CITY SHOPPING
Buy Nothing Day is on Nov. 25 this year. There, now that we've established our alt-indie cred whatever, we can pimp this section devoted to retail excellence in Regina. And just to clarify, we're not against consumption per se. Mindless consumerism, consumption for the sake of consumption, we reject. Okay, I'm not sure Whitworth does. But we don't listen to that goof. Anyway, the rest of us enjoy a good buy as much as anyone. So have at it Regina.
BEST BABY STUFF
GROOVY MAMA
3206 13th Ave.
347-2229
Oh, how I loved this shop when I was expecting! I loved it just as much when my friends were expecting. (It seems one always knows someone who's expecting.) I expected Groovy Mama to win this category - they have so many cool things for both moms and little ones. For everything from procreation to decoration, lactation, transportation, information and food preparation, Groovy Mama's got you covered. They also offer workshops and classes on nursing, cloth diapering, babywearing and other maternal concerns. Great stuff. /LAK
BEST BATH & BEAUTY
BATH GODDESS
2739 Quance St. 949-2284
3959 Rochdale Blvd. 924-2284
Bath Goddess wins again! This year they've got some intriguing new scent lines like green tea and prairie lily, orchard fresh pear, and Rider Pride. What does Rider Pride smell like? According to their website, VICTORY! (well, actually, Key lime.) After this year's football season you might be thinking Rider Pride smells more like an old gym sock. But let's remember those two glorious games against Winnipeg and set our sights on Next Year Country. Need some serious cheering up during playoff season? Book an after-hours party with friends and drown your sorrows in fragrance and colour while you create your own beautiful indulgences. /LAK
BEST BOOK STORE
CHAPTERS
2625 Gordon Rd.
569-6060
A lot of people can't imagine the work I do at Chapters before the sun rises. Mostly, I'm making a tower out of copies of Shania Twain's memoir, or checking the stock in the Self-Help section, or shelving up in Fiction. And I get excited on at least a weekly basis. This week, it was the arrival of new books by cartoonists Kate Beaton and Seth. Having a place where you can go, on a whim, and get that Miriam Toews' book you heard about on the CBC or grab a copy of The Rum Diary so you can read it before Johnny Depp acts all over it, is awesome. And Chapters fills that need. /JB
BEST SPECIALTY OR USED BOOK STORE
BUY THE BOOK
2718 13TH Ave.
924-5051
Wasn't that the name of the bookstore in Ellen DeGeneres's sitcom? Am I the only person who hasn't blocked that television show out of his mind? With the popularization of E-books and the death of the small independent bookstore - does anyone miss Buzzword Books like I do? Or the late Mary Sutherland's old bookstore on Hamilton Street? - used bookstores are becoming the last refuge for people such as myself looking for literature or history books that are something classic and yet willfully obscure. /SL
BEST CAR DEALERSHIP
CAPITAL FORD
1201 Pasqua St. N.
543-5410
Cars are a little terrifying if you don't know what's up inside of them. If you'll permit me to indulge my inner caveman, I'm frankly amazed that they run at all. For a lot of people, they need a car that's affordable, reliable, that they can trust. But they also need to get it from people who know what the hell is going on in there, and who can be friendly while they're telling you about it. That's Capital Ford. /JB
BEST CLOTHING STORE (KIDS)
CROCUS & IVY KIDS
4065 Albert St.
522-0877
Haute couture for the enfant terrible! Crocus & Ivy Kids offers an impressive selection of adorable shoes (Robeez, Wee Squeak, See Kai Run and the like) and well-made clothing (Kushies, Petit Lem, Imps & Elfs, Baby Legs and many more) for your favourite hip shorty. Sure, things can get a little spendy, but there are some great sales throughout the year. And what's cuter than a tiny little girl in an April Cornell dress and pink butterfly slippers? Not much, that's what. /LAK
BEST HIP TRENDY CLOTHING (GALS)
SEED SUSTAINABLE STYLE
3100 13th Ave.
924-5426
Seed Sustainable Style has obviously made a big impression on prairie dog readers. Last year they won "Best New Business" and "Best Hip Trendy Clothing (Gals)". This year, they're a repeat winner in this category and have added "Best Eco Friendly Business" and "Best Stylish Yet Casual Clothing (Gals)" to their mounting list of accolades. /LAK
BEST STYLISH YET CASUAL CLOTHING (GALS)
SEED SUSTAINABLE STYLE
3100 13th Ave.
