Happy Holidays!

Happy holidays friends!

We are staying in Freiburg this year for Christmas, celebrating a quiet holiday season and enjoying the new sights and traditions in Germany. The end of 2014 has been busy, mostly on Charles' end, but that means that my parenting duties have doubled. Things with our little family are good however; Edwin is really starting to feel settled in his kindergarten, and we are starting to find our new rhythm, ie, time for me to do some work. I've got some projects milling about in my mind and I'm eager to hit the ground running in 2015 and really carve out some me/work time.

Life in Germany has been wonderful so far, but also presented us with challenges. Thank you for your patience with English Muffin, and for your continued support.

xo Bess

Finland & France

Hello! (Yes, I still exist.) July was a busy month around here! We began the month traveling to Finland for 10 days of beautiful summer weather and delicious food, hot saunas, cool swims in the sea, and lots of love from my family. We traveled on busses, in planes, trains and cars and had a really great time. Edwin loved it, although travelling with a toddler is still always harder than I think it will be. Vacation to me still means time to relax and recharge, when will I get the memo? Vacations with toddlers are more work than being at home!! For us though, it was definitely worth it, Edwin had so many wonderful experiences and got to meet his Finnish family—what memories are made of. 

After our holiday in Finland we met our friends from Halifax and headed on a mini-road-trip to Burgundy. We rented a house with some other friends from Paris / Toronto and spent 3 beautiful days in the tiny (80-inhabitants-tiny) town of Essarois. The house was beautiful and old, the backyard large and green and the food delicious. We let the kids run wild, and caught up on each others' lives.

The following weekend we had friends from Montreal visit, and tried to host them as best we could in our new adopted city. It's funny to show people around a city you've only lived in for 4 months! 

Things have quieted down in terms of summer plans, but now the work deadlines loom their heads! Oh, and we still have no child-care! So if you find yourself wondering whatever happened to Bess and English Muffin, I'm still here, mostly likely just hanging out at the playground or out riding bikes. 

xo Bess

Summer Holidays!

Campfire Bags - Adventure Pack (I want one!!)

We're off to Finland this week for 10 days of coastal living, forest walks, saunas, Scandinavian food and design, and maybe even a few Moomins (for Edwin, of course!). I'm so happy that we are once again close enough to Finland that we can afford the airfare for all three of us to go and visit my Finnish family—this will be the first time they're meeting Edwin. We'll be staying with my family in their home in Turku for a few days, and then going to the cottage on the Baltic Sea. On our way back we've booked a night in Helsinki, so we'll spend one day there before flying out.

And, in a super lucky coincidence, one of my favourite Finnish design studios, Polkka Jam, just released a Turku Treasure Map, "Find everything from art, books and records to ecological products, vintage clothing and Finnish design." Sounds great, can't wait!

Hope you're enjoying your Summer!
xo Bess

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

It's the last day before the Christmas holidays and the office is looking pretty empty... well, I guess it always looks pretty empty, but I'm feeling the emptiness. Gone are my buddies the tight deadlines and stacks of paper, hum of the printer and crackle of cello sleeves. Instead, there is the twiddling of thumbs and buzzing coming from my head as I begin to plot the coming year for English Muffin. It's nice (and necessary) to have some downtime, but it is also a little boring. Good thing it's Eddie's last day at daycare and Charles' at work! Time to pack the car, hit the road and begin the nuttiness that is the Christmas holidays, Callard-Nock style. 

From our family to yours, we wish you the happiest of holidays! See you in 2014!

xo Bess

UP NEXT : PUCES POP

Well, it's almost here, the final holiday show of the season. English Muffin will be at Puces Pop this weekend with prints, posters, colouring books, notebooks and cards for everyone on your holiday list. The season's bestseller will be there too—did you know the Montréal City Print is now available in gold? It's a limited edition of 200 prints and seems to be on everyone's Christmas list!

Hope to see you there!

xo Bess

NEXT UP: SMART DESIGN MART

smart design mart opens this Friday at 5pm... If all goes well we'll have a little English Muffin shop set up in the space with lots of product and maybe even a little surprise!

Hope to see you there :)

xo Bess

SOUK@SAT

Sorry it's been so quiet on the blog lately, I've been busy getting ready for one of the season's most anticipated holiday markets, Souk @ SAT. It's my first time at the show and everyone has been telling me about how busy it gets and to have lots of stock on hand, so guess what I've been doing? Printing, packaging and prepping!

