Meet One of Our Readers— Marie-Ève Campbell

[IMAGE-1]

A few weeks ago, Marie-Ève sent me an email to tell me she needed to update her address - ok, nothing unsusual. But, I noticed her email signature and the curious in me took over. I visited her website and found that she and her husband owned and operated a sweet bakery called Toujours Dimanche in Quebec. A few emails were exchanged and I was delighted to get to know one of Pure Green Mag's susbcribers, which got me thinking: wouldn't it be neat to start a blog series about the very same subject! So here we are! 

[IMAGE-2]

About Toujours Dimanche

William, my husband, and I moved back to the country to open Boulangerie Toujours Dimanche (meaning Always Sunday bakery) three years ago. Our bakery is located downtown Matane, a small town along the St-Lawrence River, in Gaspesie, Quebec. There are three parts in our project :

A bakery, where we prepare and sell artisanal breads, a selection of homemade treats (croissants, amandines, muffins, bars, cookies, cakes, etc.), sandwiches, focaccia, etc. We use organic flours and local ingredients (cheeses, vegetables, herbs, meats, honey, berries, etc.)

A cafe, where we serve fair trade coffees, lattes, espressos, organic juices and sodas, local teas. People can sit in the cafe section, surf on free wireless Internet, read the paper, enjoy a treat while listening to good music.

A shop, where we sell a selection of finds for the home, the kitchen, for self or to offer as gifts. We carry some local products (flour, jams, honey, teas, meats, cheeses, organic dry food, etc.) as well as paper goods from SusyJack, Rifle Paper Co, Darling Clementine, soy candles and dishes from Canvas, wooden products from a local craftsman, cremes and perfumes from Love and Toast, MT tape, paper straws from Greenmunch, Divine Twine, among others.

This is definitly the best year of our business. We have great employees (four during the summer, two full time during the rest of the year), and the most wonderful customers you could wish for. We also sell breads to many restaurants and places around town, which makes us really proud of our products. And, good news, I am now pregnant with my first, coming in the middle of the next summer! Congratulations Marie-Ève

[IMAGE-3]

[IMAGE-4]

Green living is at the center of our lives. First, we try to guide our choices, at Toujours Dimanche, so they are as green as possible, from the organic and local ingredients to the second hand dishes we buy, or the reclaimed wood our local carpenter used to build our service counter, or the choice to not use individual jam, butter, sugar or milk portions. 

[IMAGE-5]

[IMAGE-6]

In our personal life, this is the same. We eat local or organic most of the time. Our food is our top priority, especially with our child to come. We make an effort to never waste food. We cook a lot so we don’t buy canned food. We recycle, obviously. We have only one car. My husband only buys second hand clothes (I’m not there yet…). We use natural cleaning products. We like to buy from independant local shops instead of superstores.

Being green is a way of thinking, a way to guide my daily life. It does not seem like an effort to me; it is just how I like to live, because all our actions have an impact on others, directly or not. And it is possible to do it all with great pleasure!

[IMAGE-7]

[IMAGE-8]

Every so often I will be profiling one of our amazing and very appreciated readers here on the blog. Interested? Introduce yourself! Write in to submissions@puregreenmag.com... include a good photo or two and a brief paragraph about you and/or your business along with a paragraph about how you do your best to live green. Can't WAIT to meet you!

PHOTOGRAPHS by Caroline Beaulieu (photo of Marie-Ève only) and Julie Houde-Audet.

[IMAGE-9]