Mussel Princesses

Added on January 5, 2012 by the ikebana shop.

So we went to the market and bought some Nova Scotia mussels. Steamed in white wine and fragrant herbs, it was a fine meal.

Later on, with a little bit of fine chiyogami paper and glue, a few blots of ink... look what we came up with!

Don't worry. They've been completely cleaned and dried out! (^-^)

Assorted designs. Available at the shop or by mail order.

Hand-made in Nova Scotia, Canada.

$2.50 (CAD) each.

New Year Display: Hanamochi

Added on January 3, 2012 by the ikebana shop.

Our New Year shop window display is inspired by hanamochi.

hana = "flower"

mochi = "sticky rice cake"

In the colder, snowy parts of Japan, where there are no flowers in the winter, people attached pink & white sticky rice cakes onto willow branches for their New Year decoration. This is also called mochibana.

In this arrangement, we used wisteria branches that had been given to us by a customer last summer. We also used Play-Doh instead of o-mochi sticky rice! (^-^) Here is a closer look.

And here is the view from outside. Please come and see it. The real thing looks much better than the photographs!

Welcome 2012!

Added on January 1, 2012 by the ikebana shop.

新年明けましておめでとうございます！
Shinnen akemashite omedetou gozaimasu!

This is the Japanese greeting for a Happy New Year on Jan. 1st.
May the Year of the Dragon bring you health, happiness and prosperity!

Hand-Made Tulips!

Added on December 29, 2011 by the ikebana shop.

It's still a bit too cold for the tulips to bloom...

...so we made some ourselves! :-)

Available at the shop or by mail order.

Hand-made in Nova Scotia, Canada.

$2.00 (CAD) each.

Tokyo Milk Mx N’ Match Parfum Vials

Added on December 20, 2011 by the ikebana shop.

An at-home parfum lab for fragrance enthusiasts!

3 Fragrance Notes x 2 Vials Each

Each of the 6 sets features a unique fragrance “family” and includes 2 vials each of 3 fragrance “notes” for you to create their own unique scent. Mix across several sets and be even more unique!

Each vial is an atomiser mist spray bottle, perfect to tuck in your purse or pocket for a quick spritz on-the-go!

The Fragrance Families

· Garden State = Earthy fragrance family

· Sun Kissed = Citrus fragrance family

· Skinny Dip = Marine/Oceanic fragrance family

· Sugar Bomb = Sweet/Gourmand fragrance family

· Moon Flower = Light Floral fragrance family (a less traditional set of floral scents)

· Modern Love = True Floral fragrance family (a more traditional set of floral scents)

Now available at the shop. $22.50 (CAD) each.

Hand-Made Piggy Banks!

Added on December 7, 2011 by the ikebana shop.

We have the perfect gift for the person who seems to be penniless all the time!

These cute ceramic piggy banks were hand-made by pottery artist, Sally Ravindra of Purcell's Cove Pottery (right here in Nova Scotia!)

We've thrown in a few coins too...just to get it started.

Learn more about Sally Ravindra here: http://www.mirochi.com/mirochi/Sally_Ravindra.html

Available at the shop or by mail order.

Made in Nova Scotia, Canada.

$50.00 (CAD) each.

Dragon Ceramic Bell

Added on December 5, 2011 by the ikebana shop.

2012 is the Year of the Dragon.

These ornamental ceramic bells are displayed to welcome the new year. Ring the bell and invite good luck to your household for the coming year!

P.S. They make great gifts when visiting friends and family too!

Approx dimensions: H 6cm x L 5cm x W 3cm (H 2.4" x L 2.0" x W 1.2")

Available at the shop or by mail order. $9.95 (CAD) each.

New Erasers From Japan!

Added on December 3, 2011 by the ikebana shop.

Two new sets of fun erasers from Japan have arrived!

Monkeys, koalas and unicorns....

Dragonflies and ladybugs.

Made in Japan. Paint-free, lead-free, phthalate-free, non-toxic, non-PVC, non-latex. (Beware of fake copies!)

Our Christmas Tree!

Added on December 2, 2011 by the ikebana shop.

Have you seen our shop window lately? We put up a Christmas tree. It's all hand-made in-house.

Many people have already come in and asked to purchase it! (You can't imagine how happy that makes us!) That big one is not for sale but we made a few smaller versions that can be purchased... and quite a few have already gone!

Origami For Your Christmas Tree

Added on December 1, 2011 by the ikebana shop.

Origami Christmas tree ornaments! They are made with fabric. Hand-made in Nova Scotia. Another original from the ikebana shop!

Available at the shop or by mail order. $2 (CAD) each.