Buy Canadian First - Your destination for good shopping

To me, there is little else that smells as wonderful as honey, so when my box of Made in Canada Honey Candles  arrived, I ripped open the package and breathed in that wonderful scent. It was bliss. Over the following week, I found myself stealing moments throughout the day to enjoy the scent of my beeswax candles. I had no idea that this wee bit of bliss was coming from a company with so much heart.

Honey Candles is owned by Roy and Leah Honkanen, a husband and wife team that have been married for over thirty years. The staff  at Honey Candles have been with them for nearly as long as they have owned the company. They share common values and have evolved together. Honey Candles manufactures beautiful candles, but they also do a whole lot more ! Their commitment to each other, the environment , sustainable business practices , the relationships they hold with each other, their suppliers, their customers and of course the bees  are unparalleled. I found it difficult to tear myself away from their website, and as I read through the About  section, I felt evermore fortunate to have had the opportunity to discover Honey Candles and host their products in my home.

It seems fitting that the first product I tried was the beeswax birthday candles, to celebrate my daughter's 6th birthday. I noticed the beautiful colours of the candles as my mom and I clumsily lit them, in no particular order, while attempting not be burned by each other's lit match or by the lit candles. This process always takes a little time and is accompanied by giggles and pools of wax on the cake, except this time all messy drips were absent. Awesome!

Since the day I started using their pillars, I adore the warm comforting glow that these candles produce, as well as their light sweet scent. I am certain they will be my first choice in my future candle purchases, and here are ten reasons why. Take a moment to scroll through their website, I am certain you will be as riveted as I was reading about this home-grown Canadian company. 

What are your favourite candles?

Image source; Honey Candles, Andrea Willowcat

Of all you fellow Canadians, who can strum me a tune? Sadly, it is not in my abilities, in fact I have no musical bones in my body. My children may be the only ones that enjoy my singing, at least the youngest two; I am pretty certain the eldest lost the desire to listen to me years ago. But wait! We aren't here to talk about my paltry singing abilities; we are discussing Canadian-made guitars!

Let's go to Eastern Canada so that I can introduce you to Buy Canadian first member, Godin Guitars. Robert Godin founded Godin Guitars over twenty years ago in LaPatrie, Quebec, which is located two hundred kilometers East of Montreal. Robert still designs most of the guitars but the instruments are fabricated in several locations within a thousand kilometers of each other. Godin Guitars has several brands of Canadian-made electric and/or acoustic guitars. La Patrie, Seagull, Norman  as well as Simon & Patrick, are all brands of Godin Guitars that are made in LaPatrie, Quebec. Each of these brands, like the others, is focused on detail and quality. This can be seen in the details provided for the Simon and Patrick Elements collection or the Seagull story on how the guitars are crafted. Follow Godin Guitars on Facebook for updates and news. 

The Richmond brand of guitars  are made in Richmond, Quebec and are described as "sleek, sexy and full of sizzling tone and a whole lot of space age vibe, too"! You can see the specs here on the Richmond site. 

Art & Lutherie Guitars  are made with 95% Canadian wood that is found already fallen in the forests of Eastern Canada. Made with Wild Cherry, Silver Leaf Maple, as well as Spruce and Cedar and the utmost care and attention to details, this brand has several shapes and styles to suit any guitar enthusiast.

Now we will head West to Sparrow Guitars. While working in a furniture factory, founder Billy Bones made guitars. Once the factory closed, he spent a month learning how to make guitars one on one. Making guitars from scratch was possible but it made the guitars difficult to afford, so Billy Bones devised a way to keep the instruments affordable and the quality and craftsmanship above par. Sparrow Guitars have five models (Big Daddy, Primitive, Rat Rod , Twangmaster and Streetlight series ) and this is because quality trumps quantity. All Sparrow guitars are hand-painted, from pin stripes to flames, but of course they would be, because Sparrow Guitars are hand-painted rock n roll! Keep up with Billy and the happenings at Sparrow Guitars on Facebook.

Who knew that so many beautiful guitars are made right here in Canada?! Do you play the guitar? 

image credit: Buy Canadian First members Godin Guitars and Sparrow Guitars 

 

 

 

 

   

 

Soaperie Main de Nature came to light when Nicole Poitras of Quebec began formulating a detergent-free soap. After four years of trial and error, with her co-workers as her testers and evaluators, Nicole came up with an all-natural formula using fresh vegetables and fruit, gentle enough for everyone to use, including her dogs and horses. Join their facebook page for updates and the activities of the Soaperie.

Do you buy skin care products made locally?

Image credits: Buy Canadian First members Whistler Naturals, Organically Hatched, Natural Plantation, Pure Anada, Vidoma Naturals, Soaperie Main de Nature,  The Great Canadian Soap Co. 

If you ever come across an old wheelbarrow, bound for a nearby dump, grab it! They make amazing planters for your Canadian garden.

This design resembles a miniature or fairy garden. A birdhouse, a machine part to hold water and little rocks for a pathway is a charming start. However, the elements soon disappear as the flowers take over in a big way!

Here are some perks in using a wheelbarrow for a planter:

• The height of the wheelbarrow allows for a lovely cascade which gives your garden an abundant feel. 
• If the wheel is intact, your planter can be moved for easy weeding, lawn care or just a different location from time to time.
• Wheelbarrows are large enough to hold enough soil to ensure your plants don't dry out too quickly.

