Bespoke

Contributed by Emma Callin

Last month was my fifth wedding anniversary and I wanted to give my husband something special and meaningful - not a gift that was only special by virtue of how expensive it was.  After all, spending a lot of money on a gift is no guarantee that the recipient will treasure it for years to come, no matter what advertising and romantic comedies portray.

The initial sketch

My husband and I met in university at a student club where we both acquired odd nicknames - I got called "Rabbit" and my husband became "Bear" (a long story I might explain some other time).  For his anniversary present I really wanted to reference when we first met and the longstanding friendship we had before we even started dating.  Since we're still in the midst of renovating and decorating our home I thought that a piece of custom artwork would be perfect.  

Choosing fabrics

I was inspired by a design I saw by Mumble Tease and contacted the designer, Heather Reinhardt, about customizing the piece for a wall hanging.  Since I'd worked with Heather before it was really fun to check out her creative process as it was happening!  She altered the original image of a fox and rabbit to be a bear and rabbit and changed the outfits on the figures to represent clothing my husband and I actually wear (the dress is based on one of my favourites by Edmonton designer Cinder + Smoke).  

Deciding on the look of the wall hanging

I chose a fabric patterned with yellow roses to signify friendship and joy and Heather hung the banner on wood she salvaged from trees damaged in the September 2014 snowstorm.  I loved that the wood was re-purposed and it matched with the traditional fifth anniversary gift of wood!  

And of course, the words.  My husband and I spent a couple years dating long-distance when he took a job in England and I took a job in South Korea so being able to spend time together now is something we really treasure - which is why the simple rhyme means a lot to us.  

Next time you have a big anniversary or milestone birthday to celebrate, support a local artist and create something meaningful!