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KR Jewelry's #FridayFallFundraisers

posted by The Princess Shop    |   November 25, 2020 19:19

Those of you who follow us on Instagram know that KR Jewelry has been running the #FallFridayFundraiser in support of The Princess Shop since September 18th, 2020. The hashtag really explains most of it - each Friday, Karen Robson, owner, jewelry-maker extraordinaire, and past Princess Shop Executive Director, posts a new piece that people can bid on all day in her Instagram comments. 100% of the auction sale is donated to our organization and if Karen's commitment to The Princess Shop wasn't magical enough, her jewelry featuring gemstones such as Rainbow Moonstone, Labradorite, Pyrite, Onyx, and so much more take the cake. So far, the auction fundraiser has raised $1126.00 with one week left! We (virtually) interviewed her to feature the business that has been giving back since it was formed and running this specific fundraiser for three years now!

 All photos from KR Jewelry's Instagram.

All photos are from KR Jewelry's Instagram.


The Princess Shop has been shortened to TPS in the following questions:

 

TPS: Tell us more about the KR Jewelry brand  - what inspired you to start making jewelry?

Karen: It started as a gift in 2011! I had a budgie named Tookey who would drop beautiful feathers and my mom commented how they would make beautiful earrings. Knowing that she loved earrings and that Mothers’ Day was coming up, I quietly gathered feathers until I had a nice pair, searched up a video tutorial, went to the craft store and back home, and immediately made a pair of earrings. I had so much fun (and my mom loved them), that I started to take apart whatever jewelry I had and started making new pieces. I was hooked! From there I continued to make jewelry as gifts or donations, and did that for 3.5 years until I decided I wanted to market my jewelry.

So it started with a gift, continued with giving – that is a major part of the KR Jewelry brand, and what it was founded upon. Selling it only provides me more opportunities to continue to give (I have never said no to a raffle/auction) and support our community and the volunteers/staff that are pouring so much into it.

 

TPS: How does #FridayFallFundraiser fit into your mission?

Karen: While I haven’t coined a phrase for a mission, I know that I want to make jewelry because it is a creative outlet, and that because it has the power to make a positive impact. 

I started #FridayFallFundraiser in 2018 because I wanted to initiate my own fundraiser. While I will always donate to raffles and auctions, I had an itch to take initiative and be a leader in the business community by creating my own fundraiser. I did not want to sit and wait to be asked to contribute to something, I wanted to do something myself. 

 

TPS: What’s your creative process like? It felt like that first giveaway piece you made to kick off the fundraiser was designed so perfectly for TPS!

Karen: I am completely inspired by the materials. The gemstones, the textures, the shine… the shapes. It is kind of hard to explain, but I like to figure out new ways to put all these materials together in a way that is unique, one-of-a-kind, and beautiful! Some have described my pieces as “from another time” which I really love.

 

 

TPS: What’s the importance of businesses like yours continuing to donate and fundraise on behalf of charitable organizations, especially in these uncertain times?

Karen: Having worked in Community for so long outside of the jewelry business, I saw firsthand how challenging it can be to fundraise, even in non-pandemic times. With a community full of many worthy nonprofits and charities, fundraising has to be creative even in a regular year. I also simply and truly believe in the concept of Community - taking care of one another, looking out for one another, and reaching out to offer a helping hand - and businesses like KR Jewelry benefit from a strong community, so it is in a way giving back.

2020 has been tough on fundraising, but 2021 might be even worse as the organizations that provide funding will likely be looking at reduced budgets for philanthropy and sponsorship. So now, more than ever, it is so important to support our nonprofit organizations that really do provide vibrancy to our community - something we all benefit from! I encourage and welcome any small creative business to take the #FridayFallFundraiser model, pick an organization to support, and get fundraising with their following - that is an amazing gift to the community.

 

TPS: How can people best support both KR Jewelry and The Princess Shop during this pandemic, even if they can’t afford to purchase items or donate?

Karen: Both of us are quite active on social media, so following, liking, commenting, sharing (this one especially), to help spread the word. And not even just on social media. Be a vocal advocate in your day-to-day life with coworkers and friends – tell them about The Princess Shop. The more people know about organizations like The Princess Shop, the quicker they will be able to step up and support when they can, because they are keeping their community front of mind. I believe that it is not just up to non-profit organizations to spread their own word and gain awareness, I believe it should be a community effort. I urge citizens to meet community organizations half way, pay attention to the amazing initiatives and programs happening right here in our backyard, learn about them, get involved if you can, and simply be a community advocate.

