THE LOCAL FIRM CONTEST WINNERS

The Local Firm sunglasses have been patiently awaiting their knights in shining armor to rescue them from the claws of Blackbird and today we are happy to announce that those knights have been chosen! Yes, ladies can be knights too. Out of the tremendous amount of entries we received, the panel chose to pick two winners and an extra 'honorary' second runner-up!

First we have Rachel from Seattle, who put a Swedish accent on the Baader-Meinhof Gang with this incredible video. We love Volvos, too! Rachel will receive the pair of The Local Firm sunglasses of her choice, as well as a bag of delicious Swedish edibles and a 40% discount off her next purchase at Blackbird!

Second is Veronica from New York City, whose contribution to the spread of Scandinavianism in the United States stretches far beyond the reaches of our humble contest. Veronica throws "Ø," a recurring Scandinavian-themed dance party in NYC. The panel was perplexed by what to do with this submission, as the party wasn't started in honor of The Local Firm, but we decided as a group that her effort was so outstanding that we had to bend the rules a bit and name Veronica a winner. Veronica will receive the second pair of The Local Firm sunglasses, that same bag of Swedish deliciousness and a 40% discount on her next purchase at Blackbird!

Visit Ø on Facebook

Our 'honorary' third-place winner is Shannon from Seattle. Shannon brought the mighty pen and paper together and gave Abba to us in technicolor! Sure, we said we would only have two winners, but who can say no to Abba? Shannon will get a grand bag of Swedish candy and a 40% discount in our stores!

A big thanks to everyone for sending in their submissions and for keeping the spirit of competition alive! All of our other contestants will be receiving 20% discounts to use at Blackbird. Also, know that we're opening our arms and giving you all a great big eHug, whatever that means.

Tack så mycket!

LET YOUR FREAK FLAG FLY, AS LONG AS IT'S BLUE AND YELLOW

It's officially Sweden Week in Seattle and Swedish label The Local Firm is teaming up with Blackbird to celebrate the arrival of Princess Madeleine with a contest!

Blackbird is giving away a pair of The Local Firm shades to the two Blackbird Blog readers that send in the most creative responses to a very fitting question: What is Sweden's greatest contribution to the world?

We encourage you to be as creative as humanly (or digitally) possible with your submissions, whether you make a YouTube video, paint a picture, write a haiku, short story or essay, record a song, or use any other creative outlet to pay homage to the country that brought us social democracy, quality death metal, and the memory foam matresses.

Only two rules apply:

1. No full frontal.

2. Written entries are to be under 500 words.

All entries must be submitted by midnight Pacific Standard Time on 17 May (which happens to be Sweden's neighbor, Norway's national independence day). The entries will be voted upon by the Blackbird panel and the winner will be announced on the blog. First prize is the pair of The Local Firm shades of the winner's choice as well as a mix of delicious Swedish edibles. The runner up will receive the second pair of glasses, and both of the two best entries will be displayed on the Blackbird Blog for the world to see.

The Local Firm, which will hit the Blackbird sales floor this fall, is a Swedish label designed by Richard Hutchisson and Axel Nyhage who carry joint experience from labels such as Acne Jeans, Whyred and Tiger of Sweden. Founded in August of 2007, the label puts a progressive edge on street fashion of the Eastern Bloc with intelligent, artful design.

Email submissions to james@blackbirdballard.com or send them to us via USPS at

Blackbird

2208 NW Market Street, Suite 320

Seattle, WA 98107