Canadians coming together to make fashion better 🙌🏽 One of the beautiful things that happened in 2020 was Canadians coming together - to support each other through the pandemic, lift up small businesses, and choose products that would be better for people and the planet.  From Port Moody, BC to Yellowknife, NWT, to Shelbourne, NS, Canadians have come together this year to shop small + local and I appreciate it so much! We used to ship 70% to USA / 30% to Canada and this year those numbers swapped!    And now a little more on the trends we've seen in 2020:...

10 Canadian, femme-founded small businesses to support over the holidays If you’re planning on gift-giving for the holidays this year, we would love to encourage you to SHOP LOCAL small businesses! That’s why we’ve joined forces with 9 other small, Canadian, femme-founded businesses to bring you a gift guide that will have you crossing off your holiday shopping list in no time. Locally-made products that are crafted with care ALWAYS make the best gifts! 🎁 We know it takes a lot of work to research and find small businesses that have high quality products and even higher values. Rest...

My mission at Azura Bay is to curate the best of the best in the ethical + eco lingerie, pjs, + loungewear market and make it an easy place for you to shop cute, comfy and conscious brands that will actually fit, stay in your wardrobe for years and empower you and the people making the items. I'm so proud of the amazing ethical brands I've partnered with, who are all either Fair Trade/Fair Wear certified or employing transparent, ethical practices to treat their employees with respect, fair wages and safe and positive work environments. Beyond supporting those ethics, all of them have been incorporating sustainable fabrics and...

Our Low-Waste Packaging Running a physical product business means there will always be a bit of packaging required, but I do my best to reduce our waste from both inbound shipping into our warehouse + outbound to your homes!  Shipping your goodies to you: I’m so excited that this year I was able to launch an upgrade to recycled poly mailers, now I ship to you in home compostable mailers, made of plant-based material that will break down in 90 days in your home compost (full product info here: https://www.betterpackaging.com/519-2/). They remain a light-weight option for shipping that won't get damaged by rain + snow and are as kind...

  I am so honoured to interview Brooke Van Ryssel, owner of My Body Fitness + Nutrition, a body inclusive fitness + nutrition company in Winnipeg. I’ve followed her feed since she launched and fell in love with her infectious positive attitude, kind educational style and passion for making people feel better in their skin.  I’ve learned so much from her just from following her on instagram and was lucky enough to have her model at a few of our photo shoots, so I wanted to pick her brain a bit more and share with you some thoughts she has on...

Have you been bombarded with gift guides and holiday tips non-stop lately? Us too. We love this time of the year and the ability to show our love to friends and family – but we're also well aware of the implications that Christmas & holiday consumption has on the environment and ethical shopping in general. It can be hard to buy thoughtful, AND ethically sourced gift items, so we want to help you out. In case you're short on ideas for a great gift, we've got plenty of things in mind that we think would make amazing, ethically-minded gifts...

The world of composting can feel overwhelming.   Just a quick google search will lead you to about a million different ways to compost – using bins, piles, you name it!    As part of our effort to improve our relationship with waste, and with the earth – we’re embarking on our own journey with composting both with our compostable mailers and personally.   Once we started exploring the how-tos of composting, we realized how complicated things could get, and so we wanted to put together a simple guide for methods of composting that will hopefully make it easier...

Capsule Wardrobes seem to be one of the most popular fashion trends of 2019, but what exactly are they?  Essentially, a Capsule Wardrobe is a condensed version of your current wardrobe, consisting of about 20-30 high-quality, mix-and-match staple pieces. An Ethical Capsule Wardrobe then, is a Capsule Wardrobe consisting of a few ethically-made and sustainably produced items. Ethical fashion is a way in which we, as consumers, can limit the consumption habits of fast fashion. We’re of the opinion that your wardrobe doesn’t end with tops, bottoms and shoes. Undies, bras, and loungewear are also candidates when it comes...

The Lowdown on Eco Fabrics   The world of eco fabrics is full of so many possibilities with both natural and synthetic options – and with my mission to bring you eco-friendly products, I wanted to take a deep-dive into the fabrics I carry and why.   Let’s get into it!   At Azura Bay, my number one requirement to consider carrying an item in my online shop is that it needs to be ethically produced. This means that everyone in the supply chain of that product is being empowered and treated well throughout every step of the production...

Learn more about the brands at Azura Bay + Fashion Revolution Week!

I'm so proud of the amazing ethical brands carried at Azura Bay, who are all either Fair Trade certified or employing transparent, ethical practices to treat their employees with respect, fair wages and safe and positive work environments. Beyond supporting those ethics, all of them have been incorporating sustainable fabrics and production as much as possible (everything from zero waste collections by up-cycling fabric that was discarded by a bigger brand, to organic fabrics to waterless dying processes).  This Fashion Revolution week, I wanted to share more about the wonderful makers I've so carefully sourced as well as more info about...

