COPped a sweater at COP, Lolo Jewellery sale

Have you ever told a nice salesperson you’d return to a store and never did? I admit, I’ve done it. But not this time!

After my South Granville tour I said I’d return to Clothing of the People (COP), but didn’t know it would be so soon. What helped is the Living Social Deal they did two weeks ago – $25 for $50 of clothing.

It did surprise me that they did the deal, since they have SO many reputable and higher end brands. But, they are still a young store so have a long way to go to get people in the doors.

I was looking for my top coveted item – a new Spring jacket – and also browsed a few of the dresses – but couldn’t find what I was looking for. I did however, spot a mesh grey Michael Stars sweater (I LOVE mesh) that was reasonably priced and great for summer. Because of the mesh, I thought I would have to wear a tank underneath each time, but it actually works without one.

Michael Stars sweater – $96 – $25 = $51

On a separate note, I met the talented designer of Lolo Jewellery & Accessories, Lorena Rai last Thursday. You will likely recognize her items from shops like BeautyMark. Well, you’re in luck. She’s having a sale and for one more night only. You can click on the flyer for more details.

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Rediscovering South Granville & more March finds!

Tuesday I took a chunk of my work day to re-explore the vibrant South Granville district (8th Avenue to 16th Avenue) and introduce myself to yet more of the CRAVE Guide entreprenesses in the city, while looking for a few new Spring pair of pants (easing my way into a vegan diet forced me down two sizes and had me saying goodbye to three pairs!).

I was blown away at how much this street has grown, retail-wise. Seriously, watch out Robson! The only thing I was missing that day was my mom! And I say that not because she would have paid for my stuff, but because S. Granville is an excellent place to shop for both young adults and older women and men. There’s a great range of boutiques, home decor shops, cafes, restaurants, and beauty bars to make it worth a day trip. Just don’t pay too much for your metre parking!

First stop: Babs Studio Boutique (babs.ca), owned by the one and only Babs Lucas. The storefront says mostly Canadian designed, but I was wowed to see the range of colours and fabrics this store had. Definitely more of an older demographic and an Eastern flair, but some great outerwear pieces for the upcoming colourful summer trends. Babs also has plus sizes available.

Neighbour to Babs is the passionate Julia Manitius of Urbanity (urbanity.ca). You may have recognized this shop when it was in Gastown, but Urbanity has a new home. What’s interesting about Urbanity is that it is the ONLY Canadian retailer (and agent) for the OLEANA line from Norway. What is OLEANA you ask? Only the most incredible, traditional yet vibrant line of sweaters and other items that I’ve ever seen. Let’s see if I can find just ONE picture to do the line justice!

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Birthday luck & luxury at Vij’s

Over a month prior to my birthday, I started thinking about how I wanted to celebrate. I’m a new vegetarian, but I’ve kept a tradition of eating meat on special occasions, so I knew I wanted to eat meat somewhere special. I told my boyfriend that I wanted to eat at Wendy’s for lunch (a Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger meal with iced tea – my usual entree of choice in high school) and at Vij’s for dinner. Dawn Chubai, host of CityTV Breakfast Television said she was going to Vij’s on her birthday, and didn’t care how long she’d have to wait. This is because Vij’s takes no reservations for anyone. Whether you’re a celebrity or a family member, you eat in sequential order just like everyone else. So be warned!

This week’s Georgia Straight newspaper had its annual Golden Plate issue where they highlight readers’ choices in favourite restaurants. And it was a sign that Vij’s made the top of the list for #1 Indian food.

My boyfriend and I planned to get there at 6pm on Good Friday, and put our names on the waiting list – it was about an hour and a half wait. I started a tradition of eating cupcakes on our birthdays, so my boyfriend said, “if we go and come back, we can make Cupcakes before it closes.” The only thing was, we had already paid for 2 1/2 hours worth of parking. We threw caution to the wind and took off to get cupcakes to go, and returned to find that our original spot was there, with 2 hours to spare. A birthday parking miracle!

The wait after that was an hour, and we passed the time with some drinks (I had a tasty Indian mojito) and warm snacks that owner Vikram Vij himself and his staff set out for the 40 or so people in the waiting lounge: fries, fried pita chips and fried lentil balls (for lack of the proper name). My tongue was having tastegasms at the lentil balls alone.
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