Type Book's Queen Street West location.
Another stop in Toronto last week was to Type Books. Wow, what a great independent neighbourhood bookstore. They were out of stock of the current issue (which I guess is a good thing! They'll just have to stock up next time, hint hint.) We featured Type on the blog previous—remember this amazing time-lapse animation of the shop being rearranged?
Swipe Books is always on my list of places to visit. They have a great selection on books on design and typography.
Swipe is located in this beautiful building, 401 Richmond. (They have a second location at the Design Exchange.)
In addition to our magazine, they also have our other books like Work/Life and Collection a Day.
For more details about Swipe, visit their website and blog. Take a look at our stockist list to find other stores near you that carry UPPERCASE magazine and books.
A nice stack.
Another nice stack. Eagle eyes will notice that the workroom has a copy of out-of-print issue #3 and #12 for sale!
It's always a pleasure to visit the workroom. And I notice that they have some out-of-print back issues like #3 and #12! Head on over to the workroom or contact them to scoop these up!
We had a terrific time at our Show and Tell in Kid Icarus, a wonderful card and gift store slash printmaking studio. It had been a while since I visited Bianca and Mike's Kid Icarus—their previous studio shop was a tiny one with barely enough room to silkscreen let alone do retail. Their new venue is spacious and full of wonderful things to look at (and buy!) They also host workshops in the basement.
Above is a small gallery of instagrams I took this evening. We hosted a Show and Tell where creative Torontonians could take a minute or two to introduce themselves and present an idea or example of their work. I look forward to sharing some of those highlights on the blog soon.
Sophia prepares the event signage.
Proprietor Mia Semingson unpacks some new inventory.
Two Hands Paperie on Pearl Street was the beautiful bookend to my Boulder experience. Proprietor Mia Semingson was my assistant throughout the bookmaking class; she even picked me up at the airport! It was great to start the trip at this gorgeous store. Upon the conclusion of the Makerie on Sunday morning, Mia hosted me at Two Hands to introduce our freshly printed spring issue. Thank you to everyone for such a fine reception—and a big thank you to Mia for her help in keeping our two-day bookmaking project on track.
{ Two Hands Paperie has an online shop with free shipping on orders over $100 to the lower 48 US States. Take it from me, it is easy to spend at least $100 on such a great selection of paper goodies. }
The best spots in any city are the ones that the locals know about. But, for an outsider, they can be hard to find. You know your city best and that's how you can help us!
Please share your suggestions (email them here) for stores we should know about.
If you have a boutique, bookstore or other retail location please complete our form and we'll be in touch!
Issue #16 looks right at home at stockist Spruce Collective. The shop, located in Abbotsford BC, is a bricks and mortar collaboration between five women brought together by their love of vintage treasures. The shop is where they share their love of home decor and teach others to do the same. For locals in the mood to get their hands dirty they offer classes and their beautiful space is also available for rent.
There is an upcoming gathering for the creative and curious in Iowa City. New stockist, Home Ec. Workshop is hosting a party on January 25 to celebrate the local connections of an article in issue #16. The piece explores the work of Sonya Darrow who draws upon her Czech heritage and local goodwill as a source for her folkloric creations. The profile was written by Linzee Kull McCray, photographed by Heather Atkinson with make-up services provided by Tonya Kehoe-Anderson.
We're not sure who this particular stockist is... if you know, please comment.
Mister Edwards sent us this image from the Finders Keepers market held in Sydney last weekend. (We're envious of your shorts and shirt sleeves weather, Australia!) Mister Edwards has some quirky items in his shop, too, if you're still looking for some gifts. Maybe a tea towel of found images and type, silkscreened by the Mr himself? Or perhaps the manliest tea towel of them all?
Felt ball garland
Room6 carries UPPERCASE magazine, too!
Room6 is an oh-so-lovely brick and mortar shop in Deep Cove (Vancouver) with an EXCELLENT online shop as well. Megan has been a wonderful supporter of UPPERCASE and we're very grateful for her keen eye. Above it a colour coordinated selection of some of my favourite things in Room6, but I'm sure you'll be able to find your own perfect gifts there as well.
