Free Events - Not A Shopaholic Unemployment Survival Guide

Chances are wherever you live, there is something free going on that you can attend. Here in Toronto, we have Taste of the Danforth, Taste of Little Italy, Luminato, Jazz Festivals, Movies in the Park, etc. In the summer I think there is a lot more going on so Free Events should be easy to find. In the winter however, its been a bit of a challenge. I have found a few things and here they are:

1. Ice Skating-free at Nathan Philips Square and Harbourfront. If you don't have skates you can rent them (which makes this not free), but most people do have their own or could possibly borrow a pair.

2. Antique Shows/Mall Events-Sherway Gardens and other malls have Antique Shows throughout the year. Check the website of your local mall and find out when this is going on. Then head over to the mall and peruse the offerings. Grab a coffee and spend an afternoon with the antiques. You never know. You may find something you like or it may give you ideas for things to do in your house once you find yourself employed again.

3. Museums and Art Galleries-These places usually have a few hours of free admission one evening a week. Check your local establishments and find out when that is. AGO in Toronto is free Wednesday nights after 6pm. The ROM has free admission Wednesday evenings from 4:30-5:30. Bata Shoe Museum has a pay what you can night Thursdays from 5-8pm. Not free but a substantial saving from the regular $12 admission price. Check websites for the places you are interesting in visiting to see if there are discounted or free admission on certain nights.

City of Toronto lists some free events on their website at: http://www.toronto.ca/events/index.htm. Check your city website to see if they do the same.

4. Public Library-The Toronto Libraries I have been too have free events for both adults and children. Schedules can usually be found online so check your local branch today. Anything seems to go from Bookclubs to Magic shows for the young ones. Worth taking advantage off. The Toronto Library just completed their MAP program in conjunction with Sunlife. Each adult could check out a pass for different attractions around Toronto. All of the passes were good for families usually 2 adults and up to 4 children. I was lucky enough to get a couple of these and visit the Bata Shoe Museum, Textile Museum and the AGO. I'll be on the lookout next year for passes to the ROM.

Not A Shopaholic Unemployment Survival Guide

When I lost my job, the hardest thing to deal with was the change it was going to mean to my lifestyle. A very social person, I am not usually one to turn down invitations to dinners and hanging out with friends. Going out requires money and I didn't have any to spend on those things. I was worried about how I was going to pay bills and buy groceries, just living day to day was about to become an incredible challenge. It soon became apparent that I was going to have to do some kind of socializing, if for the only reason that it was going to help me keep my sanity. Being the kind of person to always find a way to do the things I want, I set out on a mission to find ways of incorporating some social aspect back into my life and to try to save money on anything in anyway that I could.
The following is a list of things that are helping me survive while making me not feel like a social misfit. This is a list that works for me and my lifestyle. Depending on your situation these things may not be suitable to you but there maybe some variation of them that is. All I know is that when you have very little money or no money at all, your ability to get creative certainly comes out. This is my survival guide for getting through this part of my life.

Not A Shopaholic Retail Challenge

As someone who has lost their job as a result of this financial and economic crisis, I get very worried when I hear that people out there are spending less money or not spending any money at all. Now, I'm not a professor of economics but I wonder how we will ever get out of this mess if no one is spending any money.
I was joking around with someone not to long ago, saying that I am the wrong person to be unemployed at this time. If I had a job, I would definitely be spending money. Maybe not as much as usual, but I would be out there, supporting the retailers. Unfortunately, I cannot do this which is why I am issuing this Retail Challenge to all of you. For those of you who are employed, I challenge you to go out and spend $100 a month in retail stores, in restaurants, at the movies, anywhere you choose. If half of the Canadian population* spent $100 every month, that would generate $1 660 634 800 into the Canadian economy. If $100 is too much, spend $50 or whatever you can afford. Anything is better than nothing.
As for myself, I pledge to spend $1000 in retail stores when I get a job again. True to my blog, I will do my best to spend most of it in unique, independent retailers. And I will document my purchases and the stores here on my blog. I look forward to the day when that becomes a reality.
Until then, go forth and shop. Let me know what you are spending your money on. I would be happy to share your stories as future blog posts.

*Source of Canadian Population: CIA-The World Factbook-Canada
Canadian Population July 2008-33,212,696

Groove Is In Her Heart

It was love at first sight when I saw Karen Couillard and her Groovy Arts collection at one of the Toronto Home shows last spring. Her characters have attitude, her colours are vibrant and if you don't want to spend a lot of money, Karen offers her characters and designs on greeting cards, card holders, and compact mirrors in addition to her art pieces. I am partial towards the art work as there is a wall in my condo reserved for one of Groovy Arts fabulous paintings. I love the fashionable, sassy, diva-ish characters, although the high heels, wine bottles and Eiffel Tower amuse me as well.

