We are excited to welcome 4Cats Arts Studio to the growing community of kids related businesses on The Drive!

Join them for their opening celebration this Saturday, June 25th from 1-5 pm at 1650 E 12th Avenue + Commercial Drive. Any questions? Call them at 604-569-2287.

There will be cake and light refreshments and a draw to win 1 of 3 paint splatter parties (value of $175 each). Plus they will be handing out loads of Goodie Boxes for kids ( dandelion treats are in there!)

For Summer Camps or their Fall Artist of the Month Sessions, there is a 10% Grand Opening Special if you book by June 25th. You can book online at www.4cats.com/commercial to take advantage of this offer.

Italian Day on the Drive! 12 – 8 pm Sunday, June 5, 2011!

We are getting super excited to see all the activities for Italian Day on Commercial Drive this coming Sunday. Last year’s Italian Day was one of the nicest events we’ve seen on The Drive in all these years! Totally family friendly plus, think of all the pizza and gelato…….

Come celebrate ‘all that is Italian’ from Venables to the Grandview cut on Commercial Drive, Vancouver’s original ‘Little Italy’. Join over 50,000 attendees on June 5th 2011 from noon until 8pm as ‘La Dolce Vita’ hits the street in style to include food, entertainment, fashion, specialty products, activities and much more. Share the spirit, pride and tradition as we pay tribute to the Italian community and the contributions made to this city as Vancouver celebrates its 125th birthday and Italians commemorate Italy’s 150th anniversary of unification. Viva l’Italia e benvenuti a tutti!

Don’t miss this years’ event!

Come and get a dandelion Kids balloon!

Ciao.

Introducing the Howard by Native Shoes from Native Shoes on Vimeo.

Such a silly, funny little film. When opportunity knocks loudest, say inviting a sea nymph aboard, it never hurts to have a pair of Native’s at the ready and make them Howards. Frisky polkadots, ocean magic, and sunny nothings. The Howard, keep it lite.

We are so excited to have our first batch of kids Native Shoes in store now! How completely cute and practical all at once! Native shoes come in bright crayon colours with great styling riffing on iconic sneaker silhouettes like Vans or Converse. Best of all, they are lightweight, anti-microbial, durable and super easy to put on. Perfect for the park, for preschool, for the beach plus they’re from our home town, Vancouver! What’s not to love?

You can even throw them in the dishwasher!

Available in sizes 2-Junior 4.

We just love getting older! And 6 is such a great age…perfect for climbing trees, riding bikes, twirling around and having tons of adventures. But mostly, we just have fun at dandelion KIDS and we hope it shows! From the day we opened our doors on Commercial Drive, we knew that we wanted to create an environment that was always welcoming and enjoyable to visit, whether to shop for a gift or new clothes, or just to stop in and play for awhile. We love being part of this diverse and charming community, our lovely new community in Port Moody and a destination for those of you who make the trek from elsewhere around the Lower Mainland.

One of our favourite things is hearing how coming to our store has become a ritual for many of you, year after year, to select the most special gifts or pick up little treats on rainy days. It is a delight to see so many big happy kids, whose parents selected their first tiny outfits from us when they were just babies, now come in to chose birthday gifts for their friends and family. And as our clients have grown up, so have we by extending our size range from newborn all the way to 10 Years, increasing our selection of non-toxic, organic, fair trade and simply wonderful items and trying to make each new window display even better than the last.

Thank you for letting us grow with you!

SALE: dandelion KIDS is celebrating its 6th birthday with 25% off our entire store (with the exception of Strider Bikes and Beco Carriers) and free shipping on all Canadian web orders from October 22-24. Free shipping on web orders is in lieu of 25% discount as online discounts cannot be offered as of yet.

We can’t wait to head out to the UBC Botanical Garden this weekend for the 20th anniversary of the UBC Apple Festival. There will be over 37,000+ pounds of apples including 9000 pounds of the freshest yummiest organic apples around. Last year, there were apples as big as the kids’ heads. Now there’s a good healthy snack!

