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
~ In our October 2024 newsletter, we introduced a new series featuring Canadian-made items and local artists to highlight what we offer that big-box multi-national stores and online distributors do not. What follows is one example of how giving your money to local businesses goes a long way in keeping our community prosperous. ~ … Read more
It might seem like an odd time of year to be talking about birdhouses, but it’s actually a great time to put one up! The birds can get used to a new house now before nesting starts again in the spring. Birds might also use them to roost and for shelter throughout the colder months, … Read more
Celebrating episode 300! For the past 12 years The Garden Gate segments have been showcasing many different features of the Avant-Garden Shop. Many people have told us how much they love these very informative and interesting segments! Thank you! Over the years there have been many guests joining Brenda; local artists, writers, photographers and enthusiasts! … Read more
You won’t find any empty wall space at Avant-Garden shop! These walls are packed with beautiful Canadian made wall art. These are all quality made pieces, most of which are powder coated and won’t rust if you want to hang them outdoors. New pieces arrived recently but they don’t last long so come have a … Read more
Mother’s Day is Sunday May 12th this year! This means there’s not much time left to go find that perfectly unique gift for the Moms in your life! Luckily the shop is loaded with beautiful options. We have locally made jewelry, hummingbird feeders, puzzles, pottery, metal art, and handblown glass hearts! If Mom’s a gardener … Read more
New to the Shop this year are these beautiful quilling cards! Quilling is an art form that involves using strips of paper that are rolled, shaped, and glued together to create decorative designs. These cards are a fair trade item from Vietnam. The employees are paid fair wages, and trained for six months as each … Read more
We had a lot of fun recently going to Dog Bite Steel in Uxbridge to pick out some new pieces! The shelves are now overloaded with these unique pieces made with recycled oil and propane tanks. J.P Schoss designs, cuts, and welds everything by hand and his wife Brenda paints them! Come down to … Read more
If you’ve been in?our shop or perused our website, you’ll know that we carry A LOT of works by Canadian artists. Here is some information on one of my favourites! Click on the link below to watch a video of the artists. Dog Bite Steel is a business from Uxbridge with works by Jean Pierre … Read more