite in the poll at the right. The winner will choose the theme for our next treasury challenge!



Girls Night In and Femininity



My Cup Caketh Over and Sleepover feat. Candy PJs



Positively Pink and Like Candy

Voting is open until Tuesday, October 26th. The winner will be announced along with our new challenge theme on October 28th. Thanks for playing, and good luck to our finalists!

Copyright Oh Canada and Etsy.com

Treasury Challenge: Cupcake Pajamas

It was a tough choice, but our fantastic readers have cast their votes and chosen a winner in the Blue Tile Magnets treasury challenge! Congratulations to Tarapparel and her collection Out of the Blue, and many thanks to our participants and voters!

Our next challenge begins today! The contest is open to anyone, and we invite all Etsy members to participate, even if you’re not an Oh Canada Team member or a shop owner!

The winner will receive the opportunity to select the theme for our next challenge. It could be an idea, a color, or even an item from an Etsy shop, to be featured in our next Treasury Challenge. All you have to do is make a treasury using the current theme.

The Rules

1. Your treasury must incorporate the challenge’s theme, and include at least 8 Oh Canada Team members. Check out our team roster for members, or search for the tag OhCanadaTeam when choosing your featured listings.

2. You must include the words “OCT Challenge” somewhere in your treasury’s title.

3. You must tag your treasury with “ohcanadateam” and “OCT challenge”

4. In your treasury’s description, let viewers know that it is an entry in an Oh Canada Team challenge, invite them to join, and provide a link to our main blog, or this post.

5. Please do not use your own shop(s) in your entry, including alternate shops.

How to Enter

To enter your treasury, add a link to it in the comments section of this post.

Only treasuries that are submitted on the blog before the deadline will be included in the judging round.

The deadline for entering the “Pink Pajamas” challenge is Tuesday, October 19th. Our judges will select 6 finalists, and voting will begin on Thursday, October 21st. Screenshots of all the entries will be uploaded to our Flickr challenge album before the judging round.

Voting for this challenge will close the following Tuesday, and the winner will be announced along with our new challenge theme on Thursday, October 28th.

Everyone is welcome to play - including Etsy shoppers and non-team members. If you’ve never made a treasury on Etsy before, you can get some handy tips in this tutorial: How to Make Etsy Treasuries.

The Theme

Our previous challenge winner, Tarapparel, has chosen a cute pair of cupcake print PJ pants to be the focus of this challenge round. You can create a treasury using any theme that you desire, but you must include this listing in your selections: Cupcake PJ Pants.

Challenge Judges

Not ready to make a treasury yet? We will also be looking for guest judges to help narrow down the finalists. If you would like to participate, let us know in the comments section of this post, along with a link to your shop. The first three volunteers will be contacted by our Treasury Challenge admins with more details about the judging process.

Please feel free to contact our team admins if you have any questions.

Good luck!

Copyright 2010 Oh Canada and Tarapparel

Friday Finds: Olive Bamboo Tank Top

Deep olive bamboo and organic cotton top
Originally uploaded by annymay.

Have you ever experienced the incredible softness of bamboo fabric? It’s like wearing a cloud. Woven bamboo is fast becoming one of the most popular organic textiles. It is incredibly sustainable, requires no pesticides to grow, and processing it is very low-impact. Bamboo is also considered hypoallergenic and bacteria resistant.

This beautiful shoulder-wrap tank top is made with a lovely deep olive fabric, spun with bamboo and organic cotton. It’s a wonderful piece for any summer wardrobe. This tank can be dressed up or down for any occasion! To see more unique, eco-friendly designs, visit Anny May: Eco-designer.

Copyright 2010 Oh Canada Team and Anny May

Friday Finds: Handmade Grad

Buying handmade allows you to express your own unique style - you never have to worry about showing up at the ball wearing the same dress as someone else. Thanks to Etsy, we can find amazing one of a kind clothing and accessories to make any occasion special.

This week’s Friday Finds features 4 collections of unique prom essentials by Canadian designers. Have a browse through their shops to see all of the wonderful creations they have to offer.

