The One Of A Kind Christmas Show and Sale has arrived in Toronto!

Every year the show brings exhibitors from all over Canada to the Direct Energy Centre with their wares for sale. From art to jewellery to clothing to food – there’s something for everyone on the HUGE floor.

Note: And I mean huge. It’s a lot of walking with 25 rows of booths and displays. But it’s totally worth it.

This year is no different. I checked it out earlier this afternoon and was impressed by a lot of the booths that I saw. There were some old favourites and some new finds that I stopped at and would highly recommend to all of you.

Note: There is a coat check available for $2 – use it. There are also a bunch of food options in the show and also in the concourse of the building.

Old favs include:
Mad Batters Bakers
The Monster Factory
Earth Angel Designs
Margi Laurin Notebooks
Nude Clothes

I actually started my tour of the show at the Nude Clothes booth to see my friend Rita Di Cesare. She tells me that she’s happy with the new line and the reaction of the crowd tells me that they are happy with it as well. We were actually interrupted by a customer who wanted to pay for her new clothes. I think it was a pretty good reason to interrupt us. Ladies, if you’re looking for something pretty for the holiday party season and beyond, I would definitely recommend stopping to see  Rita before December 2nd. And when you find her at booth B-19, tell her that I said hi. It won’t get you a discount, but it’s good karma.

New favs include:

Coy Depot – coydepot.com (click through to coyclothes.com to see the catalogue, there’s some pretty cool stuff in the booth and they’re giving away a t-shirt every day of the show.

Dave Murray – davemurrayillustration.com – cool stuff and I fell in love with the Parkdale type map as soon as I saw it. In fact, I saw the Ossington map first and then checked the wall for the Parkdale version because I knew it had to be there. For $40 a piece, I’m tempted to go back and get 1.

Catherine Jeffrey – cajeffrey.blogspot.com – amazing pieces that I want all of. And the reason… most of it is streetcar art. I love streetcar art! These are amazing and would look good in your house, office, restaurant, lobby, whatever! Plus, they are so distinctly Toronto that you can’t help but feel proud when you look at them. It’s hometown beauty hanging right there. 
Thorpe Toys – thorpetoys.com – awesome wooden toys that remind me of a grandfather’s basement work bench or the North Pole or the country or times past or just wholesome good fun. Any of those are worthy comparisons. There are train whistles and spinners and cars and swings and trucks and all kinds of other amazing toys for kids of all ages.

Velvet Moustache – velvetmoustache.ca – My fav name of the entire show. These plush toys and pillows are adorable and caught my eye at the end of the B aisle right at the start of my day. If you’ve got someone in your life that needs something to cuddle up with when they go to bed, this is a good place to stop this week!
Kids, if you’ve got a few hours and some holiday shopping to do, get on down to the Direct Energy Centre before this show is over on the 2nd of December. Support the exhibitors. Find gorgeous things that aren’t on the shelves of every store in the city. Taste test at the food booths. Appreciate the art. Enjoy!

Be awesome!

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Joshua Murray

creator of content, daddy blogger, writer, coffee drinker, fan of the Batman. proud mo bro. prouder dad.