I LOVE MY JOB.
Beauty product samples and lunchtime fashion shows are the perks of the trade. And then there are those unexpected moments, like when a muscular guy dressed only in briefs and a giant ram's head shows up unannounced at the front desk to deliver a press kit.
Icebreaker's sexy mascot Ramotaur paid a visit to the News last Thursday with his handler Nicole Toering, assistant manager of the newly opened TouchLab store in The Village at Park Royal.
It's the second Vancouver location for the New Zealand company known for its merino wool adventure apparel. The first opened in Kitsilano in spring 2011. The store features Icebreaker's complete line of pure merino wool apparel, including its outdoor, running, travel, kids, underwear and city collections as well as socks and accessories, all made from handpicked merino wool from New Zealand's Southern Alps.
A nifty feature of each Icebreaker garment is a Baacode sewn into the inner seam, which lets you trace the merino fibre through the supply chain and right back to the farm where it was grown.
Store hours are Monday and Tuesday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Wednesday to Friday, 10 a.m.-9 p.m., Saturday, 9: 30 a.m.-6 p.m. and Sunday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
REDFISH CELEBRATES
After quietly opening in Ambleside this past summer, Redfish Kids Clothing is ready to make some noise. Redfish Kids designer Lorraine Kitsos and her business partner Kristy Brinkley have planned a weekend of fun and entertainment this Sept. 29-30 at their boutique, located at 1512 Marine Dr. in West Vancouver.
The store carries the partners' own Redfish Kids Clothing line for boys and girls - which is made locally and sold internationally - as well as carefully chosen gift items from imported brands Petit Bateau, Steiff, Raplapla, Atsuyo et Akiko and Playsam.
The Ambleside location follows on the opening last spring of a flagship store at 851 Hornby St. in downtown Vancouver.
This Saturday between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the West Van boutique, 4Cats Art Studio will oversee kids arts and crafts and there'll be balloon tying and games with Scruffles from noon to 2 p.m. On Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m., there'll be live guitar music and a young dress designers art project followed by storytime at 3-4: 15 p.m.
SO BLU EXPANDS
Fans of So Blu Clothing Co. are seeing double. The popular men's and women's clothing store has opened a second location, in North Vancouver's Edgemont Village neighbourhood.
Store owner Jennifer Sharp says the move was in anticipation of extensive renovations to the building that houses the original So Blu, at 1519 Bellevue Ave. in West Vancouver. Those renovations have been delayed and the Ambleside boutique is remaining open until construction starts, says Sharp. The Bellevue Avenue boutique will close while the building's upstairs condo units are gutted and rebuilt and the storefront is refaced. Work is expected to take seven to nine months and then So Blu will reopen with a fresh look.
Meantime, shoppers can find their favourite brands at So Blu West Van or the new temporary shop, at 3044 Edgemont Blvd., in the space vacated by Current.
The Edgemont Village shop will remain open into the new year and possibly longer, says Sharp, who has brought "colours, colours, colours" into her stores for fall.
Her advice on how to dress for fall when it feels like summer: "Some of the brighter spring colours are melding into fall, so you might be wearing spring colours and pairing them up with some heavier denims on the bottom and start to think about wearing boots."
She likes Khrio and Frye boots - laceup short boots or tall with zippers, in dark burgundy or rich browns. In denims, J Brand's coated skinny jeans and Mavi Gold sateen denims are trending. The Edgemont So Blu also has a small selection of menswear.
Hours are 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday in Edgemont, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday in Ambleside.