Classic

Hand Dyed Silk Flower Brooch
By bstudio

Crystal Amethyst Chandelier Earrings
By Boomerville

Belle Pearl and Silver Earrings
By Joanniel Creations

Romantic Victorian Style Versatile Corsage
By Blue Root Press

Romantic

For the Love of Purple Pendant
By A Lil’ Horse Play

Heartbeat Thulite and Sterling Silver Necklace
By Bella-Bijou Jewellery

Black Venetian Inspired Mask
By Lady in the Tower

Vintage Juliet Wedding Gown in Ivory
By Birch Beer Boutique

Woodsy

Senza Catene Upcycled Silk Dress
By pondhopper

Snowy Acorn Pendant
By Botanical Theatre

Una Historia de Amor Bib Necklace
By Sol Bijou

Gold Plated Garnet Branch Necklace
By Avani Designs

Splash of Color

Orange Antiqued Brass Earrings
By Dalim

Mermaid Triangle Shawl in Sea Green
By Dollface DeVille

Cobalt Blue Skinny Scarf
By The Creative Caravan

Sterling Silver and Rose Crystal Necklace
By Gracie Jewellery

To find even more one of a kind, handmade designs to make your next event glamorous, add the tag OhCanadaTeam to your searches on Etsy.com.

Copyright 2010 Oh Canada Team

Shop Spotlight: pondhopper

At some point in her life, almost every woman dreams of owning a garment by a famous designer. While wearing couture fashions may be luxurious, it will never beat the charm, and the thrill of wearing something that is one hundred percent one of a kind and unique. When we buy upcycled clothing, there is very little chance that any other person in the universe will have the same pieces. There is nothing more personal or stylish than a handmade wardrobe.

At pondhopper, artist and designer Lorraine turns forgotten fabrics and clothing into remarkable new fashions. She also creates a wonderful selection of jewelry, accessories and home décor items from reclaimed and sustainable materials. Oh Canada has put the spotlight on pondhopper.

Oh Canada: Of all the things that you create, which item or style is your favorite?

Lorraine: I love variety, so it changes depending on the day you ask me! I like working on concepts that are not fully dictated in the beginning and the final outcome is a bit of a surprise because it has evolved throughout the creation process.

Oh Canada: Where did you learn your skills?

Lorraine: Formally, I pursued drawing, painting, papercrafts and sculpting throughout my school and college years, studied sewing and textiles in England and learned about jewelry in Montreal. Informally, I grew up helping my Mum sew my dance costumes and learning photography from my Dad – I can still remember going into the attic where the darkroom was and watching the magical process of pictures appearing on a blank sheet of paper (pre-digital of course!). I continue to devour new knowledge through many avenues – there is so much to learn!

Oh Canada: Everyone has different motivations for making their unique wares. What drives you to create?

Lorraine: I’d love to give you some noble or profound reason, but the truth is I am just addicted to everything about the process of creation - from the initial inspiration to the end result, I love it all! I really enjoy taking something that has a previous life and may otherwise be discarded and turning it into a unique new piece to be loved.

Oh Canada: If you could learn to use any new technique or material, what would it be?

Lorraine: Well of course I have a list! But the top five would be: lost-wax casting, book sculpting, glass blowing, metalsmithing, carpentry, watercolour painting, and calligraphy. O.k. that’s seven!

Oh Canada: Any plans to incorporate a new product into your shop this year?

Lorraine: No plans, but I’m sure there will be something new!

Oh Canada: What is your favorite thing about selling on Etsy?

Lorraine: Meeting wonderful people from across the globe. I also love hearing the stories and comments about how my items are used by their new owners.

Oh Canada: Do you have a number one tip for new sellers?

Lorraine: Don’t open up as a seller right off the bat - become a buyer first then take some time to thoroughly understand Etsy; hang out in the forums where there is a wealth of information to help you establish a successful shop (but avoid the negative and/or discouraging threads); purchase some items to experience the transaction process from a buyers viewpoint. This is valuable learning time that will help you decide how you want to present your brand - from the look of you shop, through policies, pricing and customer experience.

Oh Canada: What is your favorite thing to buy on Etsy?

Lorraine: It would be easier to list what I don’t like buying! Prior to “pondhopper”, my shop was called “House of Mouse” (had to set up a new shop as Disney has that name trademarked!). I made hundreds of purchases (all in the name of research you understand!), but if I had to nail it down to one favourite I would have to say merino wool roving – gorgeous, beautiful, oh so soft roving in such delicious colours that came from sheep with names that I got to know – completely irresistible!

Oh Canada: What is the number one best item (listing) in your shop right now?

Lorraine: MADELINE. I love the contrast between the masculine wool tweed and the lacy, vintage cotton doilies. I also enjoyed the opportunity to create something for a little girl - I have two sons, grew up with two brothers and their friends, my husband has two brothers…not a girl in sight in my family!

Copyright 2010 Oh Canada Team and pondhopper