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May 18, 2007
Luxuries in Yaletown
Décor stores aren't all about condo-sized sofas.
BAILA LAZARUS
Being sent on a mission to explore home décor in Yaletown,
I expected the ubiquitous "condo-sized" sofas everywhere,
but the myth was shattered. Store after store offered up more inches
than a bum can use.
Just to get that "small is the new big" idea out right
of your head at the start, head first to Montauk, 1062 Homer. Here,
big is the new big, with couches going up to 10 feet in length.
The showroom is Spartan (not much room for anything else with those
Shrek-sized day beds) and combines modern lines with older styles.
The feather couch, for example, has a flat seat and front, but it's
combined with a tufton back and arms reminiscent of a 19th-century
period piece. Next to a simple, monochromatic modern chair are restored
desks, armoires and club chairs.
In general, upholstered chairs range from $1,700 to $1,900, loveseats
start at $2,600 and sofas $3,600. At the time of shopping, the 120-inch
Big Ben (no jokes, please) was marked down from $9,500 to $4,900.
Store manager Aleem Kassam was quick to mention they are the only
store in North America that belongs to the Aussie-based Carbon Neutral
program.
Although Kassam has been happy with the location in Yaletown, he
anticipates that the trend for décor stores is to move north
and will be relocating in Gastown once residential buildings there
get underway.
Out of Montauk, head up to Nelson and over to Hamilton. At 1039,
step into what I like to call the "candy store" of Yaletown
décor. EQ3 has enough rolling, swivelling and rocking chairs
that testing them all will serve your amusement park thrill need
for the month. Fun designs, bright colors and a large showroom means
there's enough stimulation for even décor attention deficit
disorder (DADD) sufferers. And prices are wonderfully reasonable.
A white leather "Bobo" sofa, one of my favorite pieces
in the store, was $1,599. A "Tub" swivel chair (it looks
like half of a teacup) was only $299 in a cheery orange. EQ3 carries
oversized leather chairs, perfect for lounging, and traditional
kitchen/dining sets. It's even big enough to offer a clearance section,
which carries some amazing deals. At the time, a beautiful coffee
table with a large storage drawer was half price at $150.
Add to the mix the wall units, desks and office chairs that EQ3
carries, and you have everything to furnish your home.
The 1100 block of Hamilton offers three incredibly diverse furniture
and décor stores: Bernstein and Gold (1168), InHabit (1188)
and Sofas by Design (1192).
Walking into Bernstein and Gold is like walking into an Indiana
Jones movie. Beautiful fabrics and eclectic furnishings are squeezed
into this packed space. Immediately noticed are the hand-painted
silk shades of the Mariano Fortuny lamp collection. The stunning
detail and delicate glow give them a special radiance. And the largest
one, at four feet in diameter, comes with a special price: $7,700.
The store is one of only a couple in Vancouver that sell Michael
Dickens memory tiles. Not my bag, but some people like to collect
trivets. I was much more drawn to the dancing teapot salt-and-pepper
set – $80 in dark clay.
InHabit is the place you run to for funky, albeit pricey, peanut-shaped
garbage cans in lime green polyethylene ($279 by Korzina), molded
plastic chairs and a shower sponge shaped like a microphone. They
also carry a large selection of black or white dishware.
Right at the corner of Davie is Sofas by Design. Here's that typical
sofa store you'd see on West 4th Avenue in Kits. Very contemporary,
functional and reasonably priced, with loveseats starting at $899,
condo-sized (79 inches) at $999 and full sofas (87 inches) at $1,099.
A couple of details set this store apart from the rest: they'll
send a technician over to your house to double check measurements
and, because the furniture is manufactured locally in Burnaby, it's
only three weeks for delivery.
Last on the Yaletown tour are two more stores that will make you
go "Wow!" At 1110 Mainland, Design House has some really
beautiful and very innovative products. A stunning dining room table,
with leaf, was $1,588. Chairs were $399 each. Fun colorful clocks
covered the wall and, downstairs, two huge Fatboy five-foot-by-five-foot
pillows on the floor called for someone to jump in them. Design
House was also showing a product I'd never seen – vinyl decorative
mats, up to nine feet long, that you can use as you would a living
room throw rug. When they get dirty, just take them outside and
hose 'em down.
And last but not least, hidden at the very bottom of Helmcken Street,
is Instant Bedrooms (1086 Mainland). This is where the really
strapped for space go to find modern-day equivalents of the Murphy
bed. Wall units that hide beds are custom designed to service any
need, such as hidden tables and computer stations, but they don't
come cheap. A high-quality simple instant bed with rolling headboard
and lifetime warranty is $2,445.
Baila Lazarus is a freelance writer, photographer and
illustrator living in Vancouver. Her work can be seen at www.orchiddesigns.net.
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