For those of you who aren't familiar with how the Souk works, here is an excerpt from their website: 

"For four days, the entire Society for Arts and Technology –SAT will be transformed into an immense loft space inhabited by Montreal’s up-and coming artists and designers. Talk about ambiance! At souk @ sat, the experience roams through the living room, into the dining room, cuts through the kids’ bedroom and the master bedroom, stops at the bar (yes, here you can have a drink while you shop!), and lingers in the walk-in closet. Whatever room they’re destined for, here one finds gift ideas that won’t accumulate dust once unwrapped—things that are useful, decorative, innovative, and exclusive!"

I'm really excited to be part of this great event, the list of artists attending the show is really fantastic. I think there will definitely be some extra-curricular shopping happening on my part, how can I resist?

Souk @ SAT
Thursday, November 28 - 12PM to 9 PM
Friday, November 29 - 12PM to 9 PM
Saturday, November 30 - 12PM to 7 PM
Sunday, December 1 - 12PM to 7 PM
Free admission, 18 years and +

Society for arts and technology | SAT
1201 Blvd. Saint-Laurent, Montreal
(between René-Lévesque and Sainte-Catherine)
www.sat.qc.ca

Hope to see you there!

xo Bess

SALON DE L'ENFANCE

This weekend, November 16 & 17, English Muffin will be at the Collectif Nënë Salon de l'enfance. Come by to see a great selection of goods designed for babies and kids, and participate in the free kids workshops being offered. They will even valet park your stroller! I love family friendly events :) 

Hope to see you there!
xo Bess

TRUCK COLOURING BOOK

I have turned the 2014 Trucks Calendar into a colouring book, genius—I know! This is one of those times where your hand comes up to your forehead and you say, "Duh, why didn't I do this ages ago?!". Well, likely because I needed a truck obsessed little artist in my midst to put two and two together and realize how magical a book full of naked trucks is to a creative young mind. (Although, I have to admit, I'm having just as much fun colouring them in as Edwin is.)

The Truck Colouring Book is now available in my shop and features 12 original outlined truck illustrations. It would make a fantastic gift for any little person on your holiday shopping list. 

xx Bess

MAISON JEAN LONGPRÉ

You may remember that the holiday we recently took was in two parts, the second part was in Cape Breton, and the first was a wonderful weekend stay at the Maison Jean Longpré with our great friends Claudia and Dan and their awesome daughter Alice. They were kind enough to invite us along to share this relaxing and beautifully designed country home just outside of Montreal.

As Claudia said, there is really no point in taking photos of the interior of the home as M. Jean Longpré is a professional photographer and the images on the website are much better than either of us could take—but believe me when I say it was gorgeous and extremely inspiring! So instead here are some photos of Eddie and Alice, because no one can take photos of toddlers like mamas can ;)

Have a great Tuesday!
xx Bess

INVERNESS, CAPE BRETON

Well we're back from our holiday! We have been since Monday night, but you know how crazy it is getting everything unpacked and work to do's done and everyone back on schedule. Of course when you take hundreds of photos on your trip it takes even longer to sift through them to find the faves, but I've got a few to share with you from our trip to Cape Breton.

We rented a cabin on the beach in Inverness and had a relaxing and adventurous time during our 6 day stay. The drive out east was a little long, we did it in 2 days, stopping for the night in Fredericton and staying with some excellent and extremely hospitable friends. Edwin was a trooper during the long days in the car though—as was Charles who drove the whole 3000km on his own! I, of course, provided the entertainment, nourishment and encouragement whenever anybody needed it. Before we left I was dreaming of a super relaxing holiday on the beach, wondering if I should bring more than one book as I might finish the one I had planned on starting—since I would have so much free time, and relishing the idea of being completely unplugged from the internet. In reality, vacationing with a toddler is much like every other day with a toddler—I'm on page 6 of the book I thought I would finish, I slept less than I do at home, and being unplugged from the web is more frightening than relaxing, but that's not Eddie's fault.

Looking back through the photos, and thinking about the time we spent together as a family, it was a truly wonderful getaway. Thank you to my very good friend Susie for inspiring us to travel out east and for inviting us to share in her wedding day, it was so wonderful to be there and such a perfect day.