Oh, Orla. If you have a design crush on Orla Kiely, Room6 is your source in Canada! Megan just unpacked Orla Kiely Spring 2013...
The window of Montreal bookstore Le port de tête.
UPPERCASE copyeditor Correy Baldwin sent in this snapshot of Montreal bookstore Le port de tête. What a tantalizing display… {read more about this unique store on CBC.}
Correy also emailed me these pictures of UPPERCASE in Oxford Boutique, located in Mile-End, Montreal. A boutique with a unique focus, they sell "curated shoes and magazines for men and women"! {Here's a peek inside.} We're happy that UPPERCASE is included in their fine selection.
Options Contemporary Department Store is located on Damrak in central Amsterdam. Full of trendy things, they also have a selection of books and magazines furnished by Athenaeum.
"OPTIONS! is a contemporary department store located in central Amsterdam for lovers of beautiful things, fun, handmade, good design and interesting stories. Each item is lovingly selected and curated in collaboration with creatives, students and friends in Tokyo, London, Helsinki, Berlin and beyond. The store stocks an extensive range, from design gifts, stationery, ceramics, furniture, clothing and magazines to bespoke products from upcoming and established international interior and fashion designers. OPTIONS! offers accommodation at Hotel The Exchange where rooms are designed in collaboration with the Amsterdam Fashion Institute."
It was a slightly soggy Monday evening when fans of UPPERCASE gathered at Athenaeum for a meet and greet, but that was ok—I had time to have very nice conversations with new friends. Thank you to Anneke and Reny for organizing and promoting the event—and for the excellent front window display shown below. Thank you to Maarten Asscher, the director of Athenaeum, for cultivating such an inspiring bookstore which supports quality publishing both big and small.
UPPERCASE next to fellow Canadian magazine, Inventory. And we're always happy to be in proximity to the sophisticated Kinfolk.
(I don't think we've ever been stacked next to Vanity Fair or James Bond before!)
A wonderfully colourful selection of nibbles included blueberries and pink marshmallows.
Nice presentation of sprouts by Reny. (If you have time, you could roll up an old newspaper or phone book like this, soak it and plant seeds along the top, letting the sprouts anchor into the paper roll.)
I brought some paper garlands, as well as the little mini pencil crayon sets I posted about earlier.
Athenaeum also stocks UPPERCASE's books such as The Suitcase Series Volume 1: Camilla Engman, The Elegant Cockroach by Deidre Martin / Stefanie Augustine and Lisa Congdon's Collection a Day.
And such an incredible selection of magazines in a very small space. If I lived in Amsterdam, I would be a frequent visitor. In fact, I remember visiting Athenaeum back in 1996, the last time I was in Amsterdam. I was just out of college on a two-month trip to Europe. Despite being on a tight budget and backpacking, I remember splurging on some magazines in Athenaeum.
In particular I'd like to thank the gals from Flow magazine for coming to the meet and greet (post about Flow coming up), to Hagar for gifting me with a wonderful artwork (this one!), to Giovannella (below, left) who was also at Hello Etsy and made me a lovely embroidered sign (I still have to photograph it) and to Ping (below right) for her creative enthusiasm. Also to Canan, it was nice to meet you (and thank you for all your tweets!) I also look forward to seeing what Naomi of Pretty Unexpected does next and reading through her blog.
Proprietor Anna looks out towards the hustle and bustle of Haalemmerstraat.
The shop, Het Grote Avontuur is named after Alain Fournier's novel.
Located on what is being called as the "best shopping street in Amsterdam", Het Grote Avontuur is a shop that sells papergoods, vintage home accessories and assorted treasures. (They are an occasional stockist of the magazine and our books, but inquire if what you would like is currently in stock.)
Proprietor Anna Massee showed me around her beautifully appointed shop.
You can sample your colours in these very appealing small canisters.
A special colour by Het Grote Avontuur.
Papers by UPPERCASE favourites Leah Duncan and Eloise Renouf.
The kitchen area within the shop.
So many papers, some even pasted to the walls.