924-5426
In his intro to this year's Best Of Regina results Editor Steve wrote, "This year's poll featured 134 categories. Too many? Pshaw... We like to think of it as an embarrassment of riches." Well, far be it from me to disagree with my editor (a.k.a. biting the hand that feeds you) but I can't help suggesting that "Best Hip Trendy Clothing (Gals)" and "Best Stylish Yet Casual Clothing (Gals)" are somewhat similar. I'm not complaining. It means that Seed gets to win yet another category, and they deserve it because they're awesome. But maybe next year we should just call it "Best Hip Trendy Stylish Yet Casual Clothing (Gals)" and be done with it. /LAK
BEST FORMAL WEAR (GALS)
NWL DRESS SHOP
1853 Hamilton St.
546-2246
Trust me on this one, okay? Next time you (or your BFF or sister or daughter or niece) are looking for the perfect grad dress or bridesmaid gown or simply a stunning party frock, you could do one of two things. You could waste a whole weekend driving from store to store to store, taking off your shoes a hundred times and pawing through racks of everything from the not-quite-right to the downright frou-frou, and then end up at NWL and find exactly what you were looking for. Or you could just go to NWL first, find exactly what you were looking for, then go enjoy a mani-pedi and a caramel macchiato. /LAK
BEST HIP TRENDY CLOTHING (GUYS)
CODA
2326 Albert St.
522-2632
A milestone for any city has to be when there's clothing place that won't make you look like a weirdo and that's local. In Regina, we've got a few hip clothing spots to choose from these days. Coda's at the top of that heap. Keep it in mind for the next time you wanna impress that special lady/fella. /JB
BEST STYLISH YET CASUAL CLOTHING (GUYS)
CODA
2326 Albert St.
522-2632
Every now and then, someone will start talking about the scourge of people wearing pajamas in public - the idea being that any sense of decorum has gone out the window. Not at Coda. You don't have to be dressed fancy to look good. The folks down there will help you toss out the sweatpants and give a shit about what you're wearing. /JB
BEST SUIT SHOP (GUYS)
COLIN O'BRIAN MAN'S SHOPPE
1825 Hamilton St.
584-9300
Full disclosure: I owe my sense of style to Colin O'Brian and his crazy man's shoppe. Colin and his staff make the process of decking yourself out in fashionable formal duds a pleasure. Whether you need a suit for a wedding, a graduation or a formal gala, O'Brian's really is the place to go. Even the perplexed and pimply-faced teenaged boys who get dragged into the store by their mothers emerge with beautifully tailored and tasteful suits. That's right: you may enter the Man's Shoppe as a boy, but you leave as a man. So don't talk back to your mother when she's picking out your suit for you. / AM
BEST COMPUTER STORE
BEST BUY
2125 Prince of Wales Dr.
546-0100
Computers are a top three stressful thing to buy, up there with cars and homes. There shouldn't be a hassle getting one and you should be able to trust it once you've got it. Best Buy's a good option when it comes to computer needs. They've got that whole no-commission thing, that they'll bring up whenever you're in there. No crazy stunts, either. I once had a computer salesman beat his fist against the screen of a Mac to show how sturdy it was. That wasn't at Best Buy. They're reliable, and that's what you need. /JB
BEST FLOWER SHOP
WASCANA FLOWER SHOPPE
333VICTORIA AVE. E.
522-5243
Frequent and worthy winners in this category. I think I've written before that my personal experiences sending people flowers have all been disastrous. Even my mom (rest in piece, mom!) got mad at me once for sending her flowers. Maybe I'm doing flowers wrong. Hey, maybe I should ask Wascana Flower Shoppe for advice. /SW
BEST FURNITURE STORE
URBAN 1
1325 Broad St.
779-0119
Of all the furniture stores in Regina, Urban 1 is probably the purest distillation of cool, from the angled bookshelves to the unfussy but somehow luxurious sofas. Urban 1 is also happily affordable (but not cheap), with prices ranging from $400-$1,100 for great looking pieces of furniture in a range of fabrics and leather. If you visit their web site at urban-1.ca, a design planner application allows you to map out your rooms and decorate your space as you see fit. /AM
BEST HOBBY SHOP
MICHAELS
2088 Prince of Wales Dr.
585-9892
The first thing that pops into my head when I think "hobby" is tiny shit. Tiny paint brushes, tiny wooden parts to glue together, tiny everything. Of course, Michaels has more than that to offer. The place is a crafters paradise, featuring anything you could possibly need to for any homey projects you've got on the go. Even if you don't have any idea what you wanna do other than you know it'll require a smock or apron so you don't get your jeans messed up, they've got some ideas for you. /JB
