It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

With Christmas less than a month away, you are going to want to check out all of the potential gifts at the Springs Christian Academy Christmas Craft Show on Saturday, December 3, 2016!

Among the 80+ local crafters, you will find 5 of our WESTies onsite, selling handmade wool socks, mosaic artisanal jewelry, recycled and vintage jewelry, buttons, handmade bags, wallets, accessories and adorable sock monkey toys.

Monkey Business Card Company

Blueberry Lane Craft

Sox n Such

Periwinkle Dzyns

Mosaic Pendants Plus

Don't miss out on getting some handmade, original gifts for those you love!

Saturday, December 3, 2016

10 to 4

595 Lagimodiere Ave, Winnipeg

Admission is $4, children under 12 are free

Free parking, coat and parcel check

Childcare provided

Christmas Cafe

WESTies spotted : MAWA event with PeriwinkleDzyns

MAWA (Mentoring Artists for Women's Art - 610 Main Street, Winnipeg) held an Artist Bootcamp just a few days ago, featuring WESTie captain Ruth of PeriwinkeDzyns, and Caitlin of RealSwanky behind the lens!

With a wonderful, large group of inquisitive creatives, Ruth lead a 2-hour session showing us the ropes on the who, what, where, when, how & why of setting up shop on our favourite seller's platform, Etsy.

Questions were answered, discussions were had - it was a bangin' time all around! Onto a few photos and a wee Instagram mash-up..

Makers Market - First Friday Every Month!

Every first Friday of the month Frame Arts Warehouse hosts a Makers Market at 318 Ross in the Exchange District of Winnipeg. This is held in conjunction with First Fridays in the Exchange.

There are always at least 1 or 2 WESTies vending there: last month saw Heidi of heidiandseekboutique

Lisa of BitchnKitschnKitchen

Angela of ByBlackBirdDesigns

And Ruth of PeriwinkleDzyns

among many other WESTies and awesomeness. Visit every month for a constantly revolving group of crafters, vintage purveyors, food vendors and live entertainment! See you August 2!

May-June Design Challenge Results

The theme for the WEST Design Challenge for May/June was "Show Your Canadian Colours." While the number of submissions was smaller this month, our Canadian pride still shines through! 

Here are all of this month's entries, in order of submission. Once again this month we are adding a poll at the end of this post for you to VOTE for your favourite submission! The poll will be open for one week, and the winner will receive a special spot of recognition on the blog for one month!

Lisa, from BitchinKitschKitchen, found a great vintage bar towel for this challenge:

Bar Towel Red and White from BitchinKitschKitchen

Katie, from HeartfeltYarnWreaths, writes: I was born and raised in Canada and am so thankful to live in this beautiful country. This wreath was inspired by the iconic Canadian flag, and is complete with a hand-cut felt maple left. The 12 inch wreath is wrapped in alternating bands of crisp white and rich red yarn, and comes ready to hang. Great to celebrate Canada day, or hang it year round to show your Canadian pride!

Canada Day Yarn Wreath by HeartfeltYarnWreaths

Laura, from PrairieThreads, found some fabric in her stash that was actually printed with an American flag. She took the red and white striped parts and made it Canadian in this fabric coiled mat:

Red and White Coiled Mat by PrairieThreads

Ruth, from PeriwinkleDzyns submitted this necklace made from recycled leather and hardware:

Oh Canada Recycled Leather and Hardware Pendant 

by PeriwinkleDzyns

And now here's your chance to vote for your favourite:

The poll will close in one week, on Monday, June 17, at 9:00am. The winner will receive the honour of a little feature spot on the blog sidebar for one month.

Who will be at the WEST Sale III? pt.4

Who will be at the WEST Sale III? Look forward to meeting the following WESTies with their fantastic handmade & vintage items, come May 4th!

From top left, you may find..Toxie Designs - Earrings
HeartFeltYarnWreaths - Wreath
SmashKnits - Knit Headband
Nancy Blokland Pottery - Mug
Prairie Peasant - Recycled Journal
PeriwinkleDzyns - Resistor Necklace
M-agination - Bath Puff
ladylikeness - Cardigan
maryandmaudestudio - Panda Illustration
Bitchin'Kitsch'n'Kitchen - Antique Tin
BranchesandFeathers - Feather Earrings
AdorablesbyAlisia - New Born Outfit
aeliosdesign - Wrist Cuff
HoshiiDesigns - Infinity Scarf


RSVP to the WEST Handmade & Vintage Sale III here!

Who will be at the WEST Sale III? pt.3

Who will be at the WEST Sale III? Look forward to meeting the following WESTies with their fantastic handmade & vintage items, come May 4th!

From top left, you may find..

