Tag Archives: East Van

100 In 1 Day – Global Festival of Civic Engagement Comes to Vancouver June 6th

4 Jun

100In1DayYVR100 in 1 Day is happening in Vancouver this Saturday, June 6th. The idea is to bring hundreds of people together on ONE day and each take one small action to improve their city. This is in fact a global festival of civic engagement returning to Metro Vancouver for its second year.  Organizers are encouraging small initiatives to spark change. Everyone is invited to come out and participate. And really, the beginning of any journey, just takes that first step, then another and so on.  We’ve set out a listing of the events happening in East Vancouver, but if you’d like to see the full listing of events, visit 100 In 1 Day Vancouver.

ProVibers People’s Picnic – Victoria Park

This event is hosted by the ProVibers. They would like to see a happy and more connected Vancouver so they are hosting a community potluck in Victoria Park from 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm on Saturday, June 6th.   You are invited to bring food for the potluck, music, games and an openness to meet new people. Their aim is to build community connections in our neighbourhood.

Britannia School Garden Salad Picnic – Britannia School Garden

This event is hosted by the Grandview Woodland Food Connection. Organizers of this event would like people to experience the magic of eating fresh healthy food picked straight from the garden. Organizers invite community residents to come and enjoy the simplicity of eating a freshly picked salad together.  The site is the beautiful Britannia School Garden which is abundant with fresh greens. You will pick veggies for a salad, prepare a healthy salad dressing and savor the taste of eating a fresh salad. While doing this, you will  meet people in your community who are passionate about urban sustainability.  This event begins at 1:00 pm and runs till 3:00 pm on June 6th.  All you need bring if you wish, is a picnic blanket, the rest is provided.

Stories of East Van – Cedar Cottage Neighbourhood House

This event is hosted by Christine Nguyen and Eimon Yin. They are looking to connect spaces and people in the Kensington-Cedar Cottage community.  They will be hosting a one hour walking tour highlight the diversity of history, culture and interesting stories that abound in the very places we live and play but often forget to appreciate. There will be two tours offered. One begins in front of Cedar Cottage Neighbourhood House at 9:00 am.  The second tour starts at the SouthEast corner of East Broadway & Victoria Drive at 10:30 a.m. As each tour has limited spaces available, you are asked to sign up at Eventbrite.

Love and Letters in the Library Lounge – Kensington Library

This event is hosted by Sarah Green. What do you love about your city, community or neighbours? You are invited to come hang out  and through conversation or typewritten notes share information about your community.  At this event, you will be seated in a mini-lounge where people can come and relax, sit for a moment and maybe meet a neighbor. You will be invited to use a typewriter or write a short love note about your current or future community.  Sarah hopes to highlight where people find value in their surroundings, build connections and share information.

“Every journey starts with a single step.” – Confucius

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

This Holiday Season SHOP LOCAL & Check Out Fable Naturals

29 Nov

FAbleNaturalBestSellers

At ILiveInEastVan.com we are passionate about supporting local businesses.  With the upcoming Christmas season, we would like to introduce you to some local businesses whether online retailers or brick and mortar stores. Our goal is to let you know about some of the great products, retailers and artisans right in your own backyard.

Today we’d like to introduce you to Fable Naturals which is a relatively young company run by Gwen Richards and Chris Nicol. Fable Naturals is based in Mount Pleasant and makes a line of fair trade certified bath and body products. They are inspired by locally sourced ingredients as well as ethically sourced ingredients from afar. All of their products are made by hand in small batches in their Mount Pleasant studio. Their line includes organic lip balms, skin exfoliators, moisturizers, soaps, lotions, body wash, sugar scrubs and more. Gwen and Chris focus on making healthier skin care products without unnecessary fragrances and chemicals.  Their newest product is their Vanilla Orange lip balm which Chris thinks smells just like a creamsicle. Their lip balms will be on our Christmas shopping list this holiday season.

FableNaturalsStudioGwen FableNaturalsSugarScrubs

 

 

 

 

 

FableNaturalsLabels

 

 

 

 

If you wish to try their products, Chris and Gwen recently revamped their website and to celebrate they are offering 20% OFF all orders made on or before December 24, 2014.  They invite you to use the Coupon Code EAST VAN  in order to obtain the discount. If your order is over $60, Fable Naturals offers free shipping. If you are local in East Van and do no wish to pay for shipping, you can also pick up from their office.

If you wish to see their products in person so you can sample and smell this great line, you can visit Chris & Gwen at the following events in and around East Vancouver:

Saturday, November 29th

Strathcona Winter Craft Fair
Strathcona Community Centre
601 Keefer Street

December 4th – December 7th

Make It Vancouver
PNE Forum 2901 E Hastings Street

December 5th –  December 6th 

TOQUE
Western Front
303 East 8th Avenue

Saturday, December 20th

Nat Bailey Winter Farmers Market
Nat Bailey Stadium
4601 Ontario Street

You can also find their products at a few select retailers around town. For a rundown of where, visit them online at Fable Naturals.com. Chris and Gwen also just announced their Holiday Giveaway. You have the opportunity to enter to win their organic facial care line which includes their Quinoa + Almond Facial Exfoliator, Rosehip + Olive Facial Oil and Chamomile + Shea Moisturizer. For an opportunity to enter, check out Holiday Giveway.

