Granted Clothing Retro Hockey Mittens

Retro-Vibe Gifts For The Fashion-Forward Tribe

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Retro chic items from Vancouver’s Granted Clothing and Native Shoes make fashionable and affordable Christmas gifts.

Granted Clothing Retro Hockey MittensCHEAP + CHIC | Neo-retro fashion is a “time travelling aesthetic”— contemp- orary, eye-catching clothing and accessories with silhouettes and motifs that are vaguely familiar, mostly warm and fuzzy references to true vintage fashions you’ve seen in shops or items you wore when you were younger.

Granted Clothing and Native Shoes are two successful Vancouver companies that design and manufacture outerwear and shoes (respectively) with a neo-retro vibe. Granted makes premium, chunky hand-knit fashions, while Native makes some of the coolest plastic shoes on the planet. Both have a cult following internationally, particularly in Japan where being unfashionable is quite possibly a crime; both have received miles of prestigious fashion ink. Read more

Rachel Mara On Sale, Oh My!

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Rachel Mara On Sale, Oh My!

THE TURN ON: It comes as no surprise to us that Vancouver-born designer Rachel Mara’s fashions are much loved by celebrities and those in the know.
She understands what it’s like to be a modern woman because, well, she is one, so true to form, she creates clothes with different body types in mind. You just know her pieces will work as well off the runway as they look good on it.

WHAT’S THE DEAL: Rachel Mara can be found in the ritziest boutiques, including Fred Segal, Saks Fifth Avenue and Holt Renfrew, but it’s best to shop at her online boutique where you can currently save up to 80 per cent off select items. We’ve fallen in love with a versatile striped wrap that’s been marked down to $50 from $168. And with coats that were priced at up to $600 down to $100, we’re tempted to buy one of each!

WHY WE’RE EXCITED: Didn’t we mention the coats for $100?  Also since all her clothes are made in Canada, we’re feeling a little national pride.

HOW LONG WILL THE PLEASURE LAST: Until the items are sold out.

WHERE’S THE F SPOT!: online at rachelmara.com

Submitted by Natasha Muslih

Martin Tessler

Martin Tessler Views, Noshes and Shops YVR

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Photographer Martin Tessler is our guy with an eye for what to see, eat and buy in fair and rainy Vancouver.

Martin TesslerA favourite among Canada’s top shelter magazine editors and art directors as well as talented architects and interior designers from coast to coast, Vancouver photographer Martin Tessler is known for exploiting the most dramatic, least apparent angles of the buildings, rooms and gardens he shoots.

Tessler recently won both gold and silver honours at Canada’s National Magazine Awards and includes among his current high-profile assignments Douglas Coupland’s home and James Franco’s portrait for The New York Times. Oh, and he also covered Canadian Architect with Bob Rennie’s private and uber cool Wing Sang [art] Gallery located on Pender Street. Read more

Gift-Wrap That’s Easy, Quick And Reusable

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Forget gift paper and ribbon, traditional Japanese wrapping cloth is easy, quick and reusable.

WASTE NOT | The first Christmas morning my husband spent with my family was a culture shock. Before we opened our presents, my mother handed each of us a knife, which we used to carefully slit the adhesive tape instead of ripping the paper off in the mad frenzy my husband was used to. When all the presents had been opened, my mother collected and folded the paper to save until the following year. We would no more have thought of throwing it out than tossing the Christmas ornaments after dismantling the tree. Read more

Sorel Boots

Bold, Beautiful Boots For Bargain-Hunter Babes

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Fashion writer Laurel Zapke tracks down bold, beautiful and bargain-priced boots for every season and reason imaginable.

Sorel BootsSHOPPING AROUND | In Vancouver, it’s boot season all year long. The Kitsilano Chic girls wear fuzzy boots with bare legs and shorts in the summer evenings, while the uptown crowd wears thigh-highs with five-inch heels in any season. My favourites are soft black leather with a short chunky heel and zipped up comfortably to mid-calf. The only thing I love more than the way they feel is the price tag: less than $100. To help you track down your own favourites, we’ve done the footwork to find the most current styles with price tags under $200. Read more

Hotel deLuxe Lobby - Portland, Oregon

The Cheapest, Chicest Hotels In Portland

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With its surfeit of chic hotels for every taste, Portland is the perfect stylish and affordable getaway—especially now.