The event is on all weekend (October 16 and 17) from 11 am to 4pm. The Apple Festival includes free valet bike parking, a really awesome children’s area with all sorts of apple themed games, crafts and activities for the little ones. The delightful yoymama.ca will also be there with a craft table and super give-away. Plus, lively Grist to the Mill, will be playing a family friendly concert from 1-2pm on both days. Did we mention that there is also apple pie, hot apple cider and other delectable treats?

Unbelievably, admission is only $2.00 (kids 12 and under are free) and includes entrance to the whole, gorgeous Botanical Garden. If you haven’t had a chance to enjoy the Greenheart Canopy Walkway, there is a 15% discount with admission to the Apple Festival. It’s amazing.

If you would like to taste the over 60 varieties of heritage, new and “tried and true” varieties available, go early to the apple tasting. This yummy diversion is an additional $3.00 but we think it is entirely worth it. Yum.

For more information, call 604.822.4529.

An East Van elementary school needs your vote!

Laura Secord Elementary School has been undergoing a seismic upgrade for the past year. As a result, the children have lost most of their outdoor play equipment, and more than half of their play space.

Laura Secord has entered a contest to win up to $500,000 for a sustainable, earth friendly, wheelchari accessible playground – one the whole community can enjoy for years to come. They need to be in the Top 10 to get into the semi finals and have their proposal in the running to win.

It takes only minutes to sign up for an account and one click to vote.
Anyone with an email account can register and vote at: http://www.avivacommunityfund.org/ideas/acf5890.

Please spread the word and vote daily until October 15, 2010.  8 days left!!!!!

Thank you for your community support.

We have fond memories of going to Woodward’s as children, especially to look at their Christmas windows and eat frosted malt in their basement food floor! We are excited to read this book.

Body Heat: The Story of the Woodward’s Redevelopment.

Proclaiming the Woodward’s redevelopment, marketing billboards across Vancouver boldly promised ‘Community’. BODY HEAT tells the story of the Woodward’s Redevelopment in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver. The project is unique in the history of Vancouver due to its scale, inclusivity, social aspirations and the complexity of the partnerships required. The book features 23 interviews with key participants in the redevelopment process.

Larry Beasley – John Bishop – Lee Donohue – Stan Douglas – Robert Enright – Liz Evans – Michael Flanigan – Ken Fraser – Lee Gavel

Ian Gillespie – Jim Green – George Haywood – Scot Hein – Gregory Henriquez – Hal Kalman – Dave Leung – Kevan Losch – Chris Macdonald

Alberto Perez-Gomez – Shane Ramsay – Bob Rennie – John Richardson – Reid Shier – Jon Stovell – May So – Mark Townsend – Milton Wong – Peter Wood

BODY HEAT illustrates a community’s capacity to integrate the poetic and ethical dimensions of existence. The intention of the project and the book is to give meaningful expression to people’s daily struggles for survival and orientation, explore the partnerships needed to realize a larger social mission, and challenge today’s architects to build beautiful cities for all citizens.

http://www.readleaf.ca

Welcome sunny days with the dandelion KIDS Annual Summer Sale!

Save on clothing, select toys and accessories for boys and girls from newborn all the way to size 10.  You’ll find stylish clothing from fab brands like Ben Sherman, Minymo, Katvig, Blu, Appaman, Imps & Elfs, Tea, Escargot, Noppies and more. Plus cool shoes from Converse, Vans, and Morgan & Milo. You can also pick up UV50 protective swimwear that is cool and safe, slick sunglasses and fantastic summer hats. And it’s all 30-70% off, both in-store and online, so shop early for the best selection.

There’s even more fun dandelion KIDS info on Twitter and we’d love it if you became our fan on Facebook.

Once a month throughout the summer, Market at Eugene Choo features a selection of their favourite designers, vintage dealers and food vendors.

Sunday June 20th, 11-4  (It’s Car Free Day Vancouver on Main Street as well.)

Saturday July 17, 10-3

Saturday August 14, 10-3

Saturday September 18, 10-3

Find Market in the parking lot behind Eugene Choo at 3683 Main Street.

See you there from noon to 6pm between Venables and 1st Avenue!

We don’t care how you get here…just don’t drive!