Dream Designs is a dream destination for eco-goodies

We visited one of Vancouver's best eco stores while dodging raindrops on the West coast over March Break. Dream Designs has tons of great eco-option products from diaperbags (ours) to clothing, dishes and bedding...locally made, fair trade, ecologicial, sustainable & organic. We are honored to be among the ranks of the Canadian products they carry.
If you're in Vancouver Dream Designs is a must. Check our website for store locations (Commercial Dr. & Lynn Valley North Van)

Fuze Photography

We recently had the enormous pleasure of having photo's done by the very talented Joey Boylan of Fuze Photography in Medicine Hat AB. www.fuzephotography.ca (check her out, it's so worth it).
Joey came to us by way of a new friend of Echoes', Amanda Hillier who was the inspiration we needed to get our butts in gear and redesign our Purse-ifier diaper bag...which we've sold out of every run we've done.
Thanks to Amanda enlisting her friend Joey we now have some amazing shots of our bags which you'll soon see on our new website...coming soon.

An Echoes bag goes to The Valley of Fire

Hey check out this great photo of one of our MagBags in The Valley of Fire just outside Las Vegas! Our bags certainly go more places than Vicky and I do! Thanks to Leigh for sending us this cool photo.

Echoes Caribbean Photo Shoot

Disguised as a Christmas vacation in the sunny south, I have to tell you I had a hidden agenda & my luggage was much heavier than anyone elses. Can you guess what with???? Yes, my weakness...BAGS. I took this great opportunity while celebrating Christmas with my own and extended family in the Caribbean to shoot some amazing photo's of Echoes bags with backdrops of sand, surf & palm trees. We'll be updating our site which is long over-due with some beautiful shots from our first tropical locale photo shoot.
Hope everyone had a great Christmas and that 2009 is full of abundance, health & happiness.

Southlake Hospital Fundraiser

Here we are at our table in the main lobby of Southlake hospital in Newmarket at our first fundraiser called PAY IT FORWARD. We were bowled over by the positive response to our eco-savvy products by Dr's, nurses, staff and visitors to the hospital. Many an eco-handbag will be under Christmas trees this year...and the best part, we are thrilled that Echoes was able to raise over $1,000 through a portion of sales for the new cancer centre being built at Southlake. Having been down this yucky cancer road myself, it's great to know that the new centre will alleviate all those trips to Princess Margaret or Sunnybrook for radiation. What a relief it will be for some who drive all that way for about a minute exposure to radiation for many days in a row. Look for Echoes products in Southlake's giftshop in the new year where 50% of the proceeds will go to the Southlake Foundation for the new cancer centre.

Welcome to our new friends at Casa Luna

This is a fabulous store with a real commitment to our planet. Casa Luna in Ottawa (Orleans to be exact) is our newest store carrying our eco-line of Echoes bags and we couldn't be happier. Casa Luna is all about high quality, handcrafted furniture and accessories that have been produced in a way that respects both nature & people. The reclaimed woods reinvented into pieces by craftsmen in Mexico, Brazil and South America are absolute treasures to be passed down for centuries. Their skilled craftsmen only use sustainable woods like pine or reclaimed woods like mesquite that has been discarded or salvaged from structures such as old hacienda doors. What a perfect fit for us to have our 'rescued remnant', vegan handbags displayed on such gorgeous pieces of furniture. We highly recommend a visit to Casa Luna if you're in the Ottawa area. The husband and wife team of Diane Dumas and Alex Grooscors are so warm and friendly and truly personify Latin hospitality.

...and pretty stockings all in a row

Hard to believe, but it's right around the corner...Christmas '08. To celebrate all things reclaimed & redesigned Vicky & I decided to do a unique ode to Christmas past with gorgeous stockings made from antique wool & chenille blankets. These heirloom inspired stockings are meant to be a keepsake for a new addition to the family who'll be hanging it by the fire for many years to come, or for someone who simply appreciates the workmanship and detail of a bygone era. They evoke an old fashioned feeling when there was much more time to do and take pride in such beautiful handiwork. Each of these stockings in this signature series is available in very limited lots that have been made by hand by the talented Echoes co-founder/owner Vicky Gerke. How pleased were we to have them included in Canadian House & Home magazine's spread "Dreaming of a Green Christmas." Store availability by request.