The greeting cards go great with gifts. With such tag lines as "Its good to be you", "Viva La Diva", "Darling, Its hard work being this perfect", and "Its not easy being this beautiful", you will surely find a card that suits your celebrant and is guaranteed to make them laugh. I think it would be great to get a set of four together and frame them. With so many great designs, why on earth limit yourself to one?

Items can be purchased from the Groovy Arts website. You may also catch Karen and her collection at a variety of events such as the One of a Kind show. Check her website for details.

I for one will be making a purchase as soon as my unemployment status ends. The characters and colours will go great with my trendy red bedroom walls. Finally, friends will stop bugging me about my blank walls. Thank you Karen for truly unique, yet fashionable art. I knew it was out there somewhere!

Let us all celebrate our inner diva.

Groovy Arts

Burlington, ON

ph 905 331 0716

info@groovyarts.com

Sorry Loyal Readers, I promise I am back on track now

First of all, my sincere apologies for the lack of posts lately. All of my time has been spent job hunting and unfortunately I have been neglecting my blog. I will try to get back on track so that my loyal readers are not wondering what has happened to me.
I have added the follower tool so you can now see who is regularly checking my blog. Feel free to add yourself to it. It is nice for me to see who is keeping track of my postings. It will also encourage me to keep up with new posts on a regular basis. My goal is try to post once every 3-4 weeks.
As for my job hunt, it is a slow process which is not surprising given the times we are going through. I am positive that something will come up within the next few months. Ecommerce is a growing business and not only in the retail industry. Once I am employed again, I will be sure to let you know.
Thank you to all those who read my blog and have become "followers". A special thank you to "Chutton" for being my first "follower". I appreciate the time you take to read my thoughts and opinions. If you ever come across cool things you think would be great for my blog, please send me the information. After all, there is only so much shopping I can do on my own. ;)
Christina

A Mirage You'll Want to See

I'm not sure when my fascination with stationary products started, but one thing is for sure, the more I see, the more I want. Its actually kind of odd because I rarely write letters these days. This whole thing may have begun when I was searching for thank you cards for my housewarming party. My visit to the CGTA show for work reinforced this new obsession when I came across the booth for Mirage Paper. They had the coolest designs on journals, notebooks, folders and cards that I have ever seen. I think I fell in love on the spot. We girls have always loved fashionable accessories, and now we could have notebooks too.

I have since discovered that Mirage has now become Ecojot, placing emphasis on their eco friendly products and rightly so. Thank goodness their dedication to the environment has not compromised their fashion sense. I currently own 3 small journals and matching note pads. They are great for throwing into my purse and jotting down notes on anything I am shopping for (currently that is condo furnishings). I had to search high and low to get the prints that I wanted but it was well worth it.

You can find their products at Chapters/Indigo stores, and independent retailers. I found the styles I wanted at Solutions but I'm not sure if they are a regular item there. They also make for great gifts. Faced with a Kris Kringle one year that I had no idea what to get, a Mirage (Ecojot) jumbo journal was the perfect thing. My friend loved it, and she loved walking around her office with such a stylish book. Why should note taking be boring?

Thanks Ecojot for designing great products that are environmentally friendly and Canadian made! Ecojot also has an outstanding children's line and sketch books, among other numerous products. Check it out. I think you'll love it.

Ecojot and Mirage Paper Co.

http://www.ecojot.com/

ph: 1-800-836-6669

Luv Your Shooz Miz Mooz

A few months ago, a couple of us cool gals headed down to NYC for a mega shopping trip, and a bit of sight seeing. New York City never disappoints in the shopping category and we were up for the challenge. Shopping along Broadway one day, shoe store after shoe store, a common element began to emerge; this cool, funky, well priced line of shoes called Miz Mooz. Some of the coolest shoes I have seen in a long time, with prices in the "I don't have to wait for them to go on sale to buy them" category. How rare is that? After much consideration, many shoe stores, several try ons and a lot of group consensus, each of us girls walked away with a brand new pair of shoes or boots. From what I remember no one spent over $150 US which is pretty darned good I think. I don't recall ever seeing this brand in Toronto but Rita did say she had seen the brand in a store downtown although she could not remember which one. If you see Miz Mooz in any stores in Canada, let me know which ones and I will post them. This is a brand we need to see more of!
Happy Shopping.

Here is a link to Infinity Shoes where we bought ours. The Miz Mooz website doesn't seem to be working.

Infinity Shoes

3 locations in New York City:

391 Broadway
2476 Broadway
510 Broadway

http://www.infinityshoes.com/