We hope you will join us in supporting local this holiday season.

FableSoap

 

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

4 Days, 417 Artists, 79 Buildings … This Is The Eastside Culture Crawl: One of East Van’s Iconic Events

18 Nov

EastsideCrawl2014The Eastside Culture Crawl is a now an expanded 4 day arts extravaganza which officially kicks off this Thursday, November 20th . During ‘the Crawl’, over 400 artists in and around the heart of East Vancouver open their studios to the public. The event comprises some 79 buildings from Main Street to Victoria Drive and First Avenue to Powell Street. The mediums vary and include painters, jewelers, sculptors, textile artists, furniture makers, weavers, potters, printmakers, wood carvers and photographers. There is no set schedule for this event, you go where your mood and interests take you. To help guide you, the Eastside Culture Crawl has a great rundown of all the artists on their website including a printable .PDF map to help you find your way. The Crawl runs November 20th and 21st from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. and Saturday, November 22nd and Sunday, November 23rd from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

For those with wee ones, this year there is an opportunity to bring them along and have them participate in artistic endeavours. With the support of the Eastside Culture Crawl and Opus Art Supplies, melk art & design has extended an invitation to parents to bring their children into the melk studio, 936 Clark Drive, to create screen-printed and stenciled works of art. This event encourages children’s participation during the Crawl while allowing them to experience their own creativity in a unique studio space with guidance from a working artist. This event will run from Noon – 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 22nd and Sunday, November 23rd. Cost is by donation.

If you wish to mix things up and do some side trips in and around the East Vancouver while on the Crawl, there are so many wonderful stops along the way. For instance, in Railtown there is Vancouver Urban Winery & Lounge for a bit of wine or beer tasting. There are more beer options if you head West a little ways including Parallel 49 Brewing Company, Bomber Brewing and Powell Street Craft Brewery. If Belgian beer is more up your alley Biercraft on Commercial Drive or if you prefer to try some beer from the Pacific Northwest, Stateside Craft is your spot (also on Commercial Drive).  Or you could make a stop at Odd Society Spirits to give their East Van Vodka a try or any one of their specialty cocktails. Then there is les amis du fromage, 843 East Hastings, if you wish to do a little cheese tasting.  If you find yourself there on the weekend, check out their Pop Up Shop featuring The Lemon Square, East Van Jam and The Salty Cookie Company. Lots of delicious samples will be on hand.  For some more sweet stuff, the Licorice Parlour is a great stop with over 65 flavours on hand. If you are looking for coffee, there are many great options including the Wilder Snail in the heart of Strathcona, Pallet Roasters, 323 Semlin Drive and, of course, an array of excellent choices along Commercial Drive. But if you find yourself in the Stratchona area, don’t pass up a chance to stop by Crackle Crème at 245 Union Street. This sweet little dessert cafe serves up artisan crème brûlée and authentic Belgian liège waffles as well as coffee. It will certainly be one of our stops. There will be many local restaurants, breweries and coffee shops at the ready to help you recharge your batteries before, during or after the Crawl.

See you on the Crawl.

Tags: , , , , , ,

East Van Craft Brew & Culinary Tours Starting January 18th

6 Jan

VancouverBreweryTour

In case you haven’t heard, Dine Out Vancouver gets under way on January 17th.  Dine Out Vancouver is billed as Canada’s largest restaurant festival. This annual event is produced by Tourism Vancouver and presented by American Express.  This is a 17 day calendar of culinary events with hotel options.  The festival gives diners the opportunity to select from over 200 restaurants each offering unique three course prix-fix meals at $18, $28 or $38 per person. The full line up of restaurants will be announced today, January 6th. 

What caught my interest this year is the number of special events being featured as part of Dine Out Vancouver. Some of the events include guided dining adventures, culinary and cocktail tours, cooking classes and demonstrations, debates, guest lectures, BC wine and craft beer tastings and more. For a full listing, click on Events.

East Van will be showcased by Vancouver Brewery Tours and Off The Eaten Track. They have combined their talents to offer the East Van Craft Brew & Culinary Tour.  On this tour you will stop at two local breweries and three food stops in East Vancouver. You will learn about the growing craft beer movement with samples, of course, and be able to meet some of the people that make this “liquid gold”.  After your thirst is quenched, they will take you to the very up-and-coming East Village to sample some locally made sausages, traditional Roman pizza and a stout-infused cake. I’m going to take a shot in the dark here that this is the rather famous Black & Tan Cake at Black Rook Bakehouse, but don’t take my word for it.  Taste it! It’s on a Top 10 List of Things You Must Try Before You Die.  It’s certainly on my Top 10 list. If you wish to participate in the East Van Craft Brew & Culinary Tour, you best hop to it. Tours have been scheduled for 7 dates, 3 of which are already sold out.  Dates the tours are still available (as of today’s writing) are January 18th, 23rd, 24th and 31st.  The tour begins at 3:00 pm and runs for 3 hours.  Cost is $65 and includes all food and beverage samples at 5 different locations, transportation, an experienced tour guide and tax.  Tours begin at Waterfront Station. Tickets are available online through Tickets Tonight.

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Newer Entries →