This time of year, as the weather starts to cool, we start to get our fall items in. We received some new really fun tea towels and napkins with art from Vicki Sawyer. We have carried her cards, mugs, and tea towels for many years and will soon be ordering her new calendars for 2026! … Read more
This week we are featuring one of our newest artists, the Downtown Sketcher! Based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Wynand van Niekerk is the sketch artist that created the brand Downtown Sketcher. Ever since he was a child, he has had a unique vision and passion for urban landscapes. We met Wynand in January and commissioned … Read more
(Find @newartybeavis on Instagram.) On any First Friday Art Crawl in downtown Peterborough, Ontario, fellow crawlers are always open to surprises. So I was not the only one pleasantly surprised to find an unusual studio that needed a smart device to “see” the artwork by @newartybeavis. Not a whiff of linseed oil in this … Read more
After a few years hiatus, Mad Cap hats are back in the shop! These hats are the original handmade creations of Tori Capes, a certified milliner! For 38 years these beautiful hats have been designed and created in a scenic lakeside studio near Westport Ontario. These adjustable Sunblocker hats are their most popular sun hat, … Read more
The new DIY craft kits from Genius Premium Craft Company have finally arrived! We received a variety of sewing kits, felting kits, fibre art kits and even ones that come with a greeting card. You’ll find a quirky racoon, a seagull with a pouch of fries, a dog in a coat, and the cats inspired … Read more
Nature’s Garden Seed Company is located in Mill Bay, British Columbia, Canada. They’ve been making high quality products for nature lovers for over 30 years. Their greeting cards each contain a strip of post-consumer waste fibre paper, embedded with flower or herb seeds. These make great gifts for anyone wanting to experience the rewards of … Read more
If you’re looking for gift ideas for the year ahead and want to choose Canadian, here are a few examples of items by Canadian artisans and entrepreneurs. We have plenty of new stock on order due to arrive in coming weeks and months ~ keep watching our social feeds and newsletters for updates. We appreciate … Read more
Just recently we were at the gift show in Toronto, and were able to find some new artists to feature in the shop! Here are some of the new and wonderful finds we’ve ordered. They’re not in the shop yet, so consider this a tease! Amanda Brown of Scarlett Dahlia Artistry in Saskatoon, hand dyes, … Read more
We’ve been shopping!! It’s that time of year to see what our artists are adding to their repetoire and we’re pretty excited to have our orders in! At Avant-Garden Shop, we’ve spent the last 22 years stocking our shelves to reflect our landscape. Anytime we can replace an internationally-made item with a Canadian-made one, we … Read more
artFrom coffee and clothing to fabrics and original arts and craft works, you may be noticing more and more products on store shelves (ours, anyway) that are marked as “fair trade” items. So, what does fair trade mean? Fair Trade Explained The best way to define fair trade is as a movement seeking social, economic … Read more