I arrived home last night after a long journey from Vancouver to Ireland. A stop over in Amsterdam put the journey at 17 hours door to door. I have only to see an airplane seat and I’m asleep which is indeed a rare gift. Melatonin tablets which I buy in bulk in Canada (they aren’t available here) are really helpful in overcoming that horrible feeling of jet lag which unless you have experienced it is like nothing else on earth. Today was spent unpacking and generally stating to think about work and all I have to do to get ready for not only next year but the big cook- in which is Christmas day. It’s going to be turkey( since nobody except me liked the Goose ) with all the trimmings. I still have some homemade mince pies in the freezer from last year and am going to try them out. I have a good feeling about them as the whiskey in them should have acted to preserve them! I think I will make a big Sherry trifle to go along with the pudding but even as I write this I’m getting hungry.
An interesting email popped into my in-box and there was another reminder today, since I needed a little wake up call and am also a sucker for competitions here is my ASOS challenge, courtesy of Polyvore….
Heading home this evening after quite a stressful 12 days here in Vancouver I did get momentarily sidetracked from the main event and found a delightful and interesting bag designer. I have to admit to having a soft spot for both handbags of all types and have been searching for something special for yonks. My ideal bag is made of soft yet strong leather, has no big logo’s or labels so can’t be easily identifiable, is unique, a ‘one of a kind’ and has enough space for all my stuff. I think I may just have found it here in Vancouver. Ashley Watson is a young designer who cut her teeth in NY designing for a very successful company who reworked vintage clothing. While she was in NY she trawled the vintage shops and found herself buying leather jackets and turning them into bags. Friends kept asked for them and so the story continued….
Back in Vancouver Ashley Watson is very well known. The bags are to die for and even though they are completely hand made using vintage leather jackets the finish is superb with none of that homemade look that reworked vintage usually has. I met Ashley yesterday in my hotel and I’m definitely going to try to bring her label to Ireland. There are great styles though of course each bag is completely unique, lined in hemp with great pockets and with really comfortable handles. Take a look at the pictures and let me know what you think?
I haven’t been doing my usual posts this week due to jet lag and family stuff (well, that’s my excuse anyway) but I did come across a really lovely independent boutique in Downtown Gastown here in Vancouver. Called ‘One of a Few’, this boutique stands out in a town where you can shop for all the designer labels in the large and beautifully appointed Holt Renfrew, buy beautiful and very expensive jewellery in Harry Winston or Tiffany and find all the great makeup and perfume you could want in Sephora. I personally love London Drug for all those great great value Chemist shop buys. For example Duo eyelash glue is $4.50 for a huge tube that costs four times that amount at home and vitamins to beat the band at half the cost of home. Chloe’s favorite clothes shop is American Eagle where the value is in the jeans, and great casual gear.
Vancouver is a large town with a small town feel. Large skyscrapers compete with the backdrop of the mountains on the North Shore and the lights on the ski slopes light up the evening view from the the bay below. Sea planes and the sea bus can be seen going back and forth from Downtown and there is a coffee house on every corner being served with impeccable manners by the local Vancouverites.
One of a Few is a sister to ‘Two of A Few’ and is a friendly space with lots of local and exclusive labels which include clothing, accessories and shoes and some vintage finds thrown into the mix. The owner Michelle Rizzardo wasn’t on hand when I called in but the staff were lovely in this relaxed and comfortable boutique. Labels stocked include, Grey Antics, Steven Alan and local label Kersh. A pop up shop on the upper level is now showing Canadian label Lily & Jae
GreyAntic Dress
Lily & Jae pop up shop upstairs
View from my window am
One of a Few is at 354 Water Street, Gastown, Downtown Vancouver BC
Irish designers ‘Kate&Ava’ will open a Christmas ‘pop-up’ shop in The Powerscourt Townhouse shopping centre in Dublin on Wednesday 1st December. Open throughout December, the shop will stock a wide range of pieces from the Kate&Ava Autumn Winter 2010 collection, an exclusive selection of the duo’s much loved party dresses, as well as occasion wear from Tyrrell and Brennan, great knitwear from Heather Finn and Gertrude Sampson, and tops from Helen James. Prices will range from €150-€320. With silk scarves and accessories from €30 there will also be an exciting selection of gift ideas.
One of Kate and Ava's gorgeous dresses on sale
What could be better than buying beautiful Christmas Cards and giving to the ISPCC at the same time. Head into Brown Thomas where they have some stunningly beautiful designer cards by some of the top designers.
Brown Thomas has worked closely with its top designer brands to produce a range of world exclusive designer Christmas cards featuring drawings from Victoria Beckham, Roberto Cavalli, Manolo Blahnik and Lulu Guinness, alongside images from Lanvin and Tiffany & Co. Purchase a set of three cards for €10 in Brown Thomas Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway and all proceeds will go to the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC).
One of the must see movies of 2011 is going to be Black Swan and it’s set to be one of the most stylish movies of the year by all reports. Clothes were designed by the Mulleavy sisters better known as Rodarte. Rodarte is one of the most popular of all the catwalk shows at New York Fashion week and has a huge star studded following which includes Natalie Portman one of the main stars of the movie.
‘It was Portman, who stars as prima ballerina Nina Sayers in the film, that introduced the Mulleavy sisters to Aronofsky, a meeting which led to a commission to create 40 theatrical costumes. Most appear onstage in performances of Swan Lake, but the duo also went on to design much of the knitwear worn throughout the film, from leg and arm-warmers, to wrap-over cardigans and leotards’ (The Telegraph).
I have been away from my blog for a few days now as I travelled to Vancouver last Wednesday. I haven’t spent any time at all in the Gastown area of Vancouver where lots of the interesting boutiques are but I promise I will do that next week. Right now I’m on an Island called Gabriola where I’m staying for tonight. Gabriola is named after a Spanish sailor, it’s one of the Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia which lies between Vancouver Island and British Columbia. The photographs don’t show how incredibly cold it actually is and right now I’m bundled up in a log cabin ( all the houses here are made of wood) waiting for the warmth of the wood stove to get through to my bones. I’m told there is a great Jazz session tomorrow morning in a local hostelry and that’s something I’m looking forward to. I took these pictures an hour ago….
