Tagged contest

August 6, 2013

Parrotphernalia at the Vancouver Mini-Maker Faire

This June we had the pleasure of being part of the Mini-Maker fair being held at the PNE Forum on Saturday June 1st and Sunday June 2nd. It is the biggest DIY event in Vancouver, and there are many more Maker Faires held in cities and countries all over the world. It brings together people and creators from all walks of life. Techies, engineers, crafters, builders and tinkerers join together as “the aim of Maker Faire is to entertain, inform, connect and grow this community.”

It was amazing to meet so many local makers and creators including Living Lotus Food & Nutrition, Self Design, Heike Kapp Glass, and Window Arcades Terrarium Design among many others. We recommend checking out all of their pages and seeing the great products they have to offer. I wish I had had the time to visit every stall and browse over everything each maker had to offer.You can see the full list of 2013 Makers here.

In preparation for Maker Faire we worked hard creating new inventory, many of which sold at the Faire. We were also making custom pieces throughout the weekend. We made both pendants and earrings as well as a custom hair piece. Over the weekend we spoke to many attendees and other makers about our products and parrots. For the children there that we knew would want to touch all the pretty feathered pieces (which we didn’t stop, but encouraged the gentleness you would apply to a live bird) we put out a few of Larry’s wing and tail feathers to be flapped, rubbed, pulled and twisted. We showed how each strand on the feather or barb rather, had tiny hooks on them which allowed them to be preened back into place. We also surprised many visitors at our booth with the long life cycle of parrots.

One of the highlights of the weekend was meeting so many attendees that had feathered companions or had met local rescues and sanctuaries such as O.W.L. Orphaned Wildlife and Greyhaven Exotic Bird Sanctuary.

We were also part of a Silent Auction and held a draw for people to enter to win a pair of earrings or a pendant. We had over 150 entries! Larry picked the winners and we mailed their prizes off right away! Watch the video here.

We are cannot wait to go back next year and are looking forward to meeting all the new makers and returning ones.

Custom hair piece made at Maker Fair, to be braided into hair.

Setting up.

Talking to a customer.

First bid on silent auction.

August 6, 2013

Everything Birds Photo Story Contest

In April Larry and I had the pleasure of being part of Everything Birds “Photo Story Contest” on their Facebook Page. We entered in one of my favorite pictures of Larry and myself. The contest was part of their Parrot Appreciate Day they were holding in May, however Everything Birds shared the true idea behind the contest. “This contest’s FIRST goal is to share the JOY of owning our birds, the knowledge we’ve gained through that flocking, and finally to become a stronger flock because of these shared experiences. None of us have all the answers, but ALL of us have some pretty good ones! Let’s SHARE, so ALL our birds benefit!”

We feel the same at Parrotphernalia, and want to use our products to create more conversation around our feathered friends, whether they are companion birds or in the wild. We were one of 94 entrants sharing a photo and story from around the world. The Top Ten photos with the most Likes would be printed and put on display to be voted on at Everything Birds store in Oldsmar, Florida on their Parrot Appreciate Day. Our photo had 40 shares and 138 likes putting us in the Top Ten.

Here is our story:

“Larry, a Blue Fronted Amazon I am a companion to, has led an interesting life. His first owners took him to bars and showed him off. From this bad environment he unfortunately picked up some swearwords, which have turned to mumbles in recent years. After this he was given to a pet store where he stayed for quite sometime, a bird just looking for somebody to love him. He was adopted from the store by someone who had thought he would make a great first mate aboard his boat. Unfortunately (and fortunately) for Larry he never made it out to sea and was often left alone at home to forage for himself on sunflower seeds and french fries while his owner went away for days or weeks at a time.

Then comes my partner. One day Mr. Wanna-be-fisherman, a client of my partners, asked if he wouldn’t mind watching him while he was out of town for a few weeks. My partner agreed and in no time the two of them had bonded. It was months before Larry’s owner called, and when he did he asked if my partner wanted to keep him. He said yes, of course and for the last 10 years Larry has lived a happy and healthy life with him. Two years ago I was introduced to Larry and he allowed me to become his friend. It has been a slow process since I am the only other person he has ever allowed to hold him or touch him in 10 years (or more). We enjoy singing loudly off key and dancing around the kitchen together. Larry has changed my life and inspired me to create a business based on the friendship you have with your animal. I am so happy to have met and become the companion to such a wonderful animal.”

Although we did not make it to the Top Three, we were so grateful to have been able to share our story and bring more awareness to our products. The responses we received to our story were wonderful.

Thank you to everyone that voted for us and to all of the other contestants who shared their stories.