CB2 rocks Queen West
Aging hipsters who recall Queen West as a nexus of early ’80s punk/new wave culture tend to look in wonder — and just a touch of wistfulness — at the studied hipness it’s acquired since then. In those days, it was home to small storefront art studios, some of whose upper floors played host to late-late-night speakeasies, alongside hangover-worthy greasy spoons, and “vintage” stores which back then described their wares by more pedestrian descriptions; to wit, old clothes and junk.
The latest entrant to the upwardly mobile mix is the first Canadian location of CB2 (
www.cb2.ca), a U.S. retailer that also owns Crate and Barrel (
www.crateandbarrel.ca), which landed in Canada a few years ago, and now has four locations — two in the GTA (Yorkdale and Square One) and one each in Calgary and Edmonton.
The new CB2 store is housed in what used to be the much-lamented Big Bop at Queen St. W. and Bathurst St. (aforementioned aging hipsters will remember even further back when it was the Holiday Tavern, a local watering hole with a certain picturesque, if time-ravaged, appeal.) It sits next door to the beautifully refurbished Burroughes Building, which houses the small independent Design Republic, which also offers home decor, often from local sources.
Alas, tempus fugit. But oldsters can take comfort in that the redesign of the building certainly is pretty, with a glass expanse that rises two stories on the west-facing side. The flood of natural light should make shopping there a welcome change from the fluorescent hell of the cavernous big box. Inside, the ghost of buildings past are reflected in small ways, such as concrete flooring, metal fixtures and original signage.
Beyond the fact that CB2 has re-thunk the space well, there are other reasons to like this plucky little retail chain, which is hoping to draw urbanites looking to create design looks in smaller spaces with affordable pieces.
The product offering is broad and includes furniture, kitchenware, art, bed and bath linens, lighting and accessories. I took my 19-year-old daughter with me for market testing purposes (also because she’s brilliant company). If she’s at the very low-end of their target age market, her reaction bodes well. She liked lots, starting with the high-colour graphic art, which includes both emerging and internationally recognized artists, sometimes in limited issue runs. Rumour has it that local designer Karl Lohnes will soon have a piece, inspired by the Jubilee Year, in CB2’s art collection.
There’s a decent-sized kitchen offering with fun tabletop items, such as perforated acrylic felt table runners (yes, you certainly could make one yourself. But will you?) for $23. Stainless steel semicircular snack bowls start at $13. We both liked the witty accessories — oversized chopsticks ($5) that function like giant clothes-pegs and plates ($5) with silly graphics of stale doughnuts and such by New York artist Dan Golden (
www.dangolden.com).
It’s also hard not to smile at Golden’s line of black and white accessories, partly because they so accurately reflect the anxieties and sensibilities of CB2’s young, urban shoppers in text and image. For example, a throw pillow ($35) features a “self-hating” elephant contemplating liposuction.
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http://www.thestar.com/article/11218...cks-queen-west