VintageBettyClothing - Skirt
Smash Knits - Headband
Monkeybusinesscardco - Mega Monkey
PeriwinkleDzyns - Necklace
EmmsGems - Recycled Glass Bracelet
Oneplusonedesign - Art Print
Secret Jewelry - Ear Cuff Earrings
SogaSoap - Laundry Stain Stick
HeidiandseekBoutique - Lace Infinity Scarf
ladylikeness - Vintage Boots
weareboundtogether - Duct Tape Journal
marathon1981 - Mini Sloth
Real Swanky - Polka Dot Skirt



Stay tuned for Part 4 of our vendor features in upcoming posts!

RSVP to the WEST Handmade & Vintage Sale III here!

WEST Sale III -- When WESTies Create Together. .

Take 4 creative WESTies, add a huge piece of muslin, fabric scraps, a large board room table and what do you get?

A new WEST banner!

Want to see it? Join us on May 4 for the unveiling!

Special thanks to Caitlin (realswanky), Emily (emmsgems) and Ashlee(smashknits) for making this happen!

Ruth (periwinkledzyns) - WEST captain

Where Will WESTies Be - April 6 and 7 2013

Popular Culture Expo

April 6 and 7, 2013
Winnipeg Convention Center
Tickets available through Ticketmaster or at the door

PeriwinkleDzyns

What's New Wednesday

Click the photo to see the item! 

What's your favourite piece? Let us know in the comments!

Birdie and Dot | Bitchin' Kitsch 'n' Kitchen | DragonNerd | Heidi-and-Seek Boutique | Krista's Jewellery | ladylikeness | Periwinkle Dzyns | Sage & Olivia Jewellery | Selkie Design | Real Swanky | Windseed Studio | WWNaturals

What's New Wednesday

Click the photo to see the item!

Where WESTies Create: Episode 1, PeriwinkleDzyns

WEST is happy to introduce a new regular blog feature - Where WESTies create!

How regular you ask?

About as regular as the odd spaces we will be featuring! Every once in a while we will be popping in to feature the unique creative spaces where WEST members bend over hacked up work benches and work their fingers to the bone to mold beautiful objects just for you, our wonderful fans!

Are these spaces going to be worthy of those glossy magazines or make that denizen of glitz and glamour proud? Probably not. Will we have a few chuckles and enjoy seeing where real people create? ABSOLUTELY!

Our first volunteer,conscript, is the crazy lady that stepped up to execute this idea! It's our wise WESTie leader, Ruth of PeriwinkleDzyns. Ok, confession time, she's also the one writing this, so let's just say she's wise in her own mind and leave it at that! And besides that, I'm the only one foolish enough to lay it all out there! Or am I? You'll have to stay tuned to find out!

Welcome to my studio! We thought we would start off with the only 3 square feet of empty floor space. Nestled in the heart of old St James, this hardwood floored studio is a former play room that used to house Lego and Groovy Girls. Now it is both working and storage space for my eco friendly jewellery line.

And that extension cord? That's so I can use my dremel; somehow I lost track of where the plug ins are in the studio, or maybe I just can't get to them any more... heehee, your choice in that scenario!

These pictures caught me in between holiday craft sales. Piles of stock, working trays, and just lots of stuff greet you as you enter this inner sanctum of upcycling. It's not always a glamorous business involving manicures and spotless colour co-ordinated work places with lots of painted surfaces and accents--this is real baby!

Here's where it all happens, the work bench aka salvaged 70's office table. It's got lots of flat surface and plenty of task lighting - both necessary ingredients for the fine detailed work I do!

I call it my studio because it makes a much more impressive moniker than "room where I shove all my sh**t." I love to label my storage containers but often find that my good intentions are out-weighed by the reality of keeping a home, day job and small business afloat. Mostly I remember what's in all those bags and boxes, kinda...

I've always been a less than stellar home maker (did I ever mention I really don't get that recent obsession with mid century house wifery some of you gals have? No? going on record here and now!), and cleaning has never been much of a priority. Life is too short to even once consider that you'll be worried about those dust bunnies when all is said and done!

This virtual tour shows you how I think and create in the real world! A lot of chaos, but mostly with a huge sense of humour and a speck of patience. I hope you loved the tour as much as I enjoyed sharing my real space, where a real woman creates!

What's New Wednesday

Shop Local for WEST This Holiday Season

Looking to find WESTies at local shops this holiday season?

Here's your one stop holiday shopping list!

