Tag Archives: Toronto shopping

ARCHIVES TORONTO CELEBRATES BRAZILIAN JEWELLERY DESIGNER ANA KHOURI

I spent a lovely time this evening attending the cocktail reception introducing the stunning jewellery from Brazilian designer ANA KHOURI. The ARCHIVES store is located at the n.w. corner of the Four Seasons Hotel in Yorkville (Toronto) and offers other fine jewellery designers as well as fashion & home accessories, fabulous sunglasses, mens’ accessories and even glam tableware. So armed with my trusty flute of bubbly, I strolled thru the store enjoying the precious and semi-precious bling on display so join me for a quick virtual visit to www.archivesltd.com/

Here are some of Ana’s beautiful pieces currently in the store featuring 18ct gold with rubies, emeralds, diamonds, sapphires and other gemstones & pearls.20160331_181203 20160331_181046AK

www.anakhouri.com/

Lots of celebs wear Ana’s designs, esp. her ear cuffs – Jennifer Lawrence, Lupita Nyong’o and Cameron Diaz have all sported Ana’s baubles on Hollywood red carpets….JLaw Lupita CammieArchives represents a number of other int’l designers such as Iradj Moini who designed the fabulous Aventurine brooch worn by one of the lovely sales associates (below).20160331_180948 20160331_18101720160331_182548 20160331_182616…and their fashion accessories are exquisite, too.20160331_182503 20160331_182528 20160331_181518I fell in love with a couple of pairs of sunglasses, both quite outrageous…which pair should I get?20160331_181410 20160331_181322Archives’ designer home accessories would fit perfectly in any chic uptown loft or condo…check these out. Wow!20160331_181500 20160331_181505 20160331_182543So definitely drop in and say hi next time you’re in the Yorkville neighbourhood…the staff will be delighted to show you around and chat about the designers represented in their store.20160331_183140

CHASE AWAY THE WINTER BLUES WITH FINE BELGIAN CHOCOLATE!

Dropped in to my fave chocolate shop today, De Meersman Belgian Chocolates, in the Holt Renfrew lower concourse mall at 60 Bloor St West, Toronto and I have to admit, I kinda indulged my sweet-tooth with some fine hand-made Belgian chockies. Yummmmmm!20160112_120647Owners Guido De Meersman and his lovely wife Kay have been fattening me up for years now – in fact, I’m sure all the money I’ve spent in the store must have paid out their home mortgage by now…LOL. Their retail space is bright and welcoming and showcases a number of specialty brands like Neuhaus and Maxim’s de Paris, as well as their own line of fine handcrafted truffles and bonbons. As Guido says…”In Belgium, chocolate is a staple, not a luxury” and I’ve made a point to adopt that philosophy here in Toronto.20160112_120537 20160112_120619I ran into Al Matanovic of Jelly Studio who designed all their posters and signage. Here’s Al doing his best Vanna White impression showing me the new Uddenberg Premium Hot Chocolate also available at De Meersman’s.20160112_120518Al introduced me to the exclusive line of Christmas chocolates he helped create for Liona Boyd, Canada’s pre-eminent award-winning classical guitarist (see below). There are still a few gift boxes available so hurry on down and grab a couple – they truly are “party in your mouth” delicious!!20160112_120637Ladies, tell your sweethearts to pick up one of these girlie-girlie gift packages for Valentine’s that are cuter than the usual red heart-shaped boxes (which they also carry for the V-day traditionalists).20160112_120452 20160112_120456De Meersman can ship direct to you, too, if you’re outside of the Yonge/Bloor neighbourhood (details on their website). So don’t take my word for it, drop in and see/taste why I consider De Meersman Belgian Chocolates the “Disneyland” for chocolate lovers and sweet gourmands. Located in Holt Renfrew concourse shops at the far western end of the mall. Say hi to Kay who is nearly always behind the counter (see, I caught her thru the window – below). 20160112_120746

http://demeersmanchocolate.com/

T: (416) 944-8822

I VISIT PLAYDEAD CULT BOUTIQUE & GALLERY in TORONTO

One of us…one of us! I LOVE all things Playdead Cult – fashion, furniture, art – all done by artist & musician Stu Andrenelli who I’ve known for many years since buying one of his original paintings right off the wall of the old Shanghai Cowgirl diner on Queen Street W back when the neighbourhood was still groovy and the hipsters were still….well, hip.

20150401_140001_001 20150401_140024Since then, I’ve added numerous pieces to my collection of original edgy art and watched Playdead Cult grow from a niche fashion and art boutique into a thriving design business, bringing a real sense of edgy cool to Toronto’s indie culture.  Stu (pictured below) is also an accomplished musician – he’s the drummer of Toronto alt. rock band A Primitive Evolution (A.P.E.).

20150401_144655Playdead Cult was originally headquartered in a vintage auto body shop near Queen & Dufferin where Stu and then-partner Bean created art and fashion designs using the Playdead Cult logo/brand as the key element.  Playdead then moved into a Kensington Market store where they built a loyal following among the artsy-fartsy market set, as well as attracting numerous recording artists and TV personalities such as George Stroumboulopoulos who is frequently seen sporting a Playdead Cult t-shirt.

20150401_140044Last year, Stu decided to bring Playdead Cult back to Queen West and found a great (and much larger) store at 1696 Queen West, just East of Roncesvalles, and after a grand opening party, has steadily been building an even more fascinating, engaging and intriguing identity….as soon as I walked in today I felt at home in this playful pandora’s box of a store/gallery surrounded by a riot of art, clothing, re-purposed furniture, toys, nic-nacs and even customized guitars. Check it out…..

20150401_140036 20150401_140219 20150401_140227_001 20150401_142628_002 20150401_141335 20150401_141357 20150401_141432One of my favourite art groupings are these insane customized Playdead Barbie heads (below)  – d’you remember back in the80’s when little girls would style Barbie’s hair on these things? Yikes.

20150401_141249_001Speaking of hair do’s….Playdead Cult also has a very comfortable vintage shampoo chair and cut’n’style work station on-site  (below) for any last minute ‘dos, too.

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20150401_140207Stu has recently designed and decorated a local hair salon and diner so he’s now set to give Colin & Justin a run for their decorating dollars!!

Playdead Cult offers so many unique art pieces – great furnishings for your loft, condo or mum’s basement! Look at this sexy coffee table (below) which started out life as a old fashioned luggage trolley – Stu refinished and polished it up and made it into something a little less “in yer face” for the more conservative buyer. The skulls and stripes kerchief makes a great doily, dontcha think?

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20150401_141754_001I just had to pick up one of Stu’s miniatures (pictured below) to add to my collection – it’s the middle heart & skulls on the bottom row, and it’s now hanging happily on my wall at home.

20150401_140032Big thank you to Stu and his colleague, Brett (pictured below L to R) who showed me around the new store. I suggest you allow yourself at least an hour to go thru all the shelves, looking at every little treasure in every nook and cranny. Check every inch of wall space for the unusual original artwork and definitely go thru the clothing racks

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Playdead Cult Boutique & Gallery

Clothing, art and events for the black collar worker!

1696 Queen St West

https://www.playdeadcult.com

https://www.facebook.com/playdeadcult