Hold Your Ground Atelier opens May 1st on the Salt Spring Studio Tour

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Ayla

Tomorrow is the big re-opening day for Hold Your Ground Atelier! The doors officially open for Hold Your Ground season on the Salt Spring Studio Tour at 11am on May 1st! The Studio Tour is self lead tour of 34 artists studios (on Salt Spring Island BC) facilitated by the trusty map we make every year for you in hand.

Visiting the Hold Your Ground Atelier offers a calmer, lower paced atmosphere than the vibrant Market scene and a more tactile experience that the online store, giving you ample time to try on the ready-to-wear Eco.Couture & Fine Jewellery collections, see the sweet Recycled Cashmere Enfant collection, having a fitting for a custom made design, design a wedding collection of garments, accessories and/or jewellery for the bride and your bridal party, or custom design a special piece of jewellery.

You will also be able to check out the new designs like our Recycled Leather & Silk accessories or our Recycled Fur & Silk throws and pillows or Treasured card series…

The Hold Your Ground Atelier is open May 1st – Sept 30th, Tuesday – Friday 11am-4pm.

Recycled Leather & Silk Feather neckpiece

Hope to see you there beauties!

xx

Codi is wearing the new small Feather Necklace by Hold Your Ground - Gorgeous!

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Gypsy Caravan – Dreams of Home

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Ayla

One of the most memorable lines from my books as a child, which I also read to my own 2 daughters, was from “Madeleine and the Gypsies”.  The quote from the Madeleine book stayed in my head. In fact when my eldest daughter Codi turned 5, I commissioned a painter in art school, KSA in Nelson, to paint a painting with gypsy caravans with the quote in mind….

Ode to the Gypsy Caravan

 

Caravan interior - for fortune & dreaming

“…Gypsies never come to stay they only come to go away…” by Ludwig Bemelmans

The Emerald Queen

 

 

 

As a child I loved gypsies and wanted every opportunity to dress (up) like one. My costumes at Halloween when I was little, pretty much rotated around these four choices: Gypsy, Witch, Wonder Woman & Viking ( I sure loved that helmet with horns!).

Gypsies were so beautiful I thought – in garb and adornment and pastimes (crystal balls, tarot cards, fortune telling).  I longed for the hoop earrings, the tinkling bangles, the huge rings on all fingers, the big thick hair, the scarf to hold back the mane, lace shawls and full floral skirts, embroidered blouses and the boots.

The sumptuous Caravan interior

The Gypsy Caravan, a vehicle and home in one. This has been childhood dream: to have my very own. Maybe because I spent a lot of time at the back of an orange Volkswagen Camper van as a child or maybe because I moved so much with my folks, I have felt an affinity with Gypsies since dot.

Home and heart be in one place

Not as my primary home perhaps (how would I fit all the cats and girls and me) but rather of a place of sanctuary and refuge, a space that is representative of this dreamy, mysterious, adorned gypsy child that still resides in meI have flit around with the idea of the Airstream, more practical more accessible, but the English caravans make my heart sing.

Like in Wind in the Willows

 

Even though my girlfriend Solange, who can make anything (build houses, bake, garden, spin, weave, knit, sew – one of the most competent women I’ve met, in the real stuff of life  - she lived off the grid for the first half of her adult life!) built herself a Caravan – it has always felt so out of reach this dream of mine.  Because Solange is no longer doing her carpentry, I had let it become a very quiet dream.  Who could I ask to make such a precious heart felt thing or where would I find one?

And then… a few weeks ago my friend named Alda told me about this gal Michelle Wilson on Hornby Island who was making Caravans from scratch!  Check out her site.

Hornby Island Caravan - Front door

Every inch of the Caravan is handmade and customzied

Hornby Island Caravans - Welcome Home

They are exquisite in their simplified beauty, almost minimalist (compared to the opulence of the Gypsies decor certainly!) earthy and so thoughtful in every nook and cranny of design and materials.  It is as if  you can almost feel her (Yes – it is a She who makes these beauties – I love it!) hands so precise in her endeavour and accomplishment of making her own version of this iconic travelling home, with Green principles in mind.

This has given me the pleasure of caravan reverie again as well as allowing me to feel that my very own caravan is perhaps not so far away…

Blessings to you beauties.