1) Sew Dandee

105 Osborne Street, Winnipeg MB
M-Th 10-6; F 10-9; Sa 10-6; Su 12-5

Shops featured at Sew Dandee:
Just the Goods - handmade, natural skin care (largest selection including gift sets)
Periwinkle Designs - ever changing assortment of recycled jewellery
Nancy Blokland Pottery - Yarn Bowls only
Marathon 1981 - cards, creatures

2) Generation Green

 #155-1 Forks Market Road, Winnipeg MB
M-Th 9-6:30; F 9-9:30; S-S 9-6:30

Shops featured at Generation Green:
 Just the Goods - handmade, natural skin care (next selection including gift sets)

3) Mondragon

1A - 91 Albert St, Winnipeg MB
Hours vary - generally M 11-2, T-Sa 11 - 9 (sometimes 7) Not usually Sundays, some exceptions. All depends on staffing. Call ahead if concerned (204.946.5241)

Shops featured at Mondragon:

Just the Goods - handmade, natural skin care (facial care, toothpaste, deodorant, shaving products, hand/body lotion)

4) The Nature Doctors

1200 Waverley Street, Winnipeg MB
M 9-5, T-W 9-6, Th-F 9-5

Shops featured at The Nature Doctors:
Just the Goods - handmade, natural skin care (facial care, deodorant, hand/body lotion, + a few other items)

 5) Millenium Library - Best of Friends Gift Shop

251 Donald Street, Winnipeg MB
M-F 11-4, Sat noon-3

Shops featured at Best of Friends Gift Shop:
Periwinkle Designs - earrings, bracelets and necklaces, word buttons Shops

6) Freshair Boutique

Suite A, 542 Academy Road –Winnipeg, Manitoba
TEL:204 414 9023 FAX:204 414 9024
Email: salon@freshairboutique.ca
Tuesday, Wednesday + Friday from 10-7 Thursday from 12 – 9 Saturday from 10 – 3:30


Shops featured at Freshair Boutique:
Smash Knits; cushy cowls, bowtie headbands, turban wraps

7) Tara Davis Studio Boutique

246 McDermot St. Winnipeg MB
Open Mon-Sat 11-6

566 Baker St
Nelson BC
Open Mon-Sat 10-5

Shops featured at Tara Davis Studio Boutique:
 Hoshii Designs


8) McNally Robinson Bookstore 


Grant Park Shopping Mall 

Shops featured at McNally Robinson Bookstore :

Nancy Blokland Pottery 

9) Red River General Store

5700 Henderson Highway
Wed-Sun 10:00-5:30 

Shops featured at Red River General Store:
Nancy Blokland Pottery 

10) Lady of the Lake

135-B 17th St North.
Brandon, Manitoba
Mon - Wed, Sat 9:00 - 6:00 Th-Fri 9:00 - 9:00 Sun 12:00 - 4:00

Shops featured at the Lady of the Lake
Nancy Blokland Pottery


11) Wolseley Wool
 
162 Lipton St.
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Mon - Sat 10:00 - 6:00 Sun 12:00 - 5:00

Shops featured at Wolseley Wool
Nancy Blokland Pottery - Yarn Bowls 

12) Pembina Hills Arts Council 

352 STEPHEN St.
Morden, Manitoba 
Tuesday- Friday: 10 am - 5 pm
Saturday - 12pm - 5pm

Shops featured at Pembina Hills Arts Council
Nancy Blokland Pottery

13) Keepsakes Gallery
the Forks Main Building

Winnipeg, Manitoba
7 days a week


Shops featured at Keepsakes Gallery:

Nancy Blokland Pottery 

Squidee: A Love Story at the Holiday Market

Most of you don't know this about Squidee, but he's a very romantic soul.  And he's lonely.

:(

Being a good representative for WEST though, he put his feelings of solitude aside and went to the Holiday Market today at the UU church on Wellington Crescent.

He was going to do his best to cheer on all the WESTies at this show.  But he had other things on his mind.

He first went to visit the Sew Dandee table.  Here he sought dating advice from a Manitoba legend.

Keep calm and ride on? Kinky, but it just might work!

Next Squidee decided that his new love (whoever she may be) might need a beautiful present.   A scarf - hand dyed even!

So he headed on over to visit Leslie and her grandmother at the Blue Star Studios table.

Squidee then returned to the Tawny Bee table to regroup.  And that's when it happened.  He spied the most enchanting creature across the way.  He got tingles all the way through his tentacles.  Could it be?  Could Squidee have found love?

 

He gathered up all his Squidee courage and ventured over the Magination's table.  And that's where he found Pinky!  Oh look at this temptress with her wide eyes and gaping mouth so much like Squidee's own.  How could he not fall head over tentacles in love with her?

 

Things were moving fast at this craft show.  Squidee had to make a bold move to make sure that Pinky would be his forever.

He made his way over to Periwinkle Designs to buy a geeky ring for each of Pinky's tentacles.  

 

But alas... in Squidee's absence, Pinky found a new home this afternoon.  It was not meant to be.  Poor Squidee was crushed.

Monkey Business Card Co. to the rescue.  Can you spot Squidee drowning his sorrows with his new monkey friends?  They entertained him and kept his mind on all sorts of monkey business.

Squidee's heart went through a lot this fateful afternoon at the Holiday Market.  Stay tuned for further adventures of Squidee at future WEST events!