Let the bargain hunting begin!

Almost a year to the date, that is the date I first read the Clin D’Oeil “Boutiques vintage et fripperies chics:nos bonnes addresses” article online, I finally was able to make it out to some of the shops featured in the piece by Lolitta Dandoy to experience vintage shopping for myself. I devised a road map with nine pit stops consisting of the shops that piqued my interest and drove all over Montreal in search of the treasures that were waiting for me to find them.

Situated on Sherbrooke St in Westmount, Sharyn Scott was my first stop and it did not disappoint in terms of choice. Price however is another story. Given the great location of the boutique and the excellent selection of luxury goods for sale such as Louboutin, Louis Vuiton, Prada, Hermes, etc it was no surprise that the discounts on the items was not that great. For those looking for the real deal at a discount, this is the place to go, however for those on a budget, steer clear or risk falling in love with a $500 pair of heels!

Next on the list was Déjà Porté, also in Westmount but tucked away on the quieter Victoria St just a couple blocks to the East. A tiny little shop, busting at seems with clothing and accessories, however the potential for reasonably priced finds is high, if one is patient enough to search through the overfilled racks and stacks of clothing underneath. There were a lot of BCBG and Lacoste clothing options, yet very few accessories overall. Maybe I`ll have better luck next time though, as no one particular piece really drew my attention.

Upon walking into the third boutique of the day, Designer Resale on Prince-Albert St, just around the corner from the Déjà Porté, it was love at first sight! The shop was albeit on the smaller side, everything was beautifully organized and easy to see. I made my only purchase of the day, a J. McLaughlin coral silk tunic for only $25! There was a gorgeous chiffon evening dress by Cate Adair, the Desperate Housewives costume designer, that Paula, the bubbly owner of the shop, was willing to let go for the bargain price of about $400, however one would need a black tie affair in order to justify such a purchase.

Hoping back into my car, I drove out to Griffitown to find Era Vintage Wear on Notre-Dame St. The collection consisting mostly of dresses, of course inspired by eras gone by, was colourful and intriguing, although not the style I am typically after, the pieces were well executed and well priced. The space itself is airy and well organized (all items of clothing are hung by color). This boutique is certainly worth the detour for those looking for a taste of the glamour Jackie Kennedy for one so well portrayed.

Sitting right across from the legendary Schwartz’s smoked meat restaurant on St-Laurent Boulevard, is the newly moved and re-baptised Duclos Michel second hand store, formerly known as Friperie Marie-Claude. This place was huge, boasting lots of racks for both men and women, which were full over capacity. Thankfully, everything is organized according to size, so it was easy to spot which racks might work for me, where I did find a Burberry trench (size 38) for $142, slightly too big unfortunately.  Although, I came out empty handed, if I happen to be in the neighbourhood I would definitely pop in to see any new arrivals.

Situated on Rachel St, Boutique Vintage Leora evoked a similar feeling to Era Vintage Wear with its airy space and beautiful displayed clothing. The shop had mainly dresses on offer, ranging from the very casual to the very dressy, with prices to match.  There were some nice hats and scarves too to complete one’s look. Overall, this shop is not exactly my style, but it was interesting to see the creativity in the design of the large assortment of dresses for sale.

Nearing the end of the tour was Friperie Morgane on Van Horne in Outremont. Given the hot and sunny weather, it was no surprise to see that the shopkeeper, Diane, was out for a dip in the local pool. Making the most of my time there, I took the time to look through the store window and spotted a few items that would have been interesting to see up close. I will definitely be returning as the diversity of the items on display at the storefront certainly seemed promising.

Having come full circle, the last stop of the day was The Hunt on Graham St in Ville Mont Royal. This boutique is the smallest by far, however the quality of the items makes up for the lack of space. Everywhere I turned I saw beautiful coats, dresses and accessories. The most impressive collection of real jewellery, no costume or plastic jewellery in sight was in the front display case. It was full of beautiful one of a kind pieces like a raw amethyst ring or a gold Rolex watch or even a cute Fendi coin purse. The Hunt is definitely on my top three list.

After a long, but satisfying day of shopping all over town, I am happy to confirm that Montreal truly is amongst the best shopping destinations I have been to world-wide.  Between the high end department stores like Holt & Renfrew and Ogilvy, the big chains all over town, the outlet malls in the suburbs and the great vintage shops in the city, there is something to make even the pickiest fashionista happy.  

Let's get creative!