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For all the foodies out there – Classic Pesto – a visual feast from Kinfolk

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Ayla

I can’t even stand how beautiful this is…. Somehow this little film captures the handwork, love and beauty in the process of creating food.  It more than just nourishment of our bodies is this, but the very nature of its soulful practice of feeding ourselves and our loved ones.

This video reaffirmed for me why I never understand how sometimes we can be overheard to say: “…Oh well, I was only going to cook for myself, so why bother…”

This is why we do – because it is this simple and this perfect.

xo

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Salt Spring Saturday Market Begins – April 7 2012 – Rain or shine!

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Ayla

Hail to the beginning of the infamous Salt Spring Saturday Market!  This Saturday April 7th, will be my ninth season of selling my wares at the Market.  For those who don’t know about the Market, it is an outdoor venue that runs every Saturday from April to October, rain or shine, on Salt Spring Island.  The vendors run the gambit from our fabulous organic farmers, wonderful ceramics, fibre & clothing, jewellery (tons of it!), glass sculpture, monsters (you won’t be able to leave without one, especially if you have kids), leatherwork, painters, gluten-free baking (must taste – Laughing Daughters Bakery – regardless of dietary needs) & tons more. With over 140 vendors, the mandate to be able to sell at the market is one must “Make it, Bake it or Grow it” our/themselves.

This year I am excited, I am bringing 3 new product lines and unveiling them there this weekend.  Here is a sneak peek at one…

Hold Your Ground - Recycled Cobalt Leather Feather Neckpiece

Hope to see you there!  Let’s all bring the sun!

xo

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Hold Your Ground – A Soulful Commission

Posted on March 12, 2012 by Ayla

13 days ago, my dearest friend on the Island left on a journey of soulful proportions. The day she left I was bereft, wept like I was losing my very heart.  The leave-taking even more poignant given she was leaving on a boat (the ferry) with too many opportunities to repeatedly turn back and wave through blurred vision full of tears.

Prior to her leaving though, I made her a dress.  The dress was commissioned with my intention to wrap her up in courage and beauty, supporting her as she moved towards fulfilling her dreams and souls calling.

The design began with her request “…why don’t we do something like you are doing with your cards….” So emerged this sacred garment, informed  by the explorations of sewing with bits of treasured fabric, lace, silk and leather which I have been doing with paper cards more recently & have also done with my neckpieces.  Christina chose a meaningful Rumi quote which we placed at the back yoke of the dress and at the hem, adding potency with an invitation to the viewer.

This priestess dress fit her perfectly.  So befitting the start of an explorational journey with her beloved.



I Love you darlin’.
Blessed be.
xo

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In honour of International Woman’s Day – women who have influenced me along my way

Posted on March 8, 2012 by Ayla

It is International Woman’s Day 2012.  We still need this day and reminder that things are not all fine in the world of equity and gender.  This video seemed fitting for today and was sent to me by Vicki Noble, co-creator of the Motherpeace Tarot Cards.  It is simple and poignant jolt of reality for such a vast number of girls/women on the planet right now regarding status of their education and lives.

In the West we get such a skewed image of women from media and our general wealth. By wealth I mean: we have access to clean water, our food is abundant our health care is available everywhere (not perfectly but we do have it), and our daughters go to school just like our sons do.  That is not to say we have our own version of hardship, but being drawn down to our needs with human rights struggles is a different scale and scope of difficulty.

I am grateful for what I have and feel blessed to have been raise in the 70′s by a feminist mother who instilled in me the importance of women’s strength, intelligence, courage & education.  With my 2 daughters I experience the complexities of raising girls in our culture to instil strength & resilience, compassion & kindness, determination & dedication and maybe the most difficult to impart: self care

Today also brought to mind the significant women in my young life particularly who impacted my consciousness or were my mentors.  Here is just a sprinkle of images, bless their sweet courageous souls.

In honour of the women.  May we remain, strong, defiant, tender, sensual, intelligent, articulate and brave.

Blessings,

PS: And you have to watch this!!! Who said feminists don’t have a sense of humour!

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2012 Oscar’s Red Carpet – My favorite dresses of the evening!

