Sigh. Thank goodness it's Friday and Beltane. I'm in need of some spiritual rebirth. Our brief sunny tease has been replaced by rainy spring-ness. Which, despite the doom and gloom, has given way to beautiful leaf buds waiting... waiting to spread and gather sunlight. They're so cute! (tree buds outside our balcony tonight!)I love to wear black. It's just so flattering.... and goes with the craziest handmade earrings I can find! Unfortunately I have been informed that it gets a bit old, so in the spirit of spring (and to help boost my own!) I went to visit the Bhavana Yoga Boutique here in Halifax.
Tucked upstairs from the vegetarian restaurant Heartwood, which I really have to convince Andrew to eat at, this Boutique is super cute and welcoming. The owner; Krista, is a super sweet and friendly Yogini who teaches yoga at the new 108 Studio in the farmer's market. She carries wonderful alternatives to the crazy Lulu-bots being spewed forth lately. From Jade Yoga mats (beautiful eco-alternatives, see a
more indepth review of rubber eco-mats here) to sustainable and soft Halfmoon cork blocks (I ADORE mine!) her boutique is a fantastic yogic experience. (picture curtosy of Bhavana's home page- it doesn't do the store justice!)
During this latest visit I was able to purchase a beautiful Skyler top. Skyler is a Canadian company that hires talented mothers who have the freedom to work from home, supporting their essential roles as mothers. Fantastically progressive. Bhavana also carries Karma and Cura clothing both made in Vancouver BC (which Krista reports Cura is closing up shop!). I Heart my new chocolate Cura shorts, perfect for outdoor practice. I'm also excited to see if Karma's bamboo eco-line will be carried there!
Finally, I found my non-nylon solution to the portable, tiny awesome flip and tumbles... Envirosax. Now, I have seen the nylon versions everywhere, and although cute and small, they are still nylon. I already have two nylon spheres of plastick-y death thank you very much. While at Bhavana I spied.... NATURAL Envirosax options!! WOOT!! I did a little dance. Andrew laughed. Bhavana carries bamboo, linen (ouu fancy!), and hemp roll-up bags! I chose hemp, which is a fantastic, renewable source that is extremely strong and doesn't require the nasty chemical changes that bamboo does (check out the
Oldies but Goodies post on this for more details). Also, linen seems a bit much for a bag... I mean, I had a linen skirt once and had to iron it constantly... which means I never did. They come with their own tiny bags.... which I think is a wee bit wasteful, a bag for a bag??This bag with a bag is contained in a (recycled) paper box... Sigh. I am forever warped. Regardless, it fits nicely in my purse and has been used several times! I'll probably upcycle my bag's bag (lol) into a cute pouch for something...
On top of all these beautiful, innovative products, Krista offers regular workshops out of her Boutique, including an Introduction to Ayurveda.
On this happy note, Happy Beltane and Spring!
Blessings :)
Okay, we're having some serious blogging mojo going on here! ;) We both posted about Beltane, and my mind has been on clothes all day. (Desperately needing a wardrobe/yogawear update! You have too much black - I have too much NAVY! It's so nice to liven things up with some color, right?)
ReplyDeleteYour stores sound fantastic. Seems like everything cool is happening in Canada these days! ;) Got to get myself up there!
Happy Beltane and Spring to you, too!
ReplyDeleteah, what a tangled ecogological web we weave...
ReplyDeleteTruly, it can be exhausted making the *right* choices...which is, I wonder, why many people just throw their hands up in despair and grab a plastic bag....*sigh*
glad you found some bag Joy though....
~beltane blessings~
I'll have to go check it out. The hemp bags sound great (except for the bag for the bag and box). There has been some talk going around lately to leave your packaging at the store where you buy it. Since stores have to pay for garbage removal, if everyone does this, the idea is that they will complain to the manufacturers to reduce or eliminate packaging to cut their costs...sounds like a good idea to me!
ReplyDeleteYoga Witch: lol, weird!! Spring is great for justifying shopping, which I always love to do :)
ReplyDeleteMel: I know... I have moments of "ugh... %*#$ it" but then I have nice moments like shutting off my car at an intersection :)
Alli: Hmmm, that sounds like a fabulous idea! I was also thinking of emailing Envirosax about the packaging. I know Natalie from Ms Writer: More Musings From Meaford had related an instance where her friend complained to the manager of a grocery store about the organic tomatoes being packaged in plastic (like the plastic wrapped broccoli!) and the non-organic weren't. The manager then complained to the company. I'll probably do the same next time I'm at Pete's :)
:)
Hey, I quite buying bags of hemp years ago...oh, you mean bags MADE OUT OF hemp...okay, that's different....
ReplyDeleteHaha, NICE.
ReplyDelete