 

TPS: What’s one piece of advice you’d give to businesses and non-profits during this time of covid-19?

Karen: This is not the time to dwell on what once was, or wait on things to return to “normal”... even as we establish the “new normal”. I’ve watched businesses adapt with a growth mindset and those businesses have been successful. I have also seen some businesses that took this time to work on wish-list items (e.g. renovations, restructuring) to improve their current offering or customer experience, and they were able to because they had saved financially. There is a lot to learn from that as well.

 

Thank you Karen, for all that you do for the community! KR Jewelry can be found on Facebook and Instagram.

Saskatoon's Best Cupcake 2018 - Nutrien Wintershines

posted by The Princess Shop    |   February 13, 2018 10:47

 

On Tuesday, January 30th, we had the pleasure of taking part in the Nutrien Wintershines Festival for the third year in a row! We hosted the 3rd Annual Dress it Up Cupcake Contest where we had six local bakers compete for the title of the best cupcake in Saskatoon as a way to fundraise for our programs! Each baker selected a dress from The Princess Shop to model their cupcake after, and we were blown away by the creativity of these contestants! Caketopia Custom Cakes, Chef de Partie Catering, Crave Cupcakes, The Foodiepharmbabe, Miche’s Niche, and The Night Oven Bakery were all in the running for the top prize, voted by Saskatoon’s community who came out to taste and vote!

Here are the cupcake entries, and we will announce the winner at the end of this post! Big shout out and thanks to Infinity Management for the amazing photos!

Caketopia Custom Cakes:

Caketopia Custom Cakes designed their cupcake off of a glitzy sequined dress and named their cupcake “The Gatsby”. This delectable cupcake was not only beautiful, but it was a caramel-filled cupcake with coconut buttercream, decorated with chocolate and caramel flavoured fondant – almost too pretty to eat!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/caketopia_custom_cakes

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/caketopiacustomcakes

Chef de Partie Catering:

Chef de Partie Catering selected a beautiful angelic white dress with pink flower details, and really displayed decorating skills with a beautifully shimmery rose! The flavour fit the look: Strawberry Pink Champagne!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chefdepartiecatering/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chefdepartiecatering/

Crave Cupcakes:

Crave Cupcakes selected a beautiful creamsicle-like dress with beautiful sparkly detail. Their cupcake flavour? You guessed it! Orange Creamsicle – it got us dreaming of summer!

                                                    

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cravecupcakes/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cravecupcakes/

The Foodiepharmbabe:

The Foodiepharmbabe (or Get Baked with V on Facebook), chose a ruffly-skirt with blues and greens, so she named her cupcake “Caramel Truffle Under the Sea”! It was a decadent chocolate cupcake topped with caramel Swiss Meringue buttercream, white chocolate shards, sparkly pearls, and a caramel truffle hidden “under the sea” of buttercream.  

                                                             

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/foodiepharmbabe/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/foodiepharmbabe/

Miche's Niche:

Miche’s Niche went after a sparkly purple ball gown which inspired her creation. This cupcake was a refreshing vanilla cupcake with Saskatoon Berry and Lemon Cream Cheese filling. It was purple, sparkly, and delicious!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michesniche_/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michesniche/

The Night Oven Bakery:

The Night Oven Bakery’s Jasmine chose her very own graduation dress, which now is donated to The Princess Shop. Calling it the “Candy Bar” cupcake, this fun cupcake was a chocolate candy bar cake, topped with Italian buttercream, M&Ms, and silver pearl candies!

                                                       

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thenightoven/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thenightoven/

Saskatoon’s Best Cupcake 2018:

After over 150 guests came, tasted all delicious cupcakes, then had to make the difficult decision which cupcake to vote for, the votes were in the favour of….

The Foodiepharmbabe! Venessa’s “Caramel Truffle Under the Sea” won over the crowd with its hidden surprise under the Swiss Meringue buttercream. We presented Venessa with a framed certificate, and pair of Sparkle Ball Earrings from Hillberg & Berk!