Posted on March 1, 2012 by Ayla

The Oscar’s is a yearly wait with abated breath event for me that, though is somewhat uncharacteristic, I LOVE.  This year I bundled my daughters Uma, 8 & Codi 16, and off we went with our Paleo Shrimp & Avocado Salad and our Paleo Apple Crisp to our family friend Carmen’s house, met there by my Mom and settled in front of the TV to be entertained by celebrity, style & and live performance!  We have a TV free home (watch movies on our laptop) and my folks have a TV but no cable, so Carmen kindly put us up and had a small feast waiting for us on arrival! Perfect way to settle into watching the evenings plumage & award winners.

As has been written by many Billy Crystal was a disappointment and the show in general was quite bland (except for Cirque du Soleil). But Meryl Streep’s acceptance speech was the most redeeming, authentic and heartfelt words spoken that evening.  Upon receiving the Award for Best Actress in her role of Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady, she immediately directly her gratitude to her husband, the true support of her life and life’s work – not the usual “… I would like to thank the Academy…”.  Refreshing & human.

My favourite dresses…  Well, I would have to start with Angelina’s dress.  By the end of the evening the evocative slit at the front of this dress from which Angelina’s gorgeous leg was bare from – had a Twitter following!  There is something about this woman that I love – she is part Athena part Aphrodite part Hera and part Amazon.  She intrigues me with her inconsistencies of the Feminine and the celebrity story, which can only be speculated about from the outside with the voyeuristic snippets we get from the media.

Her dress beautifully chosen, black velvet Atelier Versace – she is wearing it, it is not wearing her as we so often see in the mismatched combinations of celebrity and designer for gala events.

Angelina's Gorgeous Leg - oh, and her fabulous Atelier Versace black Velvet gown!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I liked Gwyneth’s choice too, I always appreciate what she choses (well except for that time when she did all that pink when she won for Shakespeare in Love).  She looked grand and even better without the cape!

Gwyneth's Dress without the Cape

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The shoes she wore!  How come we didn’t see those?  They really could have done a better job of the Red Carpet this year… but enough said – I am sure they have heard that loud and clear!

Gwyneth's Shoes for the Oscars 2012

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Octavia Spencer who won Best Supporting Actress for her role in The Help, (and she so deserved it!  Go watch that movie if you haven’t already!) looked so beautiful.  Her authenticity of pure shock and emotion to her receiving her Award was also moving and beautiful.

Octavia Spencer looks beautiful - her dress is perfect for her

There was of course other gorgeous gals & getups admittedly but I liked those the best. Sometimes when I watch the celebs stuffed into frocks that don’t suit them, I find myself wanting to switch around their choices (or perhaps those that were made for them) – to let “them” shine thru.  Dress up is dress up, and I truly appreciate the beauty inherent in women – love the fully bodied gals (which now a days seem to be size 6 and over!!?) who shine in the face of the prescribed modern tiny aesthetic.

Thank goodness for JLo and her booty!  This was a lovely moment!

Until next year….

JLo and Cameron Booty moment

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don’t forget to honour that booty of yours!

xo

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My long love affair with Turquoise and Heidi makes a fine choice!

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Ayla

I just saw (I know a little slow on the take here on this little island) Heidi Klum’s get up for the Golden Globes and she was wearing the most stunning Turquoise necklace made by Lorraine Schwartz!

Heidi Klum wear Fabulous Turquoise necklace

I do have a penchant for turquoise and always have.  Ever since I bought my first pair of Tibetan turquoise earrings when I was 15 for $100 (I saved every penny) from a beautiful store called Sarah Clothes on Bank St in Ottawa.  This store was like no other, enchanted like walking into an opulent version of Rajasthan meets Victoria Magazine.  In 1984 the jewellery that was being imported from Asia is nothing like now – it was the traditional tribal jewellery, so authentic it felt like pieces that had been owned before, a woman handing over those treasures to sell from her very person perhaps.  I still have a few pieces that I bought at the time and the ones I gave away, I still kick myself over.  But those Turquoise earrings I kept and love love love them still.

