This blog post originally appeared on The Map to Health and was republished with permission.
GUYS. Canada is so awesome. In general, but also Canadians are absolutely killing it when it comes to fashion & business.
In the past year I’ve been trying really hard to spend my money very consciously and not give in to fast fashion and all the negatives that come with it. I realized that something that is important to me is to support local (Canadian) businesses by buying from them & by spreading the word – so I’m doing both.
Arrow & Axe
Canadian owned and operated, designed in Canada, made in Canada, ethically made, uses eco-friendly materials such as organic cotton & bamboo.
Arrow & Axe makes cute t-shirts, tanks, and sweaters for men and women. I’ve never met the owners in real life but I imagine they’re lumberjacks or park rangers who ride moose and live in lean-tos because they, and their company, really are #mountainmade. I found out about this company after I saw a friend wearing the cutest sweater and she told me all about the company and how she got it from a fair where local businesses showcase their products. I had the best customer service experience with the owners after I saw their “Moon Child/Raised By The Sun” shirt on their website, and after less than 1 day of deliberation it SOLD OUT. So I slid into their DMs and asked when the shirt would be back in stock and they said that they checked the back room and found ONE shirt left and set it aside for me, gave me a discount (YA GIRL LOVES A DISCOUNT), and were just so incredibly sweet to deal with overall. A+ for customer service.
Buttercream Clothing
Canadian owned and operated, designed in Canada, made in Canada, ethically made, uses high quality materials such as bamboo, organic cotton, leather.
I’ve been following the owner, Candice, on Instagram ever since her beautiful scarves caught my eye and although I haven’t bought anything from Buttercream Clothing yet, there are a few things on my wish list such as:
+ the Butter Blanket Scarf in Ocean Stripe
+ the Lolli Leggings in Supplex
+ the Baseball Tee in Black/White
&& they carry men’s clothing now too so I can slip in some ethically made, Canadian clothing into my boyfriend’s closet unbeknownst to him (HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, MATT).
ALSO can I just say I hella appreciate that the girls modelling the clothing aren’t all 5’10”, 120lbs, and all leg? Seriously amazing.
Friday Sock Co.
Canadian owned, designed in Canada, made in Italy, uses OKEO-TEX®* certified Egyptian Combed Cotton, & they donate socks to those in need while also donating a portion of their net sales to charitable causes.
Firstly, made in Italy ⇒ how chic does that sound? I swear anything made in Italy is immediately cool as hell. Best of all they make the CUTEST socks, I kid you not. The designs are adorable and each pair is mismatched on purpose – cute, no? My fave designs are:
+ Sea to Sky + Henderson + Hearts Collab + Watermelons + Oh’ Canada (pictured in order)
Peace Collective
Canadian owned & designed in Canada.
Here’s an excerpt from their site that describes the brand & their goals:
“The Peace Collective is built on two ideas:
(1) We believe in designing products that allow Canadians to show pride in a modern, fashionable way. We found that a lot of the options for Canadians was stuck in a past and did not reflect the modern Canadian and their lifestyle.
(2) Our one-for-one model. From day one, every garment sold has gone to help provide meals to children in need. Today every garment sold provides two healthy meals and a snack to a Canadian child in need through our Peace Foundation.”
I love this sweater so much and wear it so often that Matt jokingly says that it’s all I wear. Only it’s no joke. If I had it my way, it really would be all I wear. It’s the perfect weight, the material isn’t that weird fluffy stuff that thins and pills after 3 washes, and it’s versatile enough to wear camping, to school, out grocery shopping, or on the couch without pants binge watching Friends on Netflix. I’m seriously having an embroidery moment so when I saw this super chic black & gold sweater I just HAD to have it to represent Canadian fashion. I’m all about the details so I just about melted when I saw the little gold embroidered maple leaf on the sleeve. SO CUTE.
Poppy Barley
Canadian owned, designed in Canada, ethically made, transparent business practices, uses high quality leather.
I found out about this company because they came to my university as speakers for my sustainable business class. Let me just say that they had every single girl’s attention because Poppy Barley makes the most gorgeous leather shoes & bags AND they had every guy’s attention because they were cool and business savvy as hell. Their shoes are made to fit your feet, they offer sizes 5-12, going up half sizes, and offer widths ranging from narrow, standard, and wide. Their bags are also TO DIE they’re so beautiful and you know that they’re the kind of bags that will literally last a lifetime. Even better than just making quality leather goods is that the company is run by two straight up lady bosses who are killing the game and putting Canadian fashion on the map. My top three choices are:
+ the Cross-Strap Mary-Jane in Black
+ the Two Point Five Ankle Boot in Toffee
+ the Perfect Handbag in Black
I visited the store in Edmonton and immediately loved it because it was so incredibly chic and beautiful. The ladies working there were helpful (and very stylish – so on brand). I gotta say, before my visit to Poppy Barley I was not a heels person because I couldn’t justify looking taller for immense foot pain & other posture issues related to wearing heels. BUT I tried on the Cross-Strap Mary-Jane’s in a taupe colour they had and did not want to take them off! They were as comfy as they were gorgeous. If you’re a woman who wants a pair of comfortable, well-made, gorgeous heels then look no further! Poppy Barley’s got your back ♥
With love,
monika a.p.
About Monika
Monika Alysse Poon is the creator of the holistic lifestyle blog, The MAP To Health. She is a C.H.N. Certified Holistic Nutrition Practitioner through the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition and attained her personal training certificate through Canadian Fitness Professionals. Currently, she is attending MacEwan University for her Bachelor of Commerce degree in Management. She clearly has a passion for learning about all things health, wellness, & everything in between – you can say that it really tickles her fancy. But she’s also all about balance – think: a cronut in one hand and kombucha in the other 😉
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