BEST HOME DÉCOR
WINNERS/HOMESENSE
2135 Prince of Wales Dr.
789-9998
Style at home is a personal thing. No one should go to a home décor store, see a diorama of a fake livingroom or kitchen, and transfer it lock, stock and light fixtures to their place. The best homes are ones that you've put together yourself. (Not literally, though I'm sure there's plenty of satisfaction in that.) You can collect the building blocks for your own creation over at Winners/HomeSense, the combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell of the home stuff world. Reasonable prices, decent selection, and the thrill of hunting for that unique thing that's going to make your home perfect. / JB
BEST HOME ELECTRONICS
BEST BUY
2125 Prince of Wales Dr.
546-0100
All your audio/visual stuff can be a losing game. It's really just a deep, dark hole where at the bottom your Bob Dylan reissue sounds super good. Best Buy has a selection of what you're looking for, and won't rob you. Plus, there's probably a Roomba hanging around or something, so you can really live in the home of the future. /JB
BEST JEWELERY STORE
VICTORIA JEWELLERS
2591 Quance St.
352-4001
When my father graduated from Royal Military College in 1967, his parents gave him a Longines watch as a present. He still wears that watch on his wrist today. Over the years, I've come to think of Longines as an emblem of craftsmanship, durability and style. I also used to think that my dad wore "long jeans" on his wrist, which confused my five year old brain to no end. Which is why I was so pleased to discover that Victoria Jewellers carries Longines timepieces. And it carries a selection of beautiful jewellery from some of the world's top designers, as well. /AM
BEST LOCAL SPORTING, CYCLING, SKIING, & STUFF LIKE THAT
FRESH AIR EXPERIENCE
532 Victoria Ave.
522-6665
If you get your camping supplies or buy your bicycle/skis/hiking boots from, say, a box store, you're not likely to meet up with someone who's more passionate about the activity than you are - or someone who's more than happy to give you some advice not just on the best products but also on how to make the experience more enjoyable. That's why you shop at places like Fresh Air Experience. And this is as a good a time as any to mention that their store renovation and expansion are slated to be completed by the time this issue hits the streets. /SL
BEST PET STORE
METRO PET MARKET
1637 Victoria Ave. 352-9663
3951 Rochdale Blvd. 565-9663
Pets will change your life. I never had a pet until my rubber arms were twisted by the love of my life and le chat Louis came bursting into my life and let me tell you, it's worth it. Pets keep you company, are cute and are just great overall. Whether you've got a cat in need of a hip costume and a cat-nip cigar or a dog that needs some top quality food (as they all do) Metro Pet Market is your boutique for pet supplies and accessories. Pets are great - and by association, so are pet stores. So get down to the Metro Pet Market stat! /CS
BEST EYEWEAR
EYE CANDY OPTIKS
2585 QUANCE ST. 545-4350
5340 ROCHDALE BLVD. 949-5878
Hey, my vision sucks. I kind of like it: I get to smile at people all the time when I have no idea who they are. Still, I like glasses (TMI dept: girls wearing glasses are super-sexy). I should get my eyes checked and then buy a cool pair somewhere our readers voted the Best Eyewear in Regina. Wait! Eye Candy Optiks! Of Course! /SW
BEST SHOE STORE FOR WOMEN
ZOE'S
126-1801 Scarth Street
757-3000
Good shoe stores are awesome and Zoe's was voted best Women's shoes in Regina. Therefore Zoe's is awesome. That's called transitive property: it's math, dammit, and you can't argue with math. Hey, I think I used that joke in 2007. Well, if you have a better joke, you let me know. Until then, here's the important point: Zoe's sells killer brands of women's shoes like Michael Kors and Fluevog. There's nowhere near enough real fashion in Regina, so that's one reason to support Zoe's. Plus, It's located in the Old City Hall Mall, which is supercool. Check it out. /SW
BEST SHOE STORE FOR MEN
ALDO
Cornwall Centre 757-2082
Hey there, men. If you're like me - that is to say, a man - then you like wearing things on your feet, amirite? But you don't want to spend $300 every time you're struck by the urge to put new objects over your feet to protect them from rocks, glass and small biting animals. Well, my friends, those things are called shoes, and those shoes - affordable, hip and handsome - can be purchased at Aldo. Trust me, you don't want to show up at the club or the job interview with the wrong things on your feet. Like paper bags. Or cereal boxes! But if you do, eat the cereal first. /AM
BEST STORE FOR SECONDHAND FINDS
VALUE VILLAGE
1230 Broad St. 522-1228
I'm not sure if you read our sister paper, Planet S, but they recently ran an article about neighbourhood folks who didn't want Value Village in their neighbourhood. (The article mistakenly said Value Village was owned by Walmart, which was a big boo-boo on their part.) The more Value Villages the better, I say. The store is the undisputed King of Secondhand. Everything gets dropped off there and everything can be found there, too. /JB
BEST UNIQUE GIFTS
WP GARDENS
254 University Park Dr. 586-2929
#5 - 4621 Rae St. 584-1565
To some, WP simply means outdoor garden centres in the too-short summertime. But to those in the know, WP Inside is a great year-round gift shop. Their two distinct locations boast a wealth of cool jewels, fine art, sculpture, and clever home accents such as Sid Dickens memory blocks and Lampe Berger air purifiers. It's not too early to start your Christmas shopping, and WP seems like a pretty perfect place to start. /LAK
BEST TATTOO SHOP
RISING SUN
Dr. Ralph Steinman spent his career exploring the mysteries of human immunity. He was known as a warm and generous man with a deep understanding of the emotional and physical effects of cancer. This knowledge evolved over a lifetime of study and his own struggle against pancreatic cancer. Earlier this month he was awarded the Nobel Prize for medicine, three days after his death.