In my spare time I thoroughly enjoy making one of a kind jewellery pieces both for every day wear and special occasions. I invite you all to take a look at my latest creatons, part of the Ribbons and Chains collection. Your comments are most welcome. Enjoy ;)

White Murano Glass Heart on Dark Pink Ribbon
with Silver Accents

Dark Blue Murano Glass Heart
on Gold Chain and Blue Ribbon

   

Salmon Pink Nacre and white pearls
on Gold Chain & Pink Ribbon

   

Turquoise & White Nacre Earrings
on Silver Chain

Yellow Nacre and Wood Bead
Gold Chain Bracelet

Encounter with the South Shore

Before offering up my latest shopping experience in the Montreal area, i would like to wish all my readers a very happy and prosperoous New Year, hopefully filled with many happy shopping forays!

Following the usual mayhem of Boxing Day, my girlfriends and I were pleasantly surprised to discover a relatively calm oasis in comparison just a short drive off the Champlain bridge. The QuartierDix30, named-so as it sits at the intersection of highways 10 and 30 in Brossard, first began its construction in late 2006 and has since then grown into an enormous suburban playground, where shops, restaurants, cinemas, condos and beyond collide.

We began the day with a nice brunch at Eggstyle located at the center of the almost 3 Million square foot area it occupies. After loading up on the typical brunch fare we hit the stores. By then the parking lot above ground was already full and venturing out to one's car to drop packages off was risky business as fellow-shoppers looking to park their cars we looming nearby in the hopes of scoring a spot. However the enormous free underground parking surely still had some spots left. Being December 27th, there were still some very good sales to be had and of course we didn't hesitate to cover the great majority of the boutiques on offer. The variety of shops, from mid-range to luxury was much appreciated as it made the whole experience more diverse and enjoyable, both for shoppers and their wallets.

The Quartier Dix Trente, although being bigger in terms of square footage and number of boutiques, than the Marché Central Outlet Mall on Boulevard l'Acadie in St-Laurent or even the fabulous Mega Centre Notre-Dame in Laval, it is simply too far away from the island of Montreal for it to become a regular shopping destination. However, it would definitely require a visit in the Summer months if the opportunity presented itself, in order to enjoy the vast outdoor space available.

Discount Queen!

While opening my email inbox this morning it suddenly hit me, I am subscribed to so many mailing lists I don't even have time to read them all. This in itself is not a problem, the pesky emails are simply deleted, never to be seen again, well until the next edition is sent to my mailbox. As I looked at the subject line of all these emails however I noticed that the great majority were from exclusive online boutiques and group discount websites. I have finally succombed to the Intenet shopping bug!

I was always convinced I would never resort to shopping online, always preferring to hit the shops in person to find deals before anyone else, and that's where the greatest satisfaction lay. All that changed however when my shopping trips started evolving from the regular sample sales in the Fall and Spring to joining mailing lists for even more exclusive shopping deals online and daily group buy specials for Montreal. I have to admit I have yet to purchase a group buy deal from tuango.ca or cliquesave.com, however I would be lying if I said I was never tempted to. Strangely enough the very thing I swore I would never do, shop online for clothing and accessories has occured in the form of Beyondthe rack.com I then started to invite my firends to join, being the sharing type, especially with my clsoest girlfriends and they too could not resist the allure of the significant savings they offer.

Will this craze affect in-store shopping? I'm not convinced, since stores have survived a bigger threat like the financial crash of the Summer of 2008 and have slowly recovered they can also survive this new trend. After all, nothing beats the satisfaction of snagging the last pair of uber reduced designer heels before anyone else can get to it, especially upon seeing their faces, it's priceless.

That being said, I will probably retain my memebrship to these websites, as one never knows when a truly good deal may present itself, but I will always remain true to my non-virtual shopping habit ;)

A TOUS-erific discovery

Following a very yummy and decadent girls' dessert at Suite 88 on Maisonneuve Boulevard in downtown Montreal, there is nothing better than some window shopping to burn those chocolaty calories away. And walk we sure did!

We hapenned upon a store front that seemed very familiar, the cute little teddy bear logo became clearer as we got closer and then we looked up and saw the silver TOUS sign; we had arrived in spanish silver and leather heaven! The Montreal boutique opened just over two years ago on rue De la Montagne, right next to Ogilvy and somehow it took me this long to find out about it! http://www.facebook.com/pages/Montreal-QC/TOUS-Montreal/124946037546067 Unfortunately we arrived near closing, so our visit was brisk. However we are already planning a return visit, which has been made sweeter with the disovery that 250 bonus Aeroplan miles are given with the first purchase, and 500 miles with the second one withing 60 days of the first. Now who can resist that?!