Next we head to a shop in Napier, New Zealand. Gather is textile and knitwear designer Nikki Gabriel's newly opened shop and she sent us an email to let us know:
"I'm thrilled to be a new stockist of your fabulous magazine. It encapsulates everything that I attempt to project in my store called 'Gather'. Gather is a knitting store with a difference; as I've set up the shop to inspire and delight every customer that walks in."
FROM THE GATHER WEBSITE: Nikki moved to New Zealand 2 years ago from Melbourne, and has set up a textile design studio in the seaside town of Napier, on the North Island. In the heart of Napier, here, she has created ‘Gather’ a retail store attached to her studio.
Born in rural South Africa, Nikki draws and on her childhood experiences of gathering materials from all around her to make things, which inspired the creation of the store ‘Gather’, as a celebration of her innate yearning to collect, create and share. Nikki has curated a unique collection of work from designers and makers, who produce amazing contemporary and traditional items from thread, plastic, wood, ceramics, plants, and paper. In and amongst shelves of beautiful and rare fibres, knitting yarns and plant dyes, Nikki also has on display many tactile and wonderful objects, books and magazines that breathe a Gatherer’s instinct.
We're thrilled that UPPERCASE has found such a lovely home so far away! Thank you, Nikki.
Kid Icarus, a long-term stockist of UPPERCASE magazine, has been located in a very small shop in Toronto's Kensington Market. When we visited them last fall I was amazed at how much they could get done in such small quarters. They've finally outgrown their space and are moving to a new location in the neighbourhood.
Michael writes: "We’ve taken our biggest step yet and are moving down the street from our cherished Nassau street location into a larger space that will help us pursue our dream of fostering a vibrant arts and crafts community in our city. Our new space will be part retail shop, part community hub, where we can provide space for other professional screen printers to create and host workshops and talks for the community at large. It’s really exciting!"
To help with the costs, they have a campaign on Indiegogo. Support their fundraising campaign here.
I wanted to share a new project started by Grace Kang, owner of the Pink Olive shops in New York City. Grace has stocked UPPERCASE for a number of years now, and as a retail consultant, is always leading the edge of what's up-and-coming.
OliveBox is a monthly subscription service for paper lovers. Every month, our members will receive a delightful box of paper and lifestyle products delivered to their front door. Currently, there is so much clutter in the marketplace and less time to find creative items that inspire giving and beautiful living. We hope to change that with OliveBox and become the go-to retail platform that helps women celebrate and enjoy the journey of life. When customers sign up for OliveBox, they will not only be giving this gift to themselves, but they will be receiving something they can gift forward. The idea behind OliveBox was born out of love for creative finds by Grace Kang, former buyer of Bloomingdale's and Barneys and found of popular Pink Olive gift boutiques in NYC.
Sign up for your OliveBox right here >>>.
Rare Device is located at 600 Divisadero Street (at Hayes Street) in San Francisco.
Dynamo Donuts... mmmm. Maple bacon apple anyone?
Glen hauled 4 dozen donuts on two buses (worth it!)
Our current issue features Jon Klassen's illustration on the cover.
Nicely curated children's tees, toys and books.
Everything was tempting.
Lots of things for paper-lovers. Eye spy some Rifle Paper Co. notebooks: look for an interview with Anna Bond in the fall issue of UPPERCASE, out in October.
So many beautiful things for the home.
Here's Caitlin Kirkpatrick, my new editor at Chronicle Books. Look for the official announcement of our project later this fall.
There was lovely natural light in the shop, especially late in the afternoon.
Thank you to Giselle for graciously allowing us to host our event in Rare Device, and for supporting indie publishing and artists in such a great store. We can't wait to visit again.
When Lacy of hello hello in Maine sent these images to me I was transported back to childhood summer holidays. Dad and I would always pack more books than we thought we'd need but after hours reading around the campsite we would inevitably run out and have to scour the streets of the closest town for an independent book store. I always made the greatest discoveries (like Michener, Jakes and Rowling)—and just how much Dad and I actually had in common.
hello hello looks like just the place to get lost amongst the pages and find your next favourite author.
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