In Hold Your Ground‘s fine jewellery collection it is not unusual to see turquoise. My love for it is best showcased with the Ayla ring which has been very popular.  The Ayla ring is hand fabricated from solid recycled 18K gold ring with a hand cut Turquoise for the Sleeping Beauty mine in Arizona.  The signature details include the Heart shape under the rings bezel and the gypsy set Diamond at the back of the double ring shank.  My personal ring, as seen below, is my everyday ring, coveted and admired by many.

18K Gold Rings - Sleeping Beauty Turquoise & Green Garnet by Hold Your Ground

The Ayla ring does not skimp on gold, so can be a zing for price point with current gold prices but the craftsmanship is heirloom quality and is built to last.

AYLA Ring 18K Gold Sleeping Beauty Turquoise & Diamond by Hold Your Ground

AYLA Ring 18K Gold Sleeping Beauty Turquoise & Diamond by Hold Your Ground

Oh I wish I was going to the Tucson Gem fair starting this weekend to buy more turquoise…  But it will have to be next year.  If you are going enjoy enjoy enjoy!

And bravo Heidi! I think you made an excellent choice.

xo

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Happy New Year, Knitting, Beauty & Aspiration to Ageless Style

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Ayla

I have been remiss remiss remiss.  First let me please say a belated Happy New Year and that I hope everyone had tremendous holidays filled with feasting and family and friends!!  I hear it is going to be a great year, celestially and just the energy for the year: success, harmony, prosperity & fulfillment.  Bring it on I say.

I for one actually took the time to slow down and found myself cooking, albeit in a completely different way (more on that in another post) and oh my gosh! I actually let myself knit!  This is a luxury that I haven’t allowed myself in a century, mostly because of the discrepancy between the pace of knitting and the pace my life usually keeps. I so believe it is a luxury and treasure to be able to sit down and make fabric – which is what one is doing while knitting away, one is weaving & stitching with 2 needles to make your fabric for whatever your heart desires.

What I wanted was an “Infinity scarf” it turned out. My eldest daughter Codi, the growing fashionista that she is, informed me of this particular scarfs name which I had spied out in the world and tried to describe to her when asked what I was making.

INFINITY SCARF

So off I went to our local yarn & fabric store and revelled at the overwhelming number of stunning yarns available. One could simply sink oneself into this scrumptious medium for their whole life it has become so vast & sensuous & lovely – a sea of silk, merino, mohair, cashmere, organic cotton, bamboo, angora, linen – a fibre paradise….

One of the other things I fell in love with over the holidays is RMS Beauty – a fabulous organic skin care line of mineral colour for eyes, face and lips.  This collection is giving me such pleasure because of integrity of the product, the quality and simplicity of the ingredients, that it is TRULY Organic and how beautiful they feel.  I am not really the big make up girl – here again my daughter Codi exceeds me in skill and knowledge – but what has got me so excited about these is that in applying them they seem to become part of you instead of something you have ON or that you are wearing – if you know what I mean. The packaging is simple and would be great for travel, sweet little frosted glass pots – love love love it!  And the make-up remover, deodorant and skin nourisher that she invites is Organic Coconut Oil!  Beautiful.

This link was just sent to me this morning of a film to come about style of a different scope and generation.  Inspiring!!


Well lovelies, more to come. It is the Weekly Dish is certainly overdue… Stay tuned for a peek at the new work that is coming for Spring.
xx



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Ivory Cashmere Wing Bolero for the Noisy Plume

Posted on December 10, 2011 by Ayla

I have a big crush.  On a very fine woman.  She has extraordinary talent, an exceptional life, is a writer, a photographer and an Art Jeweller of the finest kind. The Noisy Plume. And I have been blessed with the introduction to her life and work by the virtue of shared connection and so grateful for it.  This is woman who lives and breathes her life and art so full of authenticity & soulfulness with exceptional quality of being, and the she chooses to share it with us through her photographs, her blog and her jewels. Lucky us.

I could go on and on about this Jillian but I will let you take the journey to her world here and you can see for yourself.

What I will say, so very proudly, is that I made her a Wing Bolero from Recycled Ivory Cashmere and Silk and it fits her beautifully (if I may say so myself!)  AND she put a picture of her in the Bolero on her Blog – check it out.

Did I say I have a big crush?

 

 

 

 

 

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