V-Day Un-Woes and Natural Born Quiller

i'm not a fan of st-valentine's day. not at all. and yet, some years, certain people do things that make me feel good enough about it. that is the case this year more than ever and i'm single so i clearly was not expecting that.

firstly, at my new office, everyone got truffles from the building owners and one of the developers went around and gave everyone more chocolate. i also tried my hand at table tennis for the first time in sixteen years and didn't suck, although that probably had nothing to do with valentine's day but it did happen at work and right before i handed out the truffles so just go with it...

last week, i got the sweetest surprise in the mail. my ridiculously talented friend, charlene, who owns the cleverly-named etys shop, natural born quiller, sent the kids and i some valentine's day treats:

she also sent me the beautiful bookmark you see in the third photo and sent my daughter the super cute bracelet in the last one. both gifts are from shanghai. 

i'm grateful to have this girl in my life for a series of reasons but especially because of how thoughtful she is! she remembers the craziest, tiniest details and hangs on to them until the right moment and then she surprises you like this. friendly gushing aside, check out her shop and add it to your favourites! what this woman can do with paper, man... i can't even make a paper airplane. just saying. 

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25 Days of Etsy Christmas Gifts. Day Thirteen: For The Star Wars Nut

i'm just about to wrap up the geeky gift lists but we still have today and at least one more day to go. i'm on a bit of a schedule because i will be wrapping up this series with suggestions from canadian etsy shops and then five days of strictly montreal-based etsy shops. 

today, we look at gift for the star wars nut on your list:


1. i'm in love with this yoda door mat that is going for $50 USD at damn good doormats. i never imagined myself saying that i have a favourite doormat shop but i can definitely say that now. check these guys out!

2. for something classic and useful, i recommend this leather imperial cog wallet. order it for $75 USD at sova leatherworks.

3. how adorable is this star wars comic book apron?? grab it for $45 USD at haute mess threads and be sure to check them out for a small but fantastic selection of horror, gaming, and all-around geek-inspired goods. 

4. i'm digging this "i love you", "i know" mug set  for only 6.50 GBP (approx $10.70) at gelert design.

5. and from the same shop, i came across this yoda-inspired iphone 4 case that just had to make it to this list. it's only 7 GBP (approx $11.52 USD) and, as much as i'm over the whole "keep calm and insert-clever-saying here" fad, i must admit that this one made me chuckle. 

6. how about some hand-painted r2d2 toms for $145 USD at lobster and the bird?

7. i also like this storm trooper flask. order it for just $18 USD  from dna creations and do take a moment to peruse this shop. we're talking dia de los muertos, johnny cash, pinups, lucille ball and 
over 1500 awesome gift ideas. 

8. these r2d2 mini crayons are the perfect stocking stuffer for almost any star wars lover your list. useful for a little guy or a great decoration idea, they're only $4 USD from the cleverly-named extra money for mommy.

9. if you have two star wars fanatics on your list or you want a gift for yourself as well, check out this ultimate star wars chocolate collection  at the boo box. for $29.99 USD you get two of these sets!

10. we're back at rebel downtown but this time it is for this great star wars comic infinity scarf . at $25 USD, it's great for most budgets.

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