Canadian Hand - Made Gifts & Souvenirs
From Coast to Coast
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Greetings!
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And here we are. 2020. As the last of the baby boomers, (I was born in 1961) growing up, 2020 seemed so far away. With TV shows like Star Trek and the Jetsons, surely we would be zipping around in our space cars, everyone would have enough to eat and we would have figured it out that "it" (life) just works better when we all get along and work together. And yet here we are, and nothing could be further from that Utopian tale. If you had asked me a few of months ago, I would have be inclined to think that we had messed things up so badly that we could never recover. But if you ask me now, I would say that we are on the verge of a huge and dramatic change...for the better. My intuition says that there is hope. Maybe for me, it's because a young woman named Greta Thunberg has shouted from every possible podium on the planet that we need to wake up NOW! And with her, teams of people, young & old, have rallied with her to say no more. No more avoiding issues that are unpopular. No more to turning a blind eye to big corporations that pollute and contribute to our climate change or the plastic pollution or the chemical pollution of our air and water. We have young people like Boyan Slat, a Dutch engineer who is CEO of The Ocean Cleanup, who is successfully removing plastic from our oceans from large pieces and ghost nests from commercial fishing, to pieces of plastic that are 1mm in size. By 2021 he plans to have 60 of his plastic removing machines in place in key areas around the globe. The tipping point has been reached and thanks to this younger generation, they are taking matters into their own hands and saying we can't wait any longer we are just going to do it. It brings us back to the baby boomer generation that held protests, and sit ins in the 60's to protest the Vietnam war and a host of other problems. What goes around comes around. Thank goodness. What has all this got to do with Cornerstone and art & craft? Everything. Lisa and I have had some fairly long discussions over the last couple of months discussing trends that we are seeing. We are seeing large big box stores closing up and vanishing from our landscape. We are seeing that people are getting fed up with all the negativity on social media platforms and are starting to actually "switch off" from them. People are tired of all the negativity, the political turmoil and are yearning for real connections (how platforms like FB used to be....) People are beginning to examine their lives and realize that they need to reduce their carbon & plastic footprint and not contribute to the "throw away" mentality that we've had for the last several decades. We want cars, fridges, washers & dryers to last the way they did a long time ago because our hard earned dollars just need to stretch further. We want quality over quantity. We want items that mean something. We want to give & receive gifts that have meaning and that a person created with their own 2 hands. People want customer service and to be recognized & treated with respect. They want to share in an experience rather than be treated like a number. People want to be a part of something bigger. And that's where Cornerstone fits in. By supporting us you are part of something bigger. By supporting us you are supporting Canadian artists who are making beautiful things with their own 2 hands that are meaningful & last. You are supporting the local economy as we employ up to 5 staff members who in turn support the Kingston community. You support all of Canada as the artists whose piece that you buy from who live in other areas of Canada, get to support their families and communities. By supporting Cornerstone, you are supporting a host of local charities that we contribute products & gift cards to or hold events and raise money for (like the CupCake event coming up). When you support Cornerstone you are supporting events like our searches that involve other retail shops in our downtown community. These searches are designed to bring people into the downtown to continue to make it viable and to demonstrate that it's possible for everyone to work together. Thank you for supporting us. We promise to keep giving you great customer service, a welcoming and warm experience, exposure to great works big & small and being a part of something bigger here in Kingston. In return we are requesting that you shout our name from the rooftops and encourage all of your friends and family to visit us here so that they too can have real connections & experiences.
From our heart to yours,
Penny & the staff at Cornerstone
P.S.
We are all in shock at the devastation being caused by the bushfires in Australia and the millions of animal lives that have been lost in addition to the human lives. Sending love, healing and prayers for it to rain & the fires to be put out soon. Thanks to all the Canadian firefighters who went voluntarily over the holidays to help the tired Australian firefighters out.
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Featured Local Artist - Sarah Hales of Arden Batik
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This month's featured artist remains Sarah Hale. Sarah has had her work at the store for a very long time. Her show has been so popular that we invited her to stay up for January! You may recognize her handiwork from the name cards that so many people purchase whenever a baby in the family is born. Sarah's batik work is outstanding technically and she keeps coming up with fresh, new & beautiful ideas for her work. We invite you to c'mon down to see it for yourself because the pictures don't do it justice!
