Cantin's Canadian Crafts

Biographical Notes of Norah Cantin

A native of Edmonton, Alberta, Norah moved with her husband to beautiful British Columbia in 1998. Their move brought them closer to their adult children and their families. Her son's Ross McNamara & his partner, Dianna Ducs, and grandson Drew live in Nelson, B.C. (Teague - grandson, is currently in Edmonton), Gerard and his wife Jody live in Bellingham, and Tom and his wife Katherine live in Victoria.

Norah became interested in artistic endeavours at an early age, when she began to paint in water colors and oils. She studied landscape, nature and wildlife painting through the University of Alberta Extension Program over 30 years ago and these subjects remain her favorite.

While employed in the social services field of employment, she taught both oils and water color painting to varied special populations including troubled youth to people afflicted with Alzheimer's disease or related dementia.

Besides her career as a parent, counselling, teaching, painting, card design and crafts have been a passion of hers. Norah's most recent interest over the last ten years has been handmade jewelry. Her and her husband are rockhounds and use the stones they find for diverse purposes. Some are cut and polished for jewelry while some are used for carving objects, many which are ornamental.

Norah has a Master's Degree in Adult Education (1992) from St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. She has taught various subjects in numerous post secondary institutions in both Alberta and B. C..

 

She is one of four people who founded "McMan Youth and Community Services Association," (1975), now one of the largest Child Welfare organizations in Alberta. She worked for Alberta Advanced Education and Career Development for several years then became a self-employed Career Consultant and the owner and publisher of, "Business and Empoyment Trends", a bi-monthly newsletter, and received an Alberta Award of Excellence for contibution to the field of career development, just prior to leaving Alberta. With her varied background, Norah's interests and volunteer work include being involved with the Surrey Rockhound Club; she is Queen of "The Red Hot Crumpets," a member chapter of the Red Hat Society; and a member of the "Wild West Country Dancers", (a line-dance group with Peggy Thompson).

 

Norah's current focus is primarily on Cantin's Canadian Crafts, which is a family owned business. She designs the jewelry and crafts herself as well as teaches group classes or individuals by appointment. In the summer you can find her at the out door venue "Surrey Urban Farmer's Market, at 102 Ave. and West Whalley Ring Road, Near Surrey Central Sky train. For information on the market phone her at (604) 805-5906. Her and Simon have travelled extensively, in the U.S.; Mexico; New Zeland, Australia; Thailand; and throughout Canada, the Yukon and Alaska bringing back rock and gem treasures, for their crafts, from their various adventures.

Biographical Notes of Simon Cantin

A French Canadian originally from Hearst Ontario, Simon gained an appreciation of the outdoors and wildlife, at an early age growing up in the rural country side. He is bilingual with French being his first language.

He lived in Alberta for twenty five years before moving to British Columbia.

In Edmonton he learned to appreciate the fine art of NHL Hockey and has been an avid Oiler's fan ever since.

In Alberta, he had his own construction business for several years and became interested in designing and building furniture and specialty pieces of woodwork which he did for approximately twenty five years, mostly as a hobby, while also studing woodwork and construction design through the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology in Edmonton.

When he moved to B.C. twelve years ago Simon studied stone carving at Kwantlen University College. In the last several years his skills and interest in rocks and gems has grown and he has begun to search for and collect his own stones for carvings. As a member of the Surrey Rockhound Club, he learned the ropes of cutting and polishing rocks and gems, and silver smithing for making jewellery. Simon has taught and teaches stone carving classes for "Beginner Sculpturer's " and has had students from elementary school age to those eighty years plus. Now he mostly teaches individual lessons on carving by request or does periodic teaching at the Surrey Rockhound Workshop.

Simon's work has been collected and displayed both nationally and internationally. He displays his sculptures at various Art Shows and galleries throughout the province including the annual local "Artist's Studio Tour De White Rock". In the summer (from May 15th till October 31st) you can find him carving, and displaying his work, on the weekends at "Painters Square," in front of the Museum on the beach in White Rock. (This is a juried and licensed group of artists who work and sell at this local venue for artists).

Besides the Surrey Rockhound Club, he is a member of the Surrey Arts Council, the British Columbia Wilderness Society, the Canadian Geographic Society, and the National Geographic Society.

Simon is a Cartographer by profession which he studied at Algonquin College in Ottawa before moving West to work in this field. He is currently self employed doing contract work.

He resides in the area of White Rock, British Columbia with his wife Norah.