MARKET DAY

It's market day! Head over here at noon EST to get your hands on items from our El Mercado market. Pieces made by skilled Mexican artisans and a few limited edition items from S&C. El Mercado will be updated throughout the day as items sell.

FRIDA

A trip to Frida Kahlo's house in Mexico City. We had never been and I'm glad to have gone but I'm not sure I'd go again. It was full of people and every single aspect was touristy. You even had to pay in order to take pictures! On the plus side you did get to witness the insanity of how she lived, the room where both Diego and Trotsky slept (albeit not at the same time) and some beautiful examples of her work.

EL MERCADO

I've been shooting product for the the upcoming El Mercado this Friday and thought I would share in more detail some of the pieces that will be listed. Items come in various quantities but most found goods are one of a kind. I'll be updating the shop all afternoon Friday as things sell so make sure to keep coming back.
Here is the shop URL which will go live this Friday, July 29th at noon EST: http://scoutandcatalogue.bigcartel.com/

MEXICO CITY. DAY ONE.

We spent the first few (rainy and cool) days in Mexico City's Centro Historico - right downtown adjacent to the main square. We wandered the streets visiting churches, old ruins and beautifully preserved Spanish colonial buildings while I imagined how our lives might unfold if we lived there.

The main church was first with it's over the top interior and hushed silences. You can see, attached to the red velvet box on one of the many altars to the Virgin Mary, how the charms I work with called milagros are traditionally used. A prayer or a thanks pinned in front of their most revered idol.

From there we headed to the Templo Mayor just a little ways from the main square. It is here that the most important Aztec temple used to stand until the Spanish arrived and built right over it. No one even knew the temple, once the ancient culture's literal 'center of the universe', existed until a few decades ago. Now you can walk among the ruins and feel awed to experience this already old city's even more ancient history.

A walk through the streets lead us through the perfume district and on to the Palacio Postal - Mexico City's main post office. When we lived in Puerto Vallarta I visited the post office frequently where a picture of this building hung on the wall. The girls that worked there recommended that if we ever made it to Mexico City to check it out for ourselves. It did not disappoint and is, happily, still being used as a post office to this day.

And finally off to the markets before heading home to quench our thirst and nurse our blisters.

EL MERCADO

And....we're back! Mexico City was amazing - full of walks through museums, great food, cool weather and most importantly markets. I can't wait to share the experience with you this week and first up is the aspect of my trip that I am most excited about - El Mercado.

El Mercado (literally 'the market' in Spanish) will be my first ever online shop of other artisan's (and a few limited edition S&C pieces as well) work. I scoured the markets and brought home enough bags, blankets, cloaks, pouches and jewelry to share. The market will go live this Friday (July 29th) at noon EST and I'll keep you posted as to the what, where and when. Until then take a peek at the look book.

DISTRITO FEDERAL

And we're off to Mexico City! You may have noticed the shop is closed while we're gone and the blog will be quiet as well. Both will be back up and running July 25th. I can't wait to share our trip when we return as well as the loot I'll be sourcing (cross your fingers I find the 'real' Mexican markets not the tourist ones). Have a great next few weeks!

LOOK!BOOK!

Look!Book! was MIA in June because of a grueling travel/wedding schedule for both myself and Julie but this month Jules returns with another great recommend:

Full disclosure - I haven’t read this month’s Look!Book! In fact, it’s not even published here yet as far as I know. I ordered my copy from Amazon.co.uk and am waiting semi-patiently for it to arrive (I’ll lend it to you when I’m finished).

To Die For: Is Fashion Wearing Out the World is an expose on the fashion industry written by the Observer's 'Ethical Living' columnist, Lucy Siegle. In To Die For, Siegle examines the environmental and human impact of world’s insatiable appetite for mass-produced clothing. “Every garment has a back story,” she says, “even if it’s not very fashionable.”

I have a few friends in Toronto who work with fantastic seamstresses to make bespoke pieces and, ever since Bre launched Scout & Catalogue, I have been exposed to so many good independent designers. A quick look in my closet, however, shows me that high street brands still dominate the field. Rather than thinking about where my clothes are made, the vast majority of my buying decisions come down to fit, price and opportunities to wear.

When it finally arrives, I hope To Die For arms me with ideas on how to embrace a bit more stylish sustainability in my wardrobe (and helps alleviate some of my fast-fashion guilt). Until then, any tips?

~Jules

(Cover image, Photo by Clarisse Demory)

BIRD

Over the last year or so many of you have written me asking about my tattoo, so today I thought I'd fill you in on it's history. For those of you who didn't realize I have a small tattoo on the inside of my left upper arm. It's so small that one of my friends calls it my 'Phoebe tattoo' after the Friends episode where Phoebe is too scared of the pain to finish getting inked and is left with only a single dot no bigger than your average mole. While I wasn't nervous about the pain I was nervous about permanently writing on my body (how can you POSSIBLY know if you will like something for your entire life?) so, contrary to most people's tattoo objectives, I decided to put it in a location you barely notice and have it be so tiny it could easily be lasered off. Can you tell I've always been a touch too sensible?

As for what I decided to get - my grandmother's writing of her last name 'Bird' which incidentally is my mother's last name as well. Both my mother and my grandmother have been extremely important people in my life and it felt like a nice tribute to both of them - a tribute that neither really wanted! Although I got the tattoo while still living in Vancouver I found it meant more to me when I left to live in Mexico and now reside on the opposite side of the country. A little piece of my family I take wherever I go.

Would I do it again?

Nope.

Am I happy to have done it?

Absolutely.

Am I excited to see laser technology improve with each passing year?

You bet!

FRIDAY INSPIRATION

Friday inspiration - all images from here.

TREASURES

A few days ago we took a trip outside the city to visit friends and stopped along the way to thrift. Our car was stuffed to the brim with globes, wooden boxes and chairs. I was especially excited to nab a long lace skirt, vintage Mason jars and some new fabric. The biggest score - our new couch (3rd picture) which our friend Tamar assured us we can 'update' quickly and affordably (more on our couch revamp later). The thought of being able to sit comfortably in our living room continues to bring a smile to my face!

SPRING STOCK

I just found 2 lasso scarves from my Spring collection - Bright Peach and Mauve Rose - and posted them in the shop. These are the last of their kind so once they are gone they're gone!

LONG HOT SUMMER

I hope you all had a great long weekend. Mine was spent getting lots of work done but also managing to find time to see friends and clock in some hours hammock lounging.

I managed to forget my camera this entire weekend but here are the few I did snap:

1) My talented friend Ngaire gave me this mixed media piece years ago from a Narwhal themed art show she was in (Princess of W(h)ales + horn = my favourite take on Narwhals yet...). I finally managed to get it out of my Mother's storage closet and back to Toronto and I couldn't be more pleased.

2) It has been very, very hot here and it must be even harder when you're wearing a fur coat.

3) V found us a new bike which he'll fix up over the summer. We now each have 2 in order to have 'guest bikes' for the family and friends that visit during the summer months.

4) Even 5 minutes in the hammock feels like a small slice of heaven.

BICYCLETTE

Last week V dropped off an order of Scout & Catalogue (mostly pouches and clutches) to the cute Queen West boutique, Bicyclette. I'm slowly expanding my operations to be able to sell to retailers and have my stuff in stores and this is our first appearance in a Toronto shop. Actually, with most of my clients residing in the US or Australia, this is our first appearance in any Canadian boutique. And perfectly timed for Canada Day...
(images from BlogTO and Bicyclette)