#OntarioWithLove – TBEX Toronto Twitter Giveaway

“If you could handcraft a love letter from Ontario that could be shared with the world, what would it be?”

We asked the members of the Ontario Craft Council this question. They answered with some of the most beautiful Ontario keepsakes you can find, and we’re giving them away in our #OntarioWithLove contest at the TBEX Conference!

How to enter:

• Open to TBEX attendees. Contest open from May 27^th – June 6^th, 2013.
• While you are in Ontario, tweet your favourite Ontario photos with the tag #OntarioWithLove for your chance to win a special keepsake for you and one of your followers.
• Enter as many times as you’d like – one winner per Twitter account.
• There are 50 prizes up for grabs!
• See full rules and regulations here.

How to claim your prize:

• We’ll be randomly drawing winners throughout the conference and notifying them on Twitter via @ShareOntario.
• If you are notified that you are a winner, Direct Message us your mailing address & phone number.
• We will ship your prize and your additional prize to give away to one of your followers to the address you provided.

Prizes

• Get ready for some eye candy. Here’s a look at what the Ontario artists created:

Canadiana Pin – by Anneke van Bommel
Blog
Facebook
Etsy

Anneke was inspired by classic Canadiana to create these pins. She told us, “These pieces embody the concept of ‘From Ontario with Love,’ in that they are iconic images that we associate with the idea of Ontario. The stubby pin pays homage to the bottle design that Canadian bottlers exclusively used prior to the longneck. The iconic Beaver brooch is the symbol of our country, and a symbol of Ontario.”

Show off where you’ve been – we think these pins would be a great addition to a backpack or luggage.

Prizes Available: 12 individual pins

Toronto Scarf – by Anu Raina
Twitter
Facebook

For Anu, the Ontario with Love concept reminded her of her very first months in Ontario: “Shortly after immigrating to Canada in 2004, we witnessed our first fall in Canada. It was an experience beyond words … with many warm hues and splashed across the city. In these Textile prints, I have tried to trace those sweet memories of my first fall.”

If you look closely at the scarf on the left you’ll see a reproduction of the Toronto Transit map – a great way to remember your TBEX adventures, and a great accessory too!

Prizes Available: 18 individual scarves

Metal Moose – by David Hickey
Facebook

One of the most exciting experiences you can have in Ontario is to venture into the Canadian wilderness. For David, one of these trips sparked his creativity: “The largest member of the deer family is the moose, and it is one of the most recognizable symbols of Ontario … one spring morning I saw in the distance a moose sitting in a pond of water lilies. As it started to stand I remember thinking that although being majestic in stature it also demonstrated elements of awkwardness as it tried to stand. People who see a moose for the first time are usually struck by its massive size, and similarly, I was too.”

Prizes Available: 6 individual moose

Souvenir Tea Towel or Ontario Napkins – by Jen Kneulman
Blog
Instagram
Flickr

If you have a family member who liked to travel in the 1970s, chances are you’ve seen a vintage tea towel or two. This retro influence was the inspiration behind Jen’s Ontario souvenir tea towel. She describes the piece like this: “The inspiration for Freshly Printed’s designs are often drawn from local flora and fauna, northern Ontario cottage life, and Canadiana.” Jen also submitted the beautiful napkins below, inspired by the Ontario pine tree.

If you take these pieces home would you use them or save and display them?

Prizes Available: 6 tea towel sets, 6 napkin sets

Canadiana Necklace – by Kate Singer
Pinterest
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram

The moose, the beaver and the canoe – a combination of classic Ontario symbols – is celebrated on these necklaces by Kate.

Here’s the story behind the necklaces: “In my mind, there is nothing more special about Ontario than the majestic wilderness. In my childhood I spent many hours in a station wagon with a canoe on top travelling with my family to various Ontario campgrounds. On the luckiest of occasions, I paddled by moose and watched beavers build their dams.  I spent my summers throughout university planting trees in the backwoods of Ontario’s north and came to know that there are few places as beautiful on earth as Ontario’s wilderness.”

Fun fact: If you visit Canoe Restaurant, acclaimed as one of Canada’s best restaurants serving Canadian-style food, you may see the servers wearing cufflinks featuring Kate’s designs!

Prizes Available: 18 individual necklaces

Beer Box – by The Noble Beaver Trading Company’s Graeme Marrs
Facebook

For many Ontarians there’s nothing like a cold beer by one of Ontario’s lakes and rivers, and the many microbreweries across the province prove that people here are just as passionate about how beer is made. This Beer Box by Graeme Marrs of the Noble Beaver Trading Company celebrates this Ontario tradition.

Prizes Available: 6 Beer Boxes

“You’re Great” Print – by Kid Icarus
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Instagram
Etsy

The Kid Icarus Print Department in Toronto’s Kensington Market is the home of master screen printer Michael Viglione and Bianca Bickmore, who has been creating posters and art prints together for over twelve years. The “You’re Great” wall art up for grabs at TBEX is based on their best-selling postcard. The five Great Lakes, four of which border on Ontario, are the perfect way to celebrate the over 250,000 lakes that Ontario is home to. New! We love this Ontario bucket list print created especially for TBEXers.

Wouldn’t this make the perfect addition to a home office?

Prizes Available: 6 “You’re Great Prints”, 6 Surprise Prints

Forest Collectable – by Sally McCubbin
Blog

If you’ve always wanted to have a conversation piece in your home or apartment, this forest collectable by Sally definitely fits the bill. Her glass creations, which represent the Canadian forest, are what she describes as “…a statement about the natural beauty and preciousness of our exports, it displayed our Canadian sensibility of subtle concept and simple design.”

Prizes Available: 6 individual glass pieces

Autumn Maple – by Robert Wu
Blog
Etsy

While we love all four seasons in Ontario, there’s something extra special about fall, which transforms the countryside into a rainbow of reds, oranges and yellows. Robert told us this marbled print was inspired by his travel in the rural Ontario countryside with the beautiful display of fall colours of Ontario maple trees.

Did you know? The marbling in this print is the ancient art of painting on water surface. Colours are floated onto a bath of liquid size, and a comb or rake is then used to move the colours on the surface in order to create patterns. A sheet of paper is then rolled onto the bath in order to pick up the colours or patterns. Each pull is one of a kind!

Prizes Available: 10 Prints

Thanks to the Ontario Crafts Council and their wonderfully creative members for putting together these special TBEX prizes. While you are in Toronto, stop by the Ontario Craft Council’s Guild Shop at 118 Cumberland Street in Yorkville. Good luck!

Not coming to TBEX? Stay tuned – we’ll have another chance to win some beautiful handcrafted Ontario art coming soon. In the meantime, visit the artists etsy and social channels to do some fun window shopping.

This contest is void where prohibited, and entry is not permitted by anyone who is a resident of any country, region or state, where this contest would be restricted or subject to any filing, registration or other requirements. Prizing subject to change. For full rules and regulations click here.