Bonjour amis de Montréal! Hello my friends from Montréal! The first stop on our #etsyroadtrip was packed with handmade goodness and creative community. My road trip partner and assistant editor Darice and I met for the first time and dove right into our adventures (& a deeper friendship) heading straight from our beautiful Airbnb in a 1920’s row house to Olympic Park for #FirstFridays a brilliant gathering of food trucks, music and culture.
The Etsy Airstream needs to be seen in all its glory to be fully appreciated, it is fully decked out with bunting, craft tables, and work from talented Etsy sellers. This roaming celebration of the maker community is such a brilliant way to build awareness of the movement in a fun way-it is amazing how many Canadians don’t know what Etsy is and this is the perfect introduction! We had great conversations with inspiring Canadian makers: Noemiah, Iveth of The Angry Weather and Kristy Boisvert. We ate delicious food truck yumminess and soaked in the talents of Corinna Rose. On day 2 we hit up the Old Port in Montréal for more making and music from Corinna and the ridiculously talented Little Scream.
Let’s go on a photo tour of our time in Montréal!:
Seriously inspiring and joyful illustrations, colouring books and hand sewn creatures from Kristy Boisvert are coming home with me to be shared with friends who need a reminder of what a lovely creative world we live in.
I’ve been a huge fan and follower of Iveth of The Angry Weather since 2011, she truly is just as wonderful in person as online and her work is stunning. Be sure to connect with her and her shop of treasures, this is Etsy done brilliantly!
Noemiah’s jewellery and clothing are dreamy and exquisitely packaged, check out her earring displays and general awesomeness!
#FirstFridays is the largest gathering of food trucks in Quebec but it is also the most trucks (& people) I’ve ever seen in one place! There were at least 50 trucks selling everything from lattes to latkes-diversity was everywhere in clothing, culture and language. Choosing what to eat was intense!
Listening to Little Scream on Day 2 of our adventures-give her a listen, she is a siren of sweet songs!
Darice & I being silly for the Etsy photo booth! We hadn’t met before in person before this road trip but years of chatting through the computer made it feel like we’ve known each other for a lifetime, one of the best parts of this trip has been late nights talking, planning and plotting in our cozy Airbnb.
Being able to step right into a community and a home that feels like a good friends house is such a gift! I mostly dislike business travel because I hate the sterile anonymity of hotels, staying in our Airbnb was like coming home. When I checked in our host kissed me on both cheeks, drew me a handmade map of the area and shared the story of her grandparents and parents all growing up in the same area. Have you ever stayed in an Airbnb? Share your stories and links in the comments!
Today we are in Lebreton Flats in Ottawa, stay tuned for the next dispatch from the road or follow the #etsyroadtrip on Instagram (PS: don’t forget to submit your own road trip adventures with us here)!