It's so hard to narrow it down, but my short wish list includes:

18kt yellow gold TOUS Pearls bracelet with 

multi color barroque pearls. 

18kt whit gold TOUS Umi ring with diamonds pavee. 

18Kt yellow gold and quartz lemon TOUS 

Dinah earrings

TOUS Eco Kaos handbag. 

Cotton and ecologic linen. 

No need to travel accross the ocean for some fine Egyptian leather

Who can resist a beautiful light pink soft leather wallet? I know I succumbed to its charm on first sight, carefully crossing the Atlantic with it safely tucked in it's gift box, only to misplace it while unpacking. After searching for it high and low for a couple of days, I was left with no choice but to replace the poor darling with a Chinese made model, with less than half the charm, but nevertheless functional.

Well, upon beginning my Fall cleaning (yes the one where all t-shirts and dresses are sadly exhanged for stockings and sweaters), I found the little pink devil hidden under a pile of scarves.

This fine Egyptian leather ladie's wallet features a large coin zippered section, plastified picture holder as well as many credit card slots. It has never been used and comes with an elegant gift box.



Price: $50 CAD
Delivery/payment: In person (Montreal area)
Manufacturer's website: http://www.choice.com.eg/Products.aspx?ProductID=227

Next Exit, Woodbury Common Premium Outlets

The creator of the most amazing mega outlet malls has made me a true die-hard shopper south of the Canadian Border. I first discovered the Premium Outlets brand while in San Francisco. My obsession began with my first visit to the Gilroy Premium Outlets in the Bay Area, it was magical. With 145 Outlet stores, it was a mad dash against the clock to visit all those on my favorites list. Sadly, I was not able to complete my wish-list and have since then vowed to plan my visit ahead of time in order to make sure all the better shops are visited first.

Upon my return to Montreal, surely, I thought, there must be another such outlet mall on the East Coast. The winner was the 220 Outlet-filled Woodbury Common Premium Outlets, just over an hour drive North of NYC. I have gone back twice since first discovering it and fear it will become a regular bi-yearly trip, much to the chagrin of my bank account.

The 50-page VIP Coupon Book

For those planning on visiting any of the Premium Outlets malls, make sure to sign up for their VIP Club before-hand and printing up some on-line coupons, one of which entitles the club member to a free VIP Coupon Book with additional savings. This same VIP book is sold for $10 USD at the welcome center. I know, very sneaky!

My favorite - 10% on already reduced Longchamp goodies!

I bid you all happy trails, and hope you make it out during one of the special sales weekends, the deals are truly worth the long car ride.

Athens, the capital of gorgeous shoes!

Getting ready to hit the town in our gorgeous new "pedila"

During a recent trip to Greece with some close girlfriends, we completely devastated the shoe shops all accross Athens in the space of 1 full-day shopping spree. We bought so many pairs each, I still can't believe we managed to fit all our finds in our luggage and not pay extra weight fees at check-in at the airport.

In the center of Athens, Fashionable Ermou and Aiolou streets are the main spots for shopaholics, both local and tourists alike. The boutiques are plentiful and offer very reasonably priced leather sandals (as low as 5-10 Euro a pair at Dexim for example) all the way to the scandalously pricey local designer pairs costing upward of a few 100 Euro a pair at Bournazos and the like.  Regardless of one's budget therefore, one is always sure to find something to their liking, which in turn makes for a great souvenir every time it is worn.

Every time I return, I always make sure I get my fill of sandy beaches, great home cooking and of course, hit all the leather/shoe stores I can find!

Tic Toc

Pretty in pink. I like that expression, it is so feminine and conveys a sense of happiness. That is precisely what I thought when I bought this gorgeous watch. Until of course I realized I was developping a time piece addiction and thus I had to let it go, before ever even having had a chance to use it.

New pink leather GUESS watch, never worn. Gift box and warranty certificate included. 

Make: GUESS
Price: $50 CAD (Originally paid $150CAD)

Delivery/payment: In person (Montreal area)

Winter Wonderland

Montreal had its first snow fall on the eve of Hallow's Eve. Although its arrival being sooner than one might have liked, I know of one very white winter coat that was just waiting for a moment such as this one to find itself a new owner. 

Lovely white ladie's 3/4 winter coat, worn only once. In mint condition.

Make: Roxy

Size: Small

Price: $50 CAD (originally paid over $200 CAD) SOLD!

Delivery/payment: In person (Montreal area)