Prairie dog 's Best Of Regina awards may not have the esteem of the Nobels, but there are parallels. Both reward excellence, and if this category is any indication, they can also be given posthumously.
In 1993, Jarrett Clarkson opened Rising Sun in a small storefront in the Kenora mall (Albert & 14th Ave.). Like Steinman, Clarkson's work, life and passion were intertwined. Over the years, he developed a reputation for skill, creativity and a near encyclopedic knowledge of tattoo culture. The studio soon outgrew its humble surroundings and a new location was found at the corner of Albert St. and Saskatchewan Dr.
In 2005 it was time for another upgrade. The move was only two blocks south, but the location marked the first time Clarkson's name was on the building's deed. Construction began immediately, converting an open loft space into a sleek studio with a Japanese motif. Outside, a new sign was erected that even casual passers-by couldn't help but admire. (It also won "Best Sign" when we ran that category in 2009.)
Rising Sun's time in Regina coincided with a tattoo boom. Numerous shops came and went while this studio thrived. The staff was always knowledgeable, and their ability to meet the public's demand for quality ink first-rate. The studio became a prominent on the Canadian tattoo convention circuit, and helped legitimize Regina's tattoo scene. This led to numerous guest appearances by respected tattoo artists from outside the city, and gave Rising Sun artists the chance to work out of town.
With business still booming, Clarkson decided to go on a tour of tattoo studios across the globe. Like a ship without a captain, the Rising Sun crew was forced to set sail. Julian Williams, Orrin Fleischacker and Nathan Donahoe now form the nucleus of Black Sea Tattoo.
Rising Sun is now a six-time winner as Best Tattoo Studio. But sadly, after nearly two decades at the top, the landmark studio has closed up shop. Next year there will be a new champ. They will have big shoes to fill. /DK
BEST LOCALLY OWNED SHOP
METRO PET MARKET
1637 Victoria Ave. 352-9663
3951 Rochdale Blvd. 565-9663
There's a place in Regina where the Employee of the Month never changes. No matter what, the same framed picture hangs above the till, proudly awarding the honour to Ruby - even though she's usually sleeping in the back or gnawing on a toy. Owners Ross McNabb and Kurt Jensen are the first to acknowledge that Ruby still doesn't know how to operate the till at Metro Pet Market, where discerning pet owners shop for environmentally and nutritionally responsible products for their pets. Outside of Ruby, the store is operated and staffed by people who are friendly, knowledgeable and passionate about good pet products. But then she's mostly Staffordshire terrier - a breed notorious for its poor customer service. /AM
BEST NEW STORE
METRO PET MARKET
3951 Rochdale Blvd. 565-9663
Metro Pet Market has become somewhat less metro: they've opened a new store in northwest Regina and the pet-owning residents in that area of Regina couldn't be luckier or happier. Metro has a stellar reputation for providing top-quality pet foods, toys and other pet paraphernalia. If there haven't been reports of cats and dogs dragging their human companions to this place, there soon will be. With all the leashes, bowls, pet clothing, pictures (Shepard Fairey-style pet posters?!), decorations and whatnot, you'll never have to go downtown for pet supplies again. Wait a minute… oops. Sorry about that, Downtown. /DH
