Sunday 9 September 2012

Artisan Village at Ottawa Folk!


The Ottawa Folk Festival, presented by Telus, offers us so much more than just music. The artisans, both local and from afar, have some great goods that can serve as souvenirs of the festival!

Blue Frog Creations
Heather Caton from Blue Frog Creations has some beautiful handmade glass beads. She hails from Waterloo, Ontario, and uses sterling silver to showcase her glasswork. Be sure to ask her about her custom work, or send her an email with a request!

Heartfelt Creations
If you’re looking for some very unique pieces of jewellery, you must stop by Heartfelt Creations. Tunica Harris is an Ottawa artist, and has been for 15 years. He uses nickel-free sterling silver to make his creations. The electroplated leaves, which are natural leaves, covered in gold, silver or copper are my personal favourite!

The Fairies’ Pyjamas
Check out Michelle-Lynn Johnson designs, at the Fairies’ Pyjamas. All of her products are fair-trade produced in Nepal. This year, the women’s clothing collection is featuring organic cotton!

Come see Shaheen with his radical, tie-dyed designs (tea-towels, shirts, bags, aprons, etc.) and also take a peek at the great Tunisian artisanal pottery being offered by his dad at their collaborative shop-tent! You can support Tunisian artists and see a young entrepreneur’s work.

If your pants seem a little loose after dancing off some pounds in the dance tent, you’re in luck! Heather Church is visiting the Folk Fest from Bayfield, Ontario. Her laser-etched belt-buckles are one-of-a-kind! She also has the coolest website name, ever.

Quichua Crafts
The Ottawa business is at the Fest and is featuring handmade products from Ecuador. Be sure to check out their colourful jewellery and clothing that features fruit and vegetable dyes as well as all of their alpaca products.

Massage Tent
Featuring three local practitioners, the massage tent is sure to be visited by many folkers! They are currently offering head, face, neck, shoulder, hip and lower back massage, as well as reflexology and Ashiatsu. Visit Marilou Richard, Andrea Unsworth, and Debbie Schinzel and hear about their city-wide services!

Martia Toppozini is the owner of Going Global from Kemptville and she travels to find an eclectic mix of handmade, fair trade items. Most of her products are from women’s co-ops. My personal favourite are the paper products called Poopoopaper. And yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like.

This tent offers the creations of 20 local artists in one, travelling shop that is soon to open a permanent location on York Street. There are simply too many great products to mention in here, but I always have a soft-spot for owls! These ones are made out of recycled fabrics and look pleasant to cuddle.

Devaki MacDonald is visiting from Collingwood, Ontario and has truly unique and rare jewellery. All of her pieces are made from recycled clocks and watches and are beautiful and eco-friendly!

Leah Feor’s shop features her own silver and macramé creations as well as fair trade products from Argentina. Come visit her and use coupon code “fairtrade” to receive a 10% discount off of her fair trade items!

The artisan village is located right across from the food vendors, just steps away from the shows and workshops. See you there!

 - Michelle

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