Portobello West Holiday Market

Just a quick reminder that Modus Paperie & Press will be participating in the Portobello West Holiday Market this weekend. We'll be sharing booth 38 with Lovably mobiles located in the center aisle to the left of the front entrance.

If you've never been to this event before, it's held at the Rocky Mountaineer Train Station located on Cottrell Street just off Terminal Avenue near The Home Depot. It's a really great venue that has loads of natural light, tall ceilings and ample FREE parking.

LOCATION: Rocky Mountaineer Train Station
ADDRESS: 1755 Cottrell Street, Vancouver, BC
DATE: December 12 & 13
TIME: Noon to 6PM (both days)
WEBSITE: click here

Last Stop to Shop

It's hard to believe it's been two years since my first post announcing the Beaumont Studios' holiday craft event, "Last Stop to Shop." This year the event is stronger than ever with a juried selection of vendors including both Beaumont tenants and local artists.

Join us for the opening night festivities with bevys, appies and music. All of the studios will be open (including ours!), making this a perfect opportunity to check out one of the coolest artists' buildings in Vancouver.

Hope to see you there!

WHERE: The Beaumont Studios
ADDRESS: 316 West 5th Avenue, Vancouver, BC
DATE: December 18-20
TIME: Friday 7PM - Midnight, Saturday & Sunday 11AM - 7PM

Bizzy Bee

Well, as always, my more than month-long absence is a definite sign of me being a very bizzy little bee. November was filled with a flurry of visualizing, strategizing, debating and compromising all in anticipation of our marathon of holiday shows that began on November 28th. After display planning, all remaining hours were spent at the Modus Paperie & Press studio, printing, printing, printing, and doing fussy little tasks like folding cards and packaging gift tags.

Our very first market, the Portobello West holiday season opener, happened over the last weekend of November. It was heaps of work and an enormous learning experience. Some silly decisions and omission were made – like to use bricks as display props (duh!) and to not bring a chair – but all in all, it was a valuable first-time experience that established a great foundation for our next show.

A week later, our second show – Got Craft? – was indeed, an entirely different experience. The display had been streamlined (bricks returned!) and everything was organized to fit neatly into two large totes. The show itself was spectacular. The lineup for swag bags started at 7:30 am, doors opened at 11:00 and the hall was packed until closing at 5:00. Randomly assigned, Modus Paperie & Press was one of 4 vendors located on the stage and by what I could see from up there (and from patrons' rave reviews), the Got Craft? organizers, Andrea and Robert, did a fantastic job at vendor selection. Congratulations to them both for yet another extraordinarily successful event!

Got Craft?

With a record number of vendor applications this year, Modus Paperie & Press is pleased to announce our participation in the 2009 Got Craft? Holiday Show! One of the trendiest craft shows in town, Got Craft? features over 55 local and handmade vendors ranging from clothing to jewelry to ceramics and wall art.

LOCATION: Royal Canadian Legion
2205 Commercial Drive (@ E.6th Ave), Vancouver
DATE: Sunday, December 6th, 2009
TIME: 11:00am to 5:00pm
WEBSITE: click here or on the logo below

Arrive early and if you're one of the first 30 people through the door you'll receive a FREE, handmade swag bag stuffed full of goodies from all the vendors!

The Drift: Art on Main Street

Modus Paperie & Press and The Beaumont Studios will be participating in the annual Drift event held October 3 & 4, 2009. The Drift: Art of Main Street is an art walk & open studio tour similar to the East Side Culture Crawl. Over 100 artists, 35 artists’ working studios & 80 Main Street shops, cafés & galleries team up to host this free 2-day art party! The Drift is a self-guided art tour. Visit their website to download a PDF guide & map or pick up a hard copy on Main Street from one of the many participating small shops and cafés.

The Modus studio will be open after 1:00 on Saturday afternoon only. We look forward to seeing you there!

Tonic Living

I’ve always got a few DIY projects on the go and the latest has led me to Tonic Living, a fantastic online source for creative fabrics. Nearly all the patterns are retro inspired but they’ve also got some great complementary basics. Fair warning: choosing just one pattern is nearly impossible. I checked out with 4 this morning – all in black and white – of course.


Photo credit: Tonic Living

Best Place to Whip Up Some Art

Recently voted “Best Place to Whip up some Art” in the Georgia Straight, Blim is a community based art resource center that facilitates screen-printing, button making, drawing, knitting, local experimental audio, film screenings, animation, video, dance, spoken word, visual art, creative workshops, and crafts in the independent field. They even offer classes on how to make a sock monkey. Simply put, Blim rocks. If you live in the Vancouver area, it’s definitely worth swinging by Main Street to check out the studio or visit their website for a current list of workshops.


Photo credit: Blim

Last Stop to Shop

As promised, last night’s Christmas party at The Beaumont was brimming with merriment! Clearly, a well managed event, the building was packed with holiday shoppers happily checking items off their list. Exhibitors included tenants of The Beaumont as well as local artists from around the lower mainland. One of my faves was Irit Sorokin Designs. Her handmade jewellery was exquisitely diverse with beads, stones and metals hand selected from all corners of the globe.

Bona Fide

The search for studio space for the letterpress if finally over – hooray! It will be taking up residence on West 5th Avenue in The Beaumont Studios. A hidden gem, the two story building is home to a talented group of local artists and a small theatre. The press is still in pieces but feel free to drop by this weekend to say hello and check out the Beaumont's annual Christmas sale. Opening festivities start at 5 PM on Friday with the sale running through 6 PM on Sunday.


Above: Last Stop to Shop craft sale and Christmas party at the Beaumont Studios.