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Bodybag by Jude
The brainchild of Montréal designer Judith Desjardins, her Bodybag label is reasonably priced (around C$100 per piece) and full of interesting shapes, volumes and fabrics like microfleece. The wonderful staff are big cheerleaders for the clothes without being pushy.
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Boutique Eva B
In a space reminiscent of a theater's back stage, this boutique is a riot of recycled women's clothing, retro gear and new streetwear. It's the kind of place where 1950s bowling shoes are proudly arranged beneath a flock of floaty feather boas and yet it all seems very normal. The store doesn't have regular closing hours and stays open into the night as long as there are still customers.
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Cruella
With a coffin centerpiece and one of the biggest arrays of Gothic and fetish clothing in Montréal, Cruella is undoubtedly the biggest apparition in the Plateau grave-digger's scene. Slip into a chain-link miniskirt, dominatrix leggings or a Victorian shroud to give your party that something extra, or pick up vampire fangs and bondage icons for your pale-faced friends.
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Diffusion Griff '3000
French fashion diva Anne de Shalla studied fashion in Paris and came to Montréal in the 1970s. She now selects from up to 30 Québec designers every year for her exclusive shop collection - stretchy leathers, semi-sheer dresses, blouses and wraparound casuals, not to mention just about every fur in the animal kingdom.
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Felix Brown
Black pumps with 10cm heels, overly ego-stroking staff and suits that mean business are the hallmarks of a shopping-trip to this place. All items are imported from Italy and styles are sharp as a tack.
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Fourrures Dubarry
This place carries oodles of off-the-rack fur jackets, hats, fur-trim capes and coats, plus a selection of sheepskin coats and leather jackets. There are no middlemen, which keeps prices low and you can trade in your old garment towards your purchase.
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Friperie St-Laurent
A friperie is a used clothing store and there are several in this area. This one however gets the highest marks from hard-core secondhand hounds for the general selection, condition of the clothes and the best chances of funky 'eureka!' finds.
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Harricana
Milan-trained fashion designer Mariouche uses top-grade materials to create fur and woven garments of unparalled style and beauty; soft, comfortable and for the most part affordable. Her creations are regular features in the fashion magazines. This airy corner boutique occupies an old bank and uses its safe as a changing room.
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Jet-Setter
An orgy of state-of-the-art luggage and every travel gadget known to man, they've got luggage alarms, pocket-sized T-Shirts, 'dry-in-an-instant' underwear and towels, mini-irons and hairdryers. This list goes on and on. There's also an on-line catalogue to browse so you can still order these hard-to-find thing-a-ma-bobs if you're not in Montréal.
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Kamkyl
Kamkyl has a fine Italian-made collection of men's suits with understated lines that beam self-confidence. Son of a German master tailor, designer Douglas Mandel (formerly of Hugo Boss and DKNY) also snagged a design award for this stylish post-industrial atelier of parquet, light and space.
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Kanuk
When people in Québec say 'Kanuk' they mean the winter coats that last a lifetime, and although they're available throughout the province, this store has the best selection. Most jackets stay toasty in temperatures dipping to -30ºC, so in winter they're perfect for roaming downtown Montréal or slipping away to the chalet. It also carries raincoats, swimsuits, backpacks and hiking gear.
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Le Château
This trendy concept store is where to go for one-season fashion and cheap designer knockoffs. Very popular for buying cheap, trendy club wear. There's also a shop in the Centre Eaton.
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Lili-Les-Bains
Montréal's larger-than-life swimsuit maker started out making cruise-ship gear. The philosophy of the founder is: Every woman should have the dress of her dreams and size makes no difference. Cuts reveal or conceal, depending. Lili-Les-Bains uses gorgeous fabrics flown in from Europe and has clients from all over the world. A made-to-order swimsuit costs from around C$200 .
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Local 23
This tart little friperie stocks recycled clothing and heaps of interesting vintage finds. Even if you are not a secondhand clothing freak, this is an interesting place to stop by. There's nothing junky about it and pieces have been carefully chosen and arranged. Watching regulars attack the racks and turn up killer ensembles is part of the fun.
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Nadya Toto
Defined by a unique recipe of spandex and wool in asymmetric cuts, Nadya's garments offer a wonderful mixture of flexibility, comfort and warmth. Not to mention that just about every woman looks great in these gems that cost only about C$150 each.
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Oink Oink
Westmount parents flock to this place for the latest and greatest of everything from toy gadgets to fashionable clothing for children. You'll find that pink mini-ghetto blaster, Barbie wig set or Sunday picnic garb in this adorable little shop.
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Parasuco Jeans
Newly renovated and reopened, this store shines with self confidence and shows their sexy denim designs to terrific impact. What was a rough-and-ready garment for goldminers has clearly got out of hand. Parasuco caught some thieves on security camera saying 'take only the Parasucos' and it became the basis of a successful ad campaign.
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Revenge
This renowned showcase store for Québécois designers displays subtle designs for professional women who want to balance chic with audacious. The men's ready-to-wear garments have a less challenging task, stressing confidence and masculinity in direct, commanding lines.
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Roots
Its reputation is now soooo big worldwide that customers may forget Canada's own Roots started off as a humble shoemaker in the '70s. Now its ever-expanding range includes Roots for kids, Roots athletics, leather and home accessories. Tastes are easily accessible and geared to teens and 20-somethings, fashionable and at times even innovative.
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Scandale
The magnificent Marie-Josée Gagnon has been running this boutique since 1977, bringing in exciting Parisian imports and more recently showing off the creations of Georges Lévesque, one of Québec's most exciting designers.
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Schreter
This rambling cut-rate Jewish-run store has been going for 75 years thanks to its inexpensive brand-name clothing in all sizes. It hasn't changed much since its opening in 1928 except for the plate-glass display installed during a recent expansion. Parents remember how their parents brought them here to stock up on the equivalent of Nike, Reebok and Adidas at great savings. You seriously have to wonder how the place stays in business.
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Simons
This Québec City chain is a phenomenon that everyone, no matter their age or style seems a fan of. The selection runs the gamut from around C$15 T-shirts to around C$5000 designer coats. Simons is known for stocking fashionable, trendy creations from its own designers that aren't available anywhere else.
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Twist Encore
Close to Mojo and Friperie St-Laurent, this is another favorite friperie because of its small but extremely well-chosen selection. Famous 1940s ties and Gothic-flavored blouses proudly adorn window displays that are always fresh and very colorful. Places like this pooh-pooh the upstarts shops from Toronto that may not have the same instinctive feel for the street.
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U&I
Eric Toledanone, owner of one of Montréal's chicest designer boutiques U&I, put local designers in the spotlight from day one - YSO, Morales, Denis Gagnon - with an international sprinkling of offerings from Paris and other fashion meccas. The boutique itself has won a design award; and a film loop in the front window has people unselfconsciously dressing and undressing, constantly stopping foot traffic on boul St-Laurent.
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Urban Outfitters
An impossibly trendy garment store for the teens and 20-somethings. Music thumps from morning to night throughout the warehouse-style building and the front mini-boutique is full of amusements like Homer Simpson bookmarks, vampire teeth or solar-powered toothbrushes.
Showing 1-25 of 25 results
