I loved when Jane posted her favourite blogs last week, even though I know she totally thought that was a thrown together, last minute blog. Loved it so much that I wanted to share my own current favourites. I feel like I might be repeating myself with some of these, but I get obsessive about the things I like. LIKE THEM TOO.

Here are some of my favourite local reads to end off the week for you.


I've always thought that running a flower shop would be the best job. How could you not be instantly happy as soon as you got to work? If I had any flower knowledge at all, I'd love to do what Coriander Girl is doing in Toronto (1537 Queen St. W.), a mixture of seasonal fresh flowers and antiques. Her arrangements are beyond lovely, utilizing vintage mason jars, milk glass and galvanized steel buckets (among other vessels) for them. The blog details owner Alisons' shop life, her home life and her pet (!!!) bunny.


forty-sixth at grace chronicles Torontonian Nikole Herriots' dreamy life. Her writing is poetry, her photography is exquisite, and she has a saturday sandwich recipe series that is close to my heart. She is the daughter behind the father-daughter team of Herriot Grace, and I've expressed my love for their hand-carved wooden wares many times. At the beginning of this week, even. I won't lie, I'm obsessed. I wish I saw the world as magically as she does.


Crackers is run by husband and wife team Jesse and Melanie. And it's awesome. Not only what they are doing admirable - trying to get away from the supermarket and back to the basics with food - but being based in Ancaster, they visit farms, mills and markets all in a close proximity to Hamilton. So really, there's no excuse for us all not to be doing the same thing. The breathtaking photography from Jesse doesn't hurt either.


I feel a little creepy about how much I fawn over Kate the Hunter. She's just so dang cute and creative. Is she an incredible furniture designer? Check. Amazing in the kitchen? Check. Stylish and sweet to a fault? Check. Kate currently resides in Hamilton, and all I can think every time I read her entries is how lucky our city is to possess talent like hers.

Happy reading!


All images link back to original sources.

Orla Kiely's Autumn/Winter 2010 Lookbook is KILLING ME.

Meatbulb is back! As a female! And he came complete with a snazzy cone to wear for two weeks straight. I know I shouldn't laugh, but I can't help but die everytime he bumps into a wall or door-frame. Because it's happening all the time.

I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your kind words of concern and support, and for sharing stories of your own pet emergencies. These little guys really steal our hearts, don't they?



Now we're just chillin' and recuperatin' together, because my kidney infection is still in full force. Our recovery plan? Laying and snuggling in bed with the sun shining in through the windows, listening to Kate Bush. Sounds perfect, right? It pretty much is, with the exception of my peehole hurting like a mother cuss.

Alright, so which one of you lovely readers met my darling Pepper this weekend? She was being dogsat by the lovely Amy Kenny, and apparently two girls on the street recognized her instantly from this blog.

PEPPER IS FAMOUS YOU GUYS.

I'm told one of you is from Montreal. Confess!

Cottage living is pretty great, isn't it? The whole weekend all I kept thinking was how long I could stay at a cottage for without getting bored. It's heavenly. A view of the water with nothing to do but relax? So good.



But that's not entirely true. There was lots of other things to do besides relaxing. Like frog-catching, exploring, adventuring, canoeing, canasta playing, and so much more.



The cottage we go to is actually right beside a summer camp, and because we went so late in the year this time all the campers had gone home. In fact, everyone from the camp had gone home, but they had mysteriously left all the buildings open and even some lights on. The first night we got to the cottage we decided to go exploring at night. Terrifying.



Exploring in the day was a little less axe-murdery.



This is actually one of the only pictures I have of myself from the entire weekend, because I was mostly behind the camera. I feel like I should say that I HAD been paddling that canoe too, but Ryan let me stop because he wanted to test his solo-canoeing skills.



One of the things I love most about this cottage is the family history. As soon as I can I'll try to scan some old pictures I have from here, but basically I am the fourth generation of my family who has enjoyed time there, and now that some of my 3rd cousins are having babies, a 5th and 6th generation is going to get to spend their days on the Otty Lake waters.



What makes it even more special to me, is these six generations of family is comprised almost entirely of women. One of the cottages up there originally belonged to my great grandmother, who handed it over to her 8 daughters. These eight ladies shared one single cottage for their entire lives, and each brought their children and grandchildren to it. Over the years most land has been acquired (some supposedly through a lucky poker match) and more cottages have sprung up on the lake. Children of the eight sisters started living in these cottages, and bringing their children and their childrens' children up.

But overwhelmingly, even though there are boys and men in the family, the entire feel and history of the cottages somehow centres around those eight sisters who really started the whole thing, and it's pretty damn neat.

Photos: Nikole Herriot

We returned from the cottage yesterday and I spent most of the afternoon at the doctors' office finding out that I have a kidney infection. Meatbulb and I have matching kidney ailments! How cute! But not really. It's actually quite uncomfortable.

And then Jane discovered a rash she got at the cottage, and got grossed out. She is currently on a Greyhound tour bus with a microphone pointing out attractions to visitors to the city. Her version of hell. Mine too, I would imagine.

So today sucks. But things could be looking up, because Herriot Grace has been hinting at a shop update on Flickr and Facebook today. Oh, what I wouldn't do for that flour scoop! It may cure all that ails us. Make sure to sign up to find out when the shop does get updated because the beautiful hand-carved and handcrafted spoons and other accessories sell out in seconds. Honestly. I mean, why wouldn't they?

Is there anything better than cottaging in the Canadian North? The correct answer is HELL NO. So, that's where Jane and I will be this weekend, along with our better halves and our darling friends Andrew and Keane, drinking Sangria and swimming in the lake. I look forward to this weekend all summer long.