Hotel deLuxe Lobby - Portland, OregonTRAVEL ADVISORY | Forget Seattle, Vancou- verites. For a getaway where the food is the hottest (just Google “Portland Food Scene” and you’ll see), the hotels are the coolest and the shopping is sales tax free, spend an extended weekend in Portland, Oregon, especially this time of year.

Why now? Because Portland hoteliers are heading into what they call the low season, when their already reasonable rates drop even more dramatically—and the chicest hotels are seriously budget priced. (These rates are even more attractive with the Canadian dollar currently at par.)

The 3 Cheapest Chicest Hotels In Portland Right Now Read more
Kelly Deck

Kelly Deck’s Top Sources For Home Decor & More

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Top Vancouver interior designer and media personality Kelly Deck shares great + affordable sources for stylish things for your home.

Kelly DeckKelly Deck has immersed herself in the spirit and lifestyle of the West Coast design community. When she opened her interior décor boutique on Vancouver’s Main Street in 2002, she began a successful foray into homes and backyards, developing a design presence that champions the integrity of coast living and the importance of design.

Now the director of Kelly Deck Design in beachside Kitsilano, her full-service interior design firm specializes in private residences. Her ideas have gained national reach through her Globe and Mail column The West Coast Way; her HGTV series, Take It Outside; and her appearances on Urban Rush, CityLine TV and Breakfast Television.

Kelly Deck’s 5 free, cheap or worth it things to see, do or buy in Vancouver Read more
Big City Bar Nuts - Clinton Hussey

Easy Appie #2: Lesley Stowe’s Big City Bar Nuts

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Before treating the world to her signature Raincoast Crisps, Vancouver chef Lesley Stowe served this sinfully simple—and quick—appetizer to her catering clients.

Big City Bar Nuts - Clinton HusseyENTERTAIN SMART | Long before Lesley Stowe began producing Raincoast Crisps, the one-of-a-kind, gourmet cracker-alternative she manufactures locally and distributes throughout North America, she owned and operated the most celebrated catering and specialty food emporium in Vancouver. From her charming (now closed) shop off Burrard Street, she and her team offered prepared dishes and imported food products from around the world and treated Vancouverites to a taste of delicacies previously unavailable in the city.

Known for her inventive mix of ingredients (to which Raincoast Crisps are a testament), Stowe says that Big City Bar Nuts were a favourite on her catering menu. “There are quite a few sweet and salty things out there, but our recipe added something on the savoury side. It’s the hint of rosemary that makes them stand out.”

This nut mixture, made in under 10 minutes, was a show-stopper then—and now! Read more

Christmas Wrap - 123rf

4 Sources For Big Rolls Of Great Holiday Gift-Wrap

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When buying holiday gift-wrapping paper, go big or go home.

Christmas Wrap - 123rfSAVE MONEY + TIME | The most cost-effective time to buy Christmas wrap and ribbon is in January when it’s discounted by half or more. Almost as good is to buy it now in large and luxurious rolls. Not only is there a cost savings when you buy big, but there’s also the peace of mind from knowing you have enough paper no matter what shape or how large the gift. This year I’m going for stylish big-bulk rolls, and also for tough. I want paper that can stand up to peeking, paper that’s not bible-tissue wuss-wrap that tears at the slightest tug.

4 Great Local Sources For Big-Bulk Wrap Read more

Party Planning Made Easy: Try A Work-Back Schedule

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So much to do. So little time. Treat Christmas like a business and use a work-back schedule—you could find the season more enjoyable.

SAVE ON STRESS | Time to Hall out ye-old workback schedule If you’re like me, one month from now, December 12 to be exact, you will start to panic and pour on the holiday steam. You’ll shop madly, bake badly, decorate like a maniac and begin, finally, to think about the design for your custom Christmas card, kicking yourself as you do every year for not having jumped on it earlier. So much to be done in so little time and all of it accomplished in the evenings.

Christmas will never be as carefree for adults as it is for kids—we have too much work to do behind the scenes—but this year I’m going corporate and using a simplified version of a “work-back schedule” to get everything done in an unhurried, orderly and more enjoyable manner. Read more