This story category covers information of interest to Canadian readers, particularly those living in Vancouver.

Omer Arbel - Cory Dawson

Omer Arbel Explores Vancouver His Way

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Internationally renowned designer Omer Arbel burns, illuminates and drives his way around Vancouver.

Omer Arbel - Cory DawsonEvery so often Vancouver produces a superstar— like internationally renowned Vancouver designer Omer Arbel, touted by Wallpaper magazine in 2003 as one of the 15 designers of the future. His bubblelike cast glass pendant Bocci lights, just five years old, are already iconic, as much a design staple as a Noguchi coffee table or Eames chair. He has designed everything from furniture, interiors and electrical sockets (see below) to the 2010 Winter Olympic medals in collaboration with aboriginal artist Corrine Hunt. His numerous awards include the Canada Council’s Ron Thom Early Design Achievement Award, International Design Award and the Design Prize of the German Republic.

Omer Arbel’s 5 free, cheap or worth it things to see, do or buy in Vancouver Read more
Specialty Leggings - iStock

Skinny Legs And All

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Fashionista Laurel Zapke picks her top 10 leggings to take you through fall—both plain and sexy kinds.

Specialty Leggings - iStockBUY RIGHT | Blame it on Betsey. American fashion designer Betsey Johnson, known for her princess-meets-punk designs, has long loved leggings. Betsey knew what she was doing in the 1980s when she paired a cropped black cotton legging with a sheer black full chiffon knee-length skirt attached to a black cotton top with a sweetheart neckline and capped sleeves. I borrowed that dress from a friend in 1988 and wore it with all the glory and pride of a blushing bride. I still wear Betsey today—only now the Betsey pieces are not borrowed, they are mine. And anytime I want a little edge in my look, I just “Betsey” things up with a legging. Read more

Don Genova Shops & Noshes In Vancouver

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Noted B.C. food journalist Don Genova shops, slurps and noshs his way around Vancouver.

Don Genova At Legendary Noodle - C. PhaisalakaniDon Genova is a food journalist and educator who splits his time between Vancouver and an acreage in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island. His work is heard regularly on CBC Radio and seen in Aqua magazine with a column called Pacific Palate. Don teaches food and travel writing at UBC with in-person and online courses and offers sustainable eating courses at the University of Victoria. You may also catch him teaching cooking classes at Thrifty Foods or the French Mint cooking school in Victoria. You can follow Don’s adventures in eating on his blog, blog.dongenova.com, and get information on his classes on his website, www.dongenova.com. He also tweets @dongenova.

Don Genova’s 5 free, cheap or worth it things to see, do or buy in Vancouver Read more
Reverse The Curve - C. Phaisalakani

Reverse Your Curve With This Easy Pose

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We’re becoming a nation of stoopers; “reverse the curve” with this challenge.

Reverse The Curve - C. Phaisalakani

 

FIVE-MINUTE-YOGA | Most of what we do, including typing, cooking, driving, reading and gardening, encourages us to lift our shoulder blades, jut our heads forward and round our backs. Don’t get stuck there. Instead, reverse the curve with a chest-opening pose. You’ll make more space for your lungs, bring your shoulders back into place, relieve upper back tension and stretch your front chest muscles. Even five minutes a day makes a difference—as long as it’s every day. Read more

Hardcore Circuit Classes Are The Bomb

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Top level circuit classes are a solid alternative to personal training.

Running ShoesFIT FOR LESS | Anyone addicted to personal training can rattle off the benefits: great personal trainers keep you motivated and driving hard toward a level of fitness that always feels just out of reach; PTs teach proper strength training techniques, then push you like you would never push yourself to perform exercises correctly and with intent; ongoing work with a trainer means your abs will ripple but your tush will not (or not much anyway), that whatever health conditions, body image issues or training goals brought you there in the first place will be studiously addressed. So personal training is a good thing, and if you have been doing it, you probably don’t want to stop even when it starts to feel like the black dog of recession is nipping at your wallet. Read more

Robert Fung’s Fave Gastown Haunts

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With his eye for design and authenticity, heritage developer Robert Fung is our man on the ground in Gastown.

Robert FungDubbed “the poster child of heritage” by Heritage Vancouver president Donald Luxton, Vancouver developer Robert Fung is dedicated to revitalizing not only the buildings of Gastown but also the neighbourhood itself. Design-conscious but not snobby, Robert believes that historic environments and modernism are not mutually exclusive concepts. His company, The Salient Group, has won numerous heritage awards and recently received a prestigious Lieutenant Governor’s medal for architecture for the refurbished Garage, Terminus and Alhambra buildings, eliciting comments like “This is what architecture is meant to be.” Robert knows Gastown inside out and is actively involved in the daily life of the community. With his eye for design and authenticity, he’s our man on the ground in Gastown.

7 free, cheap or worth it things to see, do or buy in Gastown

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Eat, Read, Swim—Ms. McIntosh Does YVR

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Culinary personality Barbara-jo McIntosh shares her favourite “free, cheap or worth it” things to see, do or buy in Vancouver.

Barbara-jo McIntoshThe owner of Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks, Barbara-jo McIntosh has served on the prestigious James Beard Awards cookbook selection committee and received a Vancouver magazine lifetime achievement award for her many contributions to the local culinary scene.  McIntosh reveals a softer side in her recently published third book, Cooking for Me and Sometimes You: A Parisienne Romance with Recipes. It’s a tale of  “cooking with tenderness in Paris,” says fellow food writer Mia Stainsby in The Vancouver Sun, who thinks its sweet words and delightful recipes will inspire readers to cook more mindfully—and with love. Read more

Shell Busey’s Got Home Maintenance Solutions

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Want to conserve water, obliterate ants and pesky weeds? Vancouver’s home improvement expert Shell Busey explores maintenance on the cheap side.

Shell BuseyShell Busey, host of the Home Discovery Radio Program broadcast on the Corus Radio Network throughout Western Canada, is one of Canada’s best known experts on home improvement. Shell also leads the HouseSmart Home Services Referral Network, a free service he created to help homeowners find qualified and reliable tradespeople, suppliers and products for their home improvement projects. For more information visit thehousesmart.com. Read more

Fresh Air Movie Night in Vancouver

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Going to a Fresh Air Cinema event (or two) should be on everyone’s “Must Do” list for the summer.

Fresh Air Cinema screenFREE IS GOOD | In the 1950s, when cars and families were big but budgets were small, drive-in movies were the perfect inexpensive way to spend a night out. Now there’s Fresh Air Cinema, which is not just frugal, it’s absolutely free. Read more

Subaru micro van

Read About The Little Engine That Could

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Tiny Japanese kei cars are cost-effective, fuel-efficient and more powerful than a Smart.

Subaru micro vanWhat’s shorter than a Mini Cooper, skinnier than a Toyota Echo and cuter than a VW Bug? The answer is a kei car, Japanese for “light vehicle.” The term may be unfamiliar, but you’ve probably noticed these cute and quirky little trucks, cars and vans zipping around local streets.

Kei cars are as practical as they are cute. Japan is a tiny country with narrow roads and few natural resources, so in 1949 (61 years ago!) the government introduced tax breaks for small, fuel-efficient vehicles. Though the maximum size has grown since then, kei cars are still less than 3.4 metres long and 1.48 metres wide, and have engines no more than 660 cc and 64 horsepower (this may sound wimpy, but a Smart has just 42 horsepower). Read more