Have a great weekend!
xx Bess

TAKING A TRIP

First we're going here...

and then we're going here...

and then we're coming home and it will be September. 

That's right, we are treating ourselves to an end of summer holiday. It will involve a weekend stay with some friends in this beautiful cottage in the Eastern Townships, followed by a week at Inverness Beach in Cape Breton. 

I am so ready to unplug, unwind and soak up the beautiful surroundings. Of course, I will still take lots of photos, and sneak in an Instagram post or two ;)

ox Bess

Vacation time!

Sunday is the last day to get your orders in for a bright and early shipment on Monday morning before we pack-up the car and head west for a couple weeks. Charles, Edwin and I are going on a little tour of Ontario—visiting as many family and friends as we can pack into our 2 weeks away!

You can follow our little adventure on Instagram, hopefully my feed will be full of beach scenes and BBQ goodness.

Happy Friday!
xx Bess

In the shop...

Holiday Printables are in the shop! Make your holidays easy-peasy with English Muffin's printable gift tags and cards. Santa would approve.

 xo Bess

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

Puces Pop Holiday Market time! English Muffin will be at the holiday sale again this year with prints, posters, calendars and cards—and maybe a little elf named Edwin too!

Hope to see you there!

xo Bess

Almost 1

Big Chuck and I had some very special visitors over the weekend, his brother and his wife and their adorable baby, T. It was so nice to spend our days and nights hanging out with them, although it did take me a full day to recover from all the excitement once they had gone! Thank goodness babies come out without knowing how to move around very much, because keeping tabs on an almost 1 year old can be pretty challenging! It made me realize that I haven't been thinking too much beyond the 3 month stage with our little guy... I sort of forgot that our house was completely un-baby-proofed and when little T was carried through the door my eyes quickly scanned our place and all the potential breakables/hazards/danger zones jumped out at me. We did however make out just fine and it was such a treat to experience that adorable smile everyday :) 

Today marks the end of my 33rd week of pregnancy. I wish I had a belly photo to share with you but that requires time and effort and just a smidge of organization, all of which I'm feeling a little low on right now. The little mental energy I can muster is being spent getting ready for the Puces Pop Holiday Show this weekend, if you're in town you should stop by—I hear there are going to be some delicious holiday treats on hand, and of course some English Muffin goodies too. 

Have a great Thursday!
xo Bess

Pop-Up

Last night Big Chuck and I stopped by the Puces Pop-Up Boutique's opening night party. For those of you who are in the Montreal area, I'd really encourage you pop in and check out all the lovely pieces on offer. The boutique was curated with the Holiday season in mind, so there are some great gifts to be had. It was also really refreshing to see the work of many of the Puces Pop Holiday Market vendors displayed so nicely in a boutique environment, everything looked wonderful!

If you can't make it out to the boutique—there's still the main event to come! The Holiday Market will be held on Dec. 10th and 11th, hope to see you there!

Have a great Thursday,
xo Bess

Summer Fun

Last weekend Big Chuck and I headed to Ontario for the week to visit with family and friends. We spent time on the dock, checking out small town antique shops, eating lots of blueberry pancakes and generally having a relaxing and wonderful holiday.

I feel well rested and happy to be home. There's nothing like returning to your life, it seems even better after a week away ;)

Here are a few iPhone pics from our trip...

Tyke on the deck, enjoying the view.


Afternoon Scrabble

Sunning on the dock...

with my hubby.

Big Chuck and his mom taking apart a chainsaw.

We came home to our garden overgrown with tomatoes. It was really fun harvesting all these beauties :)

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

xo bess

Heading West

Coming through! We're packing up the car and heading west for a few days, taking a welcome break from city living. First up on the list, SWIMMING in our LAKE!!! Can you tell I'm excited?

Have a great weekend :)

xx Bess

ps. No, unfortunately our car isn't quite that cute.

Happy Holidays!

I just wanted to pop in to wish you all a very happy holiday, merry Christmas and wonderful New Year!

Big Chuck and I got into Toronto last night and are gearing up for a full week of family, friends and festivities. It's our first Christmas back home in 3 years - we're so excited :)

All the best to you and your families,
xx bess