Edible Sea to Sky’s favourite local goods for anyone with great taste
By: Katherine Fawcett
Bee Wild
beewildparadisevalley.ca
A few years ago, AnnaMarie Rutishauser surrounded her Paradise Valley home with a vast array of berry bushes, fruit trees and native flowers, including yellow clover, with its blossoms reminiscent of sunshine. The garden outside Squamish soon became a home for butterflies, wild bees, hummingbirds, chickadees, moths, bats, snakes, mosquitoes and lizards, but Rutishauser wanted more: “The interaction between plants, animals and ourselves, as caretakers, created a longing to go deeper still.”
She studied permaculture, got herself a bee suit and tended to her first honeybee colonies. She developed her skills, learning from her mentor and the bees themselves. She was soon hooked, she says. “Honeybees rocked my world.”
Rutishauser and her family now have 12 hives at her permaculture-inspired apiary, and the local, sustainably harvested honey is available through her website. Along with varieties such as Amber Delight, Autumn Gold and Summer Siesta, Bee Wild sells honey-based gift boxes, with tea, candles and more.
Sḵwálwen Botanicals
skwalwen.com
Plant knowledge, ancestral traditions and a deep respect for the natural world are the pillars of Sḵwálwen Botanicals, an Indigenous skincare line founded by Leigh Joseph, an ethnobotanist of the Squamish First Nation. Using 100 percent sustainably harvested botanicals, this small but thriving business unites ancient traditions and contemporary beauty rituals to build connections between people and the natural world.
“Sḵwálwen represents more than skincare,” says Joseph. “It is a ceremonial offering of Indigenous plant wisdom that keeps ancestral tradition alive.” In doing so, the beautifully packaged products “balance, renew, repair, strengthen, hydrate and protect the skin.” Rub the Tewin’xw Cranberry Rose Glow Facial Serum between your hands and inhale its relaxing and rejuvenating scent before massaging it into your skin morning and night.
Seed to Sky Wood Company
seedtoskywoodco.com
Colby King, founder and owner of Seed to Sky Wood Company, has a special eye for the natural beauty of wood. As a kid, he felt most at home in the forest, mesmerized by trees. Today, he’s a highly sought-after woodworker, bespoke-furniture maker and housewares designer, creating one-of-a-kind items that are both stunning and functional.
King’s live-edged wood charcuterie and cutting boards, highlighted with a stream of resin that seems to flow like the Mamquam River or Howe Sound through each piece, are works of art. “They have kind of a minimalist look,” says King. “I like to focus on the wood, let the wood do the main talking and let the resin shimmer.”
No two Seed to Sky Wood Company’s pieces are the same, because each piece of wood has a distinct personality. King also takes custom orders.
Earth and Fibre
earthandfibrestudio.com
In the rapidly growing world of ceramics, the personality and imagination of the artist make certain studios stand out. At Earth and Fibre, the energetic imprint of Katie Lavelle’s hands on the clay is palpable. Each piece — from coffee mugs to salad bowls to hanging lights — infuses beauty, ritual and magic into daily moments.
Lavelle’s ceramic pieces reflect her love of the ocean, with bowls that resemble sea foam or barnacles and “wishing stone” mugs with thin white rings characteristic of lucky stones. Her latest collection features an imperfect, rusty look. These warped and interesting pieces have an energy that pushes clay to its limit. “I’m always trying to create new ceramics that are different, things people haven’t seen,” she says.
Her tableware, serving ware, lanterns, candlestick holders and hanging lights create a unique vibe. “I do love perfect imperfections,” says Lavelle. “I am also inspired by unexpected character and things that have a story, things that contribute to the mood or have a real vibe.”
Raven and Hummingbird Tea Company
rhtea.co
Indigenous ethnobotanist T’uy’t’tanat Cease Wyss (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, Sto:lo, Hawaiian and Swiss) and her daughter Senaqwila know there’s something sacred about a cup of steaming hot tea: It slows you down, warms you up, nourishes body and mind and connects you to the earth through water, heat and plants.
Their company, Raven and Hummingbird Tea Company, uses many locally grown herbs, flowers and berries to handcraft small batches of nourishing, soothing tea. The divine-smelling and earthy West Coast Wild, for example, features a soothing blend of stinging nettles, mint, dandelion root, burdock root, rosehips and hawthorn berries that helps energy, digestion, cancer prevention and more.
The Beer Farmers
thebeerfarmers.com
This family-owned and -operated staple of Pemberton’s agricultural history is making its mark in pint glasses throughout southern BC. The Beer Farmers grow all the barley for their beer on a picturesque organic farm where generations of the Miller family have been working the land for 125 years.
Will Miller brews his beer with local hops and pristine well water, found deep beneath his fields, resulting in ideal gift beers like the Farmer’s Daughter White and the Black Sheep Coffee Stout and garnering a devoted audience of beer connoisseurs.
Miller says the best thing about working at the Beer Farmers’ farm is welcoming visitors to the tasting room. People have a tendency to fall in love with the breathtaking area, the fresh mountain air and, of course, the beer. And a six-pack is an easy way to remind a friend of those pleasures.