Back To Nature Apparel

🧡 Today is a day to listen, learn and reflect.

On the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, we honour the children who never returned home, the Survivors of residential schools, their families and their communities.

As people who spend so much of our lives surrounded by nature, today also reminds us that the lands, waters and wildlife we treasure have been cared for by Indigenous Peoples for generations.

There is much to learn from that deep relationship with the natural world, including the importance of respect, responsibility and caring for the land not only for ourselves, but for the generations that follow.

Today, we take time to reflect on the past, listen to Indigenous voices and consider the part each of us can play in reconciliation.

🧡 Every Child Matters.

🍂 One last outdoor market before we wrap up the season! 🍂

This Thursday is our final outdoor market of the year, and we’ll be spending it at the Canmore Mountain Market!

If you’re in the Canmore area, we’d love to have you come down, say hello and spend a little time with us. You’ll find us alongside a wonderful group of Canadian artisans and makers, each bringing something unique and made with heart.

🎄 And yes, it’s definitely not too early to start thinking about Christmas!

Come get a jump on your holiday shopping, find something a little different for the nature lover on your list, and feel good knowing you’re choosing Canadian-made products while supporting Canadian small businesses. 🍁❤️

We’d love to see some familiar faces before we say goodbye to our outdoor market season for another year.

📍 Canmore Mountain Market
📅 This Thursday, Oct. 1st, 10am - 6pm

Who’s coming to see us? 😊

📸 TIPS & TRICKS TUESDAY: Sometimes the best thing you can do is back up.

One thing I’ve learned over the years photographing wildlife is that getting closer doesn’t always mean getting a better photograph.

A long lens is one of the most important tools I carry, not just because it brings the animal closer in the frame, but because it allows me to give that animal the space it deserves.

When I come across wildlife, I like to stop, stay quiet and watch for a while. If the animal continues feeding, resting or behaving naturally, I know I’m far enough away that my presence isn’t changing what it’s doing.

And that’s usually when the best photographs happen.

Some of my favourite images haven’t come from getting closer. They’ve come from being patient enough to let the moment unfold on its own.

My tip? Let your lens do the approaching, not your feet.

The photograph is never more important than the animal.

~ Stan 📷

🐐 We’d love your help choosing our next cushion!

We’ve had quite a few requests for a mountain goat cushion, which we love because these beautiful animals are such an iconic part of our Canadian Rockies.

Stan and I have narrowed it down to two of his photographs… but this time we just can’t agree on which one should make the cut!

So we thought we’d turn the decision over to you. After all, you’re the ones who will hopefully be welcoming one of these mountain goats into your home. ❤️

🏔️ Which one would you choose - A or B?

Take a look at both and drop your vote in the comments below. And if there is a particular reason why, we would love to hear it.👇 We always love involving you in these decisions, and we can’t wait to see which one comes out on top!

May your week be full of blessings from nature... time to let things go ❤️🧡💛

🍂 One little accessory, so many ways to wear it!

Our head/neck buffs have become a customer favourite because they’re lightweight, comfortable and incredibly versatile. Wear one around your neck to take the chill off, pull it up over your face when the wind picks up, or use it as a headband to keep your ears warm.

And of course, each one features one of our own wildlife photographs, so you can take a little piece of nature with you wherever you wander. 💜

Perfect for hiking, walking the dog, travelling, working outdoors or simply enjoying a crisp autumn day.

👉 Which wildlife design would you wear?
Discover our complete collection today at https://backtonatureapparel.com/collections/head-neck-buffs-collection

FLASHBACK SUNDAY | Talk about noisy neighbours! 😂

Last year while visiting Vernon, BC, we learned from Stan's sister about something we certainly didn’t expect to find right in the middle of the city... a Great Blue Heron rookery!

High in a remnant grove of black cottonwood trees were dozens of nests, with these gangly, prehistoric-looking birds coming and going above the surrounding homes.

And I have to admit, one of my first thoughts was... I can only imagine what the neighbours’ houses and yards look like! 😂

If you’ve ever seen a Great Blue Heron p**p, you’ll know exactly what I mean. They don’t just politely drop a little something behind. Their droppings can be ejected with some force, sometimes while they’re flying, leaving a rather impressive trail of sticky white liquid behind them. Seagull whitewash has nothing on these guys!

But the story of this rookery is actually pretty special.

Herons have apparently been nesting here for nearly 40 years, with somewhere around 40 to 60 nests tucked high in the cottonwoods. Over those years, Vernon simply grew up around them.

The landowner became so fond of the herons that a restrictive covenant was placed on the grove to help protect their nesting site. The land cannot be sold until a year after the last herons have stopped nesting there.

So there we were, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods, watching these huge birds glide overhead and somehow make the most graceful landings onto branches and nests high above us.

The colony itself is protected and fenced off, with no trespassing allowed, so we watched and photographed them respectfully from outside the protected area.

It was one of those wonderful reminders that sometimes nature doesn’t disappear when our cities grow. Sometimes it simply learns to live right alongside us.

Although, if I lived underneath 40–60 heron nests, I might invest in a really good pressure washer. 😂

Have you ever discovered a wildlife colony somewhere you would never have expected to find one?

🍂 There’s something pretty special about seeing one of our wildlife photographs become something you can actually wear.

Our Kimono Cover Ups take some of the moments we’ve been fortunate enough to experience behind the lens and turn them into beautiful, wearable pieces of nature.

Dress them up for an evening out, throw one over black leggings for a casual gathering, or give one to someone who simply loves wildlife and the outdoors. They make great beach and pool cover ups too. 🎁

Canadian-made and created from our own wildlife photography. 📷
👉 Take a peek at our Kimono Cover Ups and see which story speaks to you.
https://backtonatureapparel.com/collections/kimonos-cover-ups-collection