We also send warm thank-yous to the businesses who donated door prizes: Enterprise Rent a Car, KR Jewelry, and Hillberg & Berk! Thank you to the Sobeys in Humboldt for providing bottled water!

A special thank you to Janella Hamilton of CTV Saskatoon News for emceeing the event and announcing our winner!

To the team at On-Purpose Events, thank you for putting on such a fantastic winter festival and bringing the community together! Thank you to  Nutrien for sponsoring an important event that truly keeps our community warm and vibrant: Wintershines!

To each of our The Princess Shop volunteers who helped organize, setup and take down the event. Thank you to our Fundraising Coordinator, Bonnie Chen, for leading us through this event. Check out our Facebook page for the full album!

And lastly, but surely not least, to each of YOU in the community who came to sample, vote, and enjoy an evening of sweets for such a great cause. You are helping us bring graduation, scholarship/bursary, and mentorship experiences to more Saskatchewan women than ever before. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts! All of !the proceeds from the event were given back to The Princess Shop!

Our next major event is our 11th Annual Glass Slipper Benefit for Princesses, presented by K+S Potash Canada on April 5, 2018 at TCU Place. Join us for an evening of good fun, good food, and giving back to the community. We'd love to see you there!

 

All love, 

The Princess Shop Team

An Exciting Start to The Princess Shop's 10th Year

posted by The Princess Shop    |   October 6, 2016 12:14

Back to School means back to routines and getting down to business, which is what we’ve been doing at The Princess Shop! The change of season has the The Princess Shop team changing gears from summer and getting ready for the exciting year ahead of us!

The Princess Shop team had a great summer that was kicked off with The Perfectly Pink Appreciation BBQ, which was an awesome opportunity to celebrate a successful graduation season with all of our Princess Graduates. This summer we had a number of fundraisers including our first ever Wine-raiser, Firkin Friday at Fionn MacCool’s and Broadway Street Fair with KR Jewelry. Our volunteers also had so much fun with Back Then & Again Jewelry, selling old inventory at The Saskatoon Comic and Entertainment Expo

 

 

Now that the summer is over and autumn (or winter?!) is upon us, The Princess Shop team has been getting back to routine and planning events for the coming months! The 2016/2017 Fairy Godmother Program has commenced! The first official activity in September was held at the University of Saskatchewan. The program coordinators, Emily and Susan, created a photo scavenger hunt for the matches to have fun with. This activity was to expose the Princess Graduates to campus in a fun and relaxed atmosphere, while working together with their Fairy Godmother. Some of the questions were designed to get them thinking about post-secondary studies and what they would possibly like to pursue, and others were just for fun! The activity was also a great form of exercise as the matches were running back and forth all over campus! The October activity will consist of a self-confidence workshop put on by MASALA Model & Talent. Future activities that the coordinators are looking into are a self defense classes, healthy cooking classe, and a personal finance session with TD Bank to name a few!

Coming up we are having The Fourth Annual Steak Fundraiser for The Princess Shop at The Sutherland Bar for the Saskatchewan Roughriders' away game vs. The Toronto Argonauts on October 15, 2016. This is going to be a fun event to cheer on The Riders, while supporting The Princess Shop! There will be a number of awesome raffle prizes that will be available to win! Tickets are only $20 and you can get yours by contacting The Princess Shop at info@theprincessshop.ca or phone (306) 222-3311!

Last, but certainly not least getting back to routine means starting to plan for the 10th Annual Glass Slipper Benefit for Princesses! The Princess Shop volunteer team has already started brainstorming in preparation to make this year the biggest and best year yet! Make sure you save the date for April 5, 2017, it’s going to be an event you don’t want to miss!

To stay up to date on upcoming events, new and stories for The Princess Shop is doing, join our mailing list! Request to be added can be found on the homepage of our website, www.theprincessshop.ca, along the left page margin! 

The Princess Shop Sponsors
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The Princess Shop
our location
12 - 1622 Ontario Avenue
Saskatoon, SK S7K 1S8
t: 306-222-3311

Store Hours for Dress Returns & Donations:
Monday: 12:00pm - 3:00pm
Wednesday: 10:00am - 1:00pm
Saturday: 10:00am - 3:00pm

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