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National Cupcake Drive 2020
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We are again raising funds to help the OSPCA to save animals. We love animals here at Cornerstone and as you may already be aware, leashed pets are allowed in the store! Every year hundreds of animals are dumped, lost &/ or injured. the OSPCA societies of Ontario spend a great deal of their resources vetting these animals and helping to find them new homes wherever possible. I have 2 rescue cats currently and have rescued more in the past who made it well into old age and brought plenty of love & joy into my life. I know that many friends & customers of Cornerstone are animal lovers too! In the past you have been generous and helped us raise funds for this cause. We are asking you to please consider helping us once more. Nathalie Parenteau has come through for us once again and has donated a print to sweeten the donation drive! For every 10.00 you donate through our page, you will be given a chance to win this print!
Just click on the cupcake above to be taken to our company donation page!
Our in-store cupcake event will occur on Saturday February 22. Stay tuned for details & in-store give aways in next month's newsletter.
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It's challenging to get a picture of them together but here are my rescue furrbabies! Melinda Marcella (aka Belle Ella aka Pooper!) She is a calico cat (10 years) & Maddison (aka Maddie) is a Tortie (pushing 17 years & still has "tortie-tude") I can't imagine life without them. Let's help find some other cats & dogs some loving homes & help to stay safe.
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It's a...
"Black Tile Affair"
New Class Sunday January 19, 2020 from 9:00 AM - 12:00 noon. Working with Black tiles and various types of pens and inks. Some supplies are included. If you have favourite pens &/or paper, bring them along!
Call the Store at 613-546-7967 to register
$55.00 and light refreshments are included.
If you want to join our FB group please click the link below. We accept beginners as well so please send us your tangles! I also put them up on our FB page & they sometimes make it to Instagram too!
We have just started the group so that we can get together, people who like Zentangle here in Kingston. Join, Post & Share. We are working with coming up with a schedule where we can meet monthly at a the store to tangle and share ideas. We are open to ideas and just looking for a fun, relaxing way to hang out and do some Zentangle!
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A little cold weather and snow never stops us Canadians (especially Kingstonians) from getting out & about to have some fun! There are lots of things to do here in downtown Kingston that will bring even the most cold weather phobic person out!.
Here are just a few!
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Kingston is Ready to Rock The Brier 2020!
Kingston hosts The Brier! The Biggest men's curling event in Canada will be held at the Leon's Centre (our Neighbour!)
Taking place from February 29th to March 8th 2020, with the Brier Patch entertainment taking place just next door!
Here are some links to help you plan your trip to Kingston and the Brier 2020...
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Froid'Art 2020
Froid’Art 2020 is back by popular demand! There will be 21 pieces of art frozen into 300 lb blocks of crystal-clear ice, lit at night! Hosted by Martello Alley this is a free outdoor ice event!Our dear friend, David Dossett, who owns Martello Alley created this event in 2015. Congratulations David! You can keep up to date
here
(Shown below is one of David's own pieces from last year)
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Feb Fest
For the whole month of February 2020!
The 16th annual downtown winter celebration, Feb Fest will take over downtown for the entire month of February stocked full of winter fun for the entire family! Stay tuned for details....
BUT WAIT.....JUST IN!!!!!
The Third Annual "Artsy Afternoon" will be on Sunday, February 16th, from 2-5 PM. Consider this a winter afternoon version of "Art After Dark". Light refreshments will be served. It's always a fun time!
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We Hate To Brag... BUT!
If you haven't seen it already, Cornerstone & Studio 22 in Kingston, were given a shoutout by Grapevine magazine, Winter edition. This magazine covers from Durham to Kingston and is a beautiful publication that has beautiful photos & great articles on art, culture, food & wine that are local to these areas. We are on page 48.....! You can pick up your complimentary issue at the store! Wait... Did I mention it was FREE???
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Holiday In - Store Giveaway!
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As promised, one lucky person was called on December 24th as her name had been drawn to win the Nathalie Parenteau print, "Wishing Star". Congratulations Janine and we hope you enjoy your print! Thanks to all who entered and stay tune for more in - store and FB give aways!
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Selected Calendars 25% Off
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A Taste of What's In Store.....
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To stay up to date check out our website for more details about Cornerstone Canadian Art & Craft and follow us on FB, Twitter Instagram and Pinterest!
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Hi, just a reminder that you're receiving this email because you have expressed an interest in Cornerstone Canadian Art & Craft. Don't forget to add [email protected] to your address book so we'll be sure to land in your inbox!
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