  Kate Gumbrell, Ethical & Eco Fashion Blogger from New Zealand lives and breathes her passion; and we are so thrilled that we were a part of her wedding journey. She works really hard to incorporate ethical & eco practices in every area of her life and we are so happy that she was able to share her wedding tips with us.  ~ The day has been and gone, my Celia Grace wedding dress hangs alone in the wardrobe, and my new last name is finally beginning to feel normal. On February, the 25th 2017 I got married to a...

Kate Hall, Ethical & Eco Fashion Blogger of @Ethicallykate lives and breathes her passion for ethical fashion and living, and has put together a fantastic ethical + eco gift guide for guys. Plus, scroll to the end for some of our top Canadian picks! ~ Men: sometimes we love them, sometimes we hate them. But when it comes down to it, as they open their present on Christmas day, you want them to fist pump the air and give you an extra tight squeeze as they say ‘thanks babe, you nailed it’. That’s right, I said the ‘c’ word. No...

It can be tricky finding something perfect for your mom, but we have a roundup of our favourite pieces that all moms will love: Cozy PJs & Robes      Classic Jewelry - Handcrafted Rings, Necklaces, Bracelets & Earrings   Best Organic Cotton Basics  

We're so proud to work with such amazing brands at Azura Bay, who provide their teams with fair pay and working conditions, as well as incorporating sustainable fabrics and production as much as possible (like waterless dying processes). This Fashion Revolution week, we wanted to share more about the wonderful makers we've so carefully sourced. First of all, what is Fashion Revolution week? The Fashion Revolution Organization was created as a response to the horrific Rana Plaza factory collapse in India, where 1,138 people were killed and 2,500 more injured on the 24th of April, 2013. Led by a team...

At Azura Bay, we are so proud to source the most ethical brands, and love that we are able to share an amazing Canadian indie brand with you (shop their collection here). Sokoloff Lingerie is a beautiful, Canadian made label and after meeting its founder and designer Sofia Sokoloff we can't help but love it even more. She is passionate about designing lingerie that makes women feel confident in their own skin, and is proud to be manufactured in Montreal. Below she shares her inspiration and passion with us, as well as some insider tips for visiting Montreal.   What inspired...

This weekend we're popping up in downtown Winnipeg for our first hometown pop up shop, and we're so excited to be hosted by a fantastic photographer, Lizette of Coco Boudoir. Her space is private and gorgeous, and her photos are stunning. We chatted with her to get a learn why women leave her shoots feeling empowered, as well as her tips for your first shoot.   Name: Lizette or Elle (long story, but either work) Hails from: Waterfront Drive, Winnipeg Name of your business: Coco Boudoir Photography  What does your business offer: Besides ravishing photo albums, canvases, and other high end products...

We are so excited for our pop up shop collaboration with Sacred Tusk Athletics & Coco Boudoir Photography, so we wanted to share a little bit more about these great brands and the lovely ladies behind them. First up, we chatted with Kyla Klassen of Sacred Tusk Athletics. What made you want to start an athletics boutique? I went to university and graduated with degrees in both Economics and Textile Sciences. The following year I made my way to Costa Rica to complete my 200 hours toward my yoga teacher training. I figured why not put all 3 of...

*Azura Bay founder Ashley McIntosh & Canadian Ethical & Eco Designer Nicole Bridger We're honoured to be showcased as a pop-up shop inside the beautiful Nicole Bridger flagship store in Vancouver. Named for the designer, the clothing is beautiful, comfortable and timeless, and the space is dedicated to her amazing clothing line as well as other pop-up shops like Eco Diva Beauty and local artists. We were thrilled to get the chance to ask Nicole a few questions about her line. What was it like to work with industry icons such as Vivienne Westwood and Chip Wilson (of Lululemon)...

Behind the Brand: Iris London by Ellie Simpson-Gray When choosing pieces for Azura Bay, products have to meet certain criteria to fit into our collection: stylish, great fit, ethically made and if possible, eco-friendly materials or production processes. Iris London's gorgeous designs are ethical and eco lingerie at its finest. Handcrafted in London, England under the direction of Founder & Creative Director, Ellie Simpson-Gray, these stunning pieces will glam up any wardrobe and are saving beautiful materials from the landfill by up-cycling the excess fabric over-ordered by massive global luxury brands. We're enchanted by everything about this brand, from the thoughtful...

 *Photo via Jason Feat Photography & Powerful Water Company   We’re thrilled to launch our “Ladies We Love” series with Corinne Evans; professional surfer, model & business babe. We’re inspired by Corinne’s passion for her sport and her work to encourage other women to get involved, as well as her initiatives to help support breast cancer organizations. We’re so excited to have had the opportunity to do a Valentine’s day shoot with her and her amazing photographer Lizzie Churchill, and wanted to share a little bit more about this talented woman with a Q & A. Being a pro surfer sounds...