Bon Mot

My Bon Mott shopping bag with an original drawing.

I happened upon Bon Mot by chance. A response to my tweet about a retailer that carried upside-down plant pots had identified the store as a carrier, but as I had never heard of it, I wrote down the name to investigate later.  I’d fallen in love with these particular pots at the Michelle Kaufman Smart Home on a recent trip to Chicago and have been searching for one ever since. On Tuesday, work dropped me at the Princess Cinemas. Looking across the street, there it was. (When fate and a good parking spot intertwine, you don’t mess with it.) My timing was perfect, the store had opened the day before.

Bon Mot literally means good word, but is also used to mean a clever remark or witticism. I don’t think the owners – the Jane Bond folks – could have chosen a better name. Loosely filled with interesting and design fused stuff, including my coveted pot, my small purchase quickly grew (it’s Christmas).

Some of my finds.

Hand screen-printed cotton handkerchiefs sporting vintage bikes, which I may re purpose for use as napkins as they are so lovely. They are the creation of Jon Johnson, aka Bearface, a local designer.

It was love at first glance with Serrote’s notebooks which are created in Lisbon with letterpress. Like last year, I had been seeking something unusual and beautiful for my mother-in-law (who is an artist and Portuguese). These are perfect.

“By the end of 2004, we began our search in Lisbon, Portugal, for old printery houses. The idea was to create a notebook printed in letterpress, with moveable type, like Gutenberg did. Many traditional printeries had allready closed their doors, but we found one that helped us.
Deep inside old drawers and cases (some of them allready half eatened by the woodworm), we found old lead and type ornaments, used decades ago to print invoices and business cards. – Serrote “

I did remember to pick up what I had originally come in for, my aptly named Sky Planter, which I  will fill with basil and hang in the kitchen. Boskke is a New Zealand company with an “evolved gardening tag”. The jury is out regarding what my cat will do with it – pinata or landing pad – but with such a fantastic concept I’ve got to give it a go. I was also told that larger sizes may be on the way.

I love this store and will be back soon. Find them at 47 King St. N.  in Uptown Waterloo beneath the Starlight.