The shop will still be open, thanks to Jane's mom who was kind enough to take over. So go in and say hi! But try not to bombard her with questions about what we sell. She doesn't know the answers, ok?

It's true! The last three days I have been a frantic weepy mess over this little guy. This is my darling Meatbulb and he has been having some serious problems lately. Without getting too graphic, he's all blocked up but the vet doesn't know what from. His kidneys aren't doing too hot, so they think it may be kidney stones. Possibly kidney failure. Ahhhh.

Mike and I took him into the emergency vet Tuesday night to get him unblocked, and $600 and a day later he was still blocked and miserable. We started having to discuss what our options were, because surgery is pricey. And I mean PRICE. E. We were also told that there was a 90% chance that he would block up again even if we did go through with it.

So, when I say we discussed our options, it means we were seriously considering putting him down. Heartbreak. Of the highest degree.


Mike is totally going to kill me for telling this story. Being a graphic designer, Mike was working on a poster for the movie "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" one day at work. He was day-dreaming about kittehs, I suppose, as he ended up putting the copy down as "Cloudy with a Chance of MeatBULBS" and sent it away to the marketing department for approval. They caught the error and asked him about it, and too embarrassed to admit that this was the name of his cat and that he was probably thinking about him at the time that he was working on the poster, he played it off as stupidity on his part.

He consumes us with his sweet and gentle nature. How could life go on without Meatbulb? It couldn't, it can't. Not yet. He's still my little baby cat. Wednesday night was an incredibly sad night in our household. And to boot, we let him go outside thinking that if it was his last night alive, he'd probably enjoy the great outdoors. But then he didn't come home before we went to bed, and all I could think about was how much snuggle time I had just given up. And even worse, that maybe he had passed away alone and in excruciating pain due to kidney failure somewhere in the neighbourhood.

He came home the next morning, thankfully.

Yesterday I took him to our regular vet who presented me with an option that we hadn't heard before. Unfortunately for Meatbulb it involves removing his penis bone so that his...opening... is wider. The vet actually explained the procedure as "we turn him into a girl." It's pricey too, but it's likely that he won't ever block up again. It's actually kind of sickening to think of how much it costs, but hey! I just renewed my contract at work. Even stevens, always. And in the end, I couldn't put a finite value on him.


With a feeling of relief sweeping over me, I am pretty excited to have a transgendered cat. I can't wait until Monday when we pick him up from the vet so that I can snuggle the shit out of him. Her? It doesn't matter. JUST WANT SOME MEATBULB CAT SNUGGLEZ PUHLEAZE.

Hi guys, blogging is a little late today because there is a bit of a kitty cat emergency going on. Hollie's beloved Meatbulb is not doing so well, so please cross your fingers, or white light him, or say a little prayer, or whatever it is you do, ok?

Anyway, please excuse our lack of blogging today. To make up for it, here are some other blogs I love to read. Bonus: each one of them is an artist. Double bonus: (oooh double bonus, what does it mean?)White Elephant carries each one of these lovely ladies' work.

I am super in love with Jenna Rose's blog. She updates frequently (which is awesome), has great pictures, and frequently shows off my beloved hometown. She also made the above quilt as a wedding present for a friend, with fabric she had screen printed herself. Best wedding present ever?

We can't keep Lisa Bruemmer's jewelry in stock at the shop, and her blog Tree & Kimball gives you an idea why. She used to be a clothing designer for Anthropologie until she left to focus on her own amazing line of vintage lace jewelry, and also runs a great vintage shop on Etsy.


Julia Pott's illustrations are among my favorite things in the world, and I currently want about 8 million of her prints. Her blog is light hearted and fun, and always good reading.


Alice Saunders' bags were among the first things we got into the White Elephant shop when we opened, and I've never stopped fawning over them. I love her blog because she keeps you updated with her newest creations, and also her amazing estate sale & flea market finds.

There you have it! Happy reading!

On Saturday Hollie & I (and our lovely dates) went to the wedding of two of our favorite people, Crystal & Rob. I royally failed at taking pictures, and didn't really getting around to doing so until the end of the night when we all look sweaty and greasy, so I hope the photographer doesn't mind, but I'm going to steal some of his pictures. You can look at more on his website here.


I know everyone says this, but Hollie & I both really mean it when we say we couldn't imagine two people more perfect for each other. They are so lovely together. Also, Rob can fit an entire toonie in his nostril, and Crystal can chug a beer... so true love?

There were also sorts of special details that made the wedding that much more intimate. I absolutely loved these ribbon flags that Crystal & the wedding party made for after the ceremony. I couldn't stop playing with mine the entire time we were sitting.

Also, have you ever seen a sweeter flower girl? I believe this picture was actually taken while the ceremony was in progress. Uh-dorable.

It rained pretty much all day, which changed the outdoor wedding to an indoor one, but the weather really did make for beautiful pictures. Also, I'm not sure who planned this, but umbrellas to match the bridesmaid dresses? Genius.

My absolute favorite special touch that was SO much fun was the the photo booth. They had all kinds of props and costumes, and it was really a highlight of the night. Another highlight was when the happy couple let me bring the viking helmet home.

We are in full red alert status over here at White Elephant. Sometime on Thursday night, some hooligans jumped up and pulled down our cherished handmade carved wooden hanging sign. This was probably one of the first things we got in preparation for opening the store, and really made the whole thing real. We love that sign. We miss that sign. We want it back. So if you know any details, or saw anything fishy that night, or know that it is hanging in someones dorm room, please let us know. We're offering a reward for the safe return. We're not a big corporation. We're an independent business who put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into everything we do, and things like this mean so much to us.

So much good stuff added to the shop this week that I can hardly stand it! So many amazing pairs of shoes in particular.