finds for mom Be Mum’s Favourite
Beautiful, like your mom’s smile, and colourful, like her language when she’s golfing, Luli Designs Jewellery has simple, classic bead, charm, and metal styles that are wearable for any occasion. Each piece is handmade by designer Louisa Hrennikoff right here on the West Coast, and is guaranteed to bring out that smile you love and repress undesired advice on childrearing and comments on your new haircut.
Plastic is Passé
Never again feel the burning shame of carrying plastic shopping bags. Envirosax Bloom Bags hold twice as much as plastic and roll up to the size of sushi, so you have no excuse not to have a couple in your purse at all times. The graphic series comes in all sorts of attractive patterns to spice up any outfit or shopping trip, and they make a perfect gift for any mum, crippled with environmental guilt or not.
$9 | www.envirosax.com
Style Footnotes
$40 | www.lulidesigns.etsy.com
An Accessory for Every Day
M o t h e r s h ave to b e to u g h sometimes, or kids would run amok until midnight and eat ice cream for every meal. But just because she’s tough doesn’t mean she doesn’t have a soft and girly side too. Cater to this dichotomy with Alden Rae’s leather and silver bead wrap bracelets made by two enterprising women right here on the Lower Mainland. In colours that change with the current fashion season, they go with everyone from an authoritarian homework monitor to a carefree playground swing-pusher.
Love for your Lap
Save mum (or yourself ) from laptop computer irradiation of sensitive areas with this handy lap desk. Made with or without raised edges to contain spilled tea and dropped pens, these handy wooden trays have a soft cushion on the bottom and come in a variety of colours. Also great for eating cereal brought to you by your sweet children in bed on Mother’s Day!
$46 | www.cargoh.com/store/ej-butik
Shop Till It Stops
$139 | www.elnaturalista.com
Treasure your Memories
Whoever made silver the runner up certainly hadn’t seen the distinctive sterling silver jewellery at Thomas Sabo. With lines such as It Girl and Rebel at Heart, silver finally gets the centre podium. It’s easy to find something here for every mum, from Rock ‘n’ Roll Granny to Frouffy Fashionista, and the charm shop has loads of gift ideas for your fashion-forward daughter too.
$139 | www.thomassabo.com
$59 | www.mokajadewoodstudio.com
$49 | www.aldenrae.ca
Sensible but still saucy, El Natura Lista shoes are made from the finest sustainably tanned leather, and come in a range of styles for the perfect Mother’s Day gift. The use of the least harmful of materials for the production of their shoes with natural dyes, recycled, b i o d e gr a d a b l e a n d n a t u r a l materials, and the combination of new technologies with traditional craftsmanship are the foundation of their eco-policy. Pick up two pairs, because when you see how good she looks in hers, you know you’ll want them too.
First Place Silver
Move to Magnetic
Let’s face it: cork is good when it’s being pulled out of a bottle, but it’s an eyesore when it’s got things tacked to it on the wall. Replace that hideous cork board with something both useful and good-looking – The MokaJade Magnet Board. Measuring approximately 12 inches by 12 inches, when hung in a group of two or more it tells a wonderful story and looks so stunning it seems a shame to cover it up with the recycling pick-up schedule and postcards from your parents’ cruise.
We all know how important it is to write things down (before your memory gets any worse!). For My Children: A Mother’s Journal of Memories, Wishes and Wisdom is a beautifully designed and illustrated book with creative prompts that will spark both mom and grandma’s recollections of fun vacations, momentous occasions, and family traditions. You would not want your kids to forget about how Uncle Bill always hilariously replaced the star on the Christmas tree with a creepy plastic monkey head, would you?
$15 | www.ulyssespress.com
Just in time for Mother’s Day, HomeSense and Winners online stores now feature Shelter from the Storm campaign collectibles. Show your support for the Canadian Women’s Foundation project which will help more than 30,000 women and children rebuild their lives after experiencing abuse by stocking up on everything from stylish t-shirts, to pillows, to rubber boots, with the cool and distinctive Shelter from the Storm pattern, designed exclusively in support of ending violence against women.
$8 | www.winners.ca
Cultural Chic
Ditch that designer knock-off for a more meaningful tote. Handcrafted in Vancouver by Métis designer Mark MiLan, MiLan Metis Sun Bags are gorgeous, durable, and each colour woven into them represents a different aspect of historical Canadian Métis culture. With a handbag so cool yet classic, you’ll have to come up with another way to express your shallow materialism (we’re joking!).
$130 | www.milanart.ca
May 2012
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