How to create a wheelbarrow planter:

1. Drill some drainage holes, especially near the tire if the unit is sloped.
2. Add a small layer of crushed gravel over the holes to allow for drainage.
3. Add your soil. Mix your soil with a peat moss mixture and fertilizer for proper drainage, water retention and growing power.

Once you try a wheelbarrow planter in your garden, you'll wonder why you didn't have one sooner!

What creative planters do you have in your garden?

Photos and design are courtesy of Funky Junk Interiors

If you gave me a choice as to whether I’d prefer to cook dinner or mow the lawn, I’d personally be mowing the lawn before your question was even completed. This girl just LOVES the Canadian outdoors!

Because of that, I love to bring the outdoors in with my decorating. This super easy to make, branch-handled tray, was loads of fun to create. You can make it any size that could easily be used indoors and out. It makes a super cute table centerpiece as well.



 Here’s how!

1. Cut a long board in half then brace them together by screwing smaller boards across the underside.

2. Measure out and cut your branch handles and handle supports.

3. Pre-drill holes in the handles and supports, then screw them together from the top.

4. Screw on handles through the bottom of the tray.

5. If you wish for matching coasters, simply cut chunks of wood to the desired size.

My own tray is more decorative than productive, so just be sure to test the handles for strength before carrying anything around with real weight to it.

Other creative tray ideas: chalkboards, old cabinet doors, vintage signs.

Have you created a unique tray out of unusual, reclaimed items? I’d love to hear about it!

Design and photos are courtesy of Funky Junk Interiors. The full tutorial can be seen here.

I love my coffee! There’s nothing like that first jolt, first thing on a fine Canadian a.m. In fact, it’s so important to me, I have a ritual that’s never broken... no food passes my lips without my first cup. (Have you ever noticed that the coffee magic spell breaks after your first bite?).

Today’s coffee drinking comes with its challenges though. With the newfangled, one cup coffee makers that are all the rage these days, all those little, itty bitty coffee pods need a home.

The true blue  junker in me grouped up a  crate and a deep fryer basket (yup!) for a unique little coffee station that is totally productive, takes up little space and looks cool to boot.

Did you notice the creamer? It’s the best kept secret for storing sugar... the lid stays intact. Brilliant, I know. :)

How are you storing all those coffee pods, K Cups and discs?

Photos and ideas courtesy of Funky Junk Interiors.

The arrival of Spring appears to be taking its dear, sweet time on the Canadian "Wet" Coast, so I decided to make it happen sooner rather than later. But... with a twist. I love the look of lush green plants but don’t always like the care involved. So I selected a couple of my favorite faux plants and created a Spring mantel. Creating a Spring-themed mantel is fun and easy! Try the following tricks when creating: 

 

Tell a story - Spring says, "Plants and outdoors",  to me, so adding the window encourages a ‘look outdoors!‘ kinda vibe. Galvanized goods, chippy textures, a garden tool and plants all emphasise  the great outdoors, too

Balance - the window keeps your focus centre-stage, while hugging the centre components.

Play - start with one item that you love and build on that. Keep plunking and playing. You’ll know when it’s time to stop and enjoy. And don't be shy... anything goes!

Now it’s time to light that fireplace, get nice and warm and enjoy the first signs of Spring right inside my own home... while pretending it isn’t raining, of course.

Have you changed out your own mantel decorations for Spring yet? 

I am the proud owner of two small, itty-bitty, made-in-Canada businesses. Being little is huge! Allow me to explain. I’m Donna, an artsy, single parent of an awesome twelve year old son, residing in Very Small Town, BC. 

One of my businesses is a sign and graphics shop, called Graphic Impact, where I specialize in designing and manufacturing vehicle graphics. Design and decal fabrication are done at home, then I run out and install at my customer’s location while my son is in school. My passionate side fired-up Funky Junk Interiors, a decorating studio where I flip junky relics into unique decorating elements for the home. Thrifted treasures are found and revamped, then my home is used for staging photo shoots. From there, I submit the write-ups to magazines and blogs for features. I'm also a freelance writer and photographer and am so very glad that Buy Canadian First is part of my lineup! FUN!

But what really makes this story profound is the fact that businesses choose to buy Canadian first, by choosing me, this little Canadian small town girl, over much larger international corporations. They don’t have to choose me. There are plenty of others they could use to either make their trucks look pretty or their magazine spreads or blogs shine. But the fact that they did choose me says something about them. They are supporters of ensuring that my son gets a new pair of shoes every so often and that there's fuel in our vehicle. They know where their money is being spent which also means that they care about us.

In return, I attempt to offer something extra-special so that they call again. How about the very best work I can muster, topped with a sprinkling of true blue passion? When you care about what you do, you tend to conduct business a little differently, wouldn’t you agree? I see it when I visit my hairdresser in her beautifully decorated, cozy basement, for that invaluable one-on-one service or at the unique diner down the road that dishes up homemade fare like no one else. The small town folks, and what they offer, are special, and that's what keeps me coming back to buying Canadian first. I love knowing where my hard-earned Canadian dollars are going and I’m just very glad that my customers appear to feel the same way about me!

What keeps you going back to your favourite, small businesses?

Written by, and images courtesy of, Donna at Funky Junk Interiors.