Announced today, My Back Shed Too has been declared a finalist for the Burlington Chamber of Commerce Retail Business Excellence Award. The award celebrates excellence in business leadership, community contributions, entrepreneurship, environment, employee welfare, innovation and market growth. Other finalists in the Retail category are Mountain Equipment Co-op and West 49 Inc. The winner will be announced at the Chamber of Commerce Business Awards Gala on April 8th, 2010. Wish us luck!

Recently celebrating its 2nd anniversary, My Back Shed Too was reopened and transformed by Ondrea Crockett in January 2008. It has quickly become a shopping destination for visitors from Niagara Falls to London to Guelph to Toronto. Our pretty little shop has become known for its welcoming, serene environment, re-purposed shabby chic (french country) furniture, home decor, unique gifts and toys. Bursting at the seams, in July 2009 we expanded to Ohh!! on Brant Street where a beautiful boutique was born. Urban elegance is celebrated with fabulous handbags, jewellery, accessories and - our now famous - greeting card selection! Hidden at the back of Ohh!! is our busy paint shop where makeover magic is performed: our customers leave their own furniture in our expert hands for custom painting service, and always leave thrilled with the results.

This is a great honour! I'd like to thank my fantastic staff (Carmie Domet, Beth Wyatt, Donna Domet and Carl Moore) for their hard work, support, patience and dedication in building this fantastic business. It is a true joy to work with you! Also, Wendy Marlow for making this opportunity possible - and for her great marketing advice (check her out at http://www.artofmarketing.ca), and my fellow downtown Burlington merchants for investing and working tirelessly to make downtown Burlington a destination for residents and visitors.

Thanks to the generosity of our customers we raised $733 this year for Burlington's Partnership West Food Bank. Throughout November and December when visitors to Ohh!! or My Back Shed Too! donated $20 or more we gave them 10-20% off their purchase (donators drew a candy cane from our Christmas Sack to determine their savings) - and, they received a gift certificate for 20% off purchase in January and February. We look forward to your support again next Christmas!

Wishing you all the best in 2010! It's going to be a fantastic year!

It's really just a teaser, but our Holiday Gift Guide is here just in time for us last minute shoppers. Get a sampling of the beautiful gifts available from Ohh!! and My Back Shed Too! and come on in for a closer look.

Don't forget: if you see something you'd like for yourself be sure to drop us a line. We'll add you to our Wish List for when your loved one comes in!

Happy Holidays from all of us!!

It's official! For the 2nd year running we have won 2nd prize in the Downtown Burlington Window Display Competition. This year My Back Shed Too! received 2nd prize for our gorgeous interior displays!

Mother and daughter team, Carmie and Donna Domet, competed against each other (Carmie at MBST, and Donna at Ohh!!) to come up with our most beautiful window and interior displays ever. Drop in both stores to check it out!

I love Harveys Seatbelt Bags. I bought my first Harveys a year before I took over My Back Shed Too! - and when I realised there was an opportunity to bring this line into our boutique I jumped at it! I now own 3 of these beauties - and Lola is certain to become my 4th!

What I adore about Lola is her mix of ying and yang. The durability and strength of seatbelts with beautiful feminine ruffles.

We were only able to get our hands on a few of these beauties - Harveys is already out of stock and busy making more. But if you miss your chance be sure to place your order for our January shipment. If it's a Christmas gift we'll be more than happy to print out a pretty picture to wrap up in that special box! So drop us a line!

Santa Claus is coming to Downtown Burlington tomorrow to kick off the official Holiday Season! Baby, it's gonna be cold outside so after the parade bring the kids over to Ohh!! or My Back Shed Too! to warm up with a cup of Hot Apple Cider.

While you're here remember to donate $20 to Partnership West Food Bank. To say thanks we will give you 10-20% off your purchase and we'll mail you a gift certificate for 20% off your purchase between 15 January to 28 February. We really, really want you to donate. It's been a very tough year for many Burlington families - each month over 600 people use the Food Bank, over half of which are children. We've collected just over $500 and we won't stop until we hit $1000.

Tomorrow is also 'First Skate" at Spencer Smith Park and the Festival of Lights will kick off at sundown. So make a day of it: enjoy the parade, grab some lunch, do some shopping, take the kids for a skate and celebrate the Holidays with the spectacular display of lights at Spencer Smith Park. Man, we are lucky to live in this beautiful city!

So much to share! Life is constantly evolving at Ohh!! and My Back Shed Too!, not to mention the exciting community of Downtown Burlington.

As always, please get in touch with me if you have feedback regarding our stores - or ideas for making our community even more exciting!

Now let's see if I can keep you current!