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Baby, The Stars Shine Bright: Japanese Lolita fashion in San Francisco

Esme Vos — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 04:19:00 +0000

Naughty or nice? Baby, The Stars Shine Bright, the Japanese Lolita fashion brand, has its first US flagship store in Japantown San Francisco. The original store opened in the Shibuya district of Tokyo in 1988 and has been the destination for girls who want to doll themselves up in cute fluffy pink outfits, knee-high socks and frilly bags that channel Bo-Peep. The boutique is located in New People, a funky four-story modern emporium dedicated to eclectic Japanese fashion, paper goods, and art.

Baby, The Stars Shine Bright
New People
1746 Post St,
San Francisco, CA 94115
www.newpeopleworld.com

Check out our restaurant recommendations for San Francisco and specifically Japantown. Here is a Google map of our favorite San Francisco restaurants.

Minamoto Kitchoan: beautiful Japanese pastries in San Francisco

Esme Vos — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 22:41:56 +0000

If you’ve been walking along Market Street in the Financial District of San Francisco, you might have noticed a small Japanese boutique that looks nothing like the pastry stores in the city. The shop is Minamoto Kitchoan, which sells wagashi, traditional pastries served at the tea ceremony. Everything is imported from Japan to guarantee the quality and authenticity of the pastries. The presentation is just as important as the taste. The pastries resemble large jewelry stones, and some of pieces are so beautiful you hesitate eating them. They come in beautiful boxes and wrapping.

The service is impeccable. The staff are Japanese and wear uniforms. They never rush you, but they are attentive to your needs. When you pay, they hand you the package with both hands and with a slight bow. I went to Japan last year and suddenly, after that one afternoon at Minamoto Kitchoan buying daifuku (mochi balls with bean paste), I found myself missing Japanese service (and daiufku) terribly. This is the place I would come to for a special gift (or to indulge in my favorite Japanese pastries).

Minamoto Kitchoan
648 Market Street
San Francisco, CA 94104
www.kitchoan.com
(Note: They have stores in London, Singapore and New York.)

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Check out our sister site, Mapplr.com, for travel news and reviews of the coolest boutique hotels and restaurants around the world.

James Perse opens downtown San Francisco boutique

Esme Vos — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 00:35:01 +0000

James Perse, the Los Angeles-based designer, has opened a boutique in downtown San Francisco, in the space formerly occupied by agnes b. I stumbled upon the store today by accident. The sales people told me that many agnes b. clients had been stopping by in the last few days, not knowing agnes b. had closed, and that they looked very sad. While I’m not exactly too thrilled to see agnes b. leave the SF Bay Area (and indeed the entire United States west of NYC — they closed their LA boutique too), I am happy to see James Perse take over the location.

I am a fan of Perse’s super soft t-shirts which fit like a dream. There’s nothing like them on the market today. The short-sleeved cotton shirts with side paneling (see above, left) fit like a glove and make your waist look tiny. I like to wear the black paneled shirt over the dark grey t-shirt.

Aside from shirts, they carry women’s clothes and hoodies and they have a sizeable menswear collection, too.

James Perse
33 Grant Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94105
+1 415 398 7400
www.jamesperse.com

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Check out our sister site, Mapplr.com, for travel news and reviews of the coolest boutique hotels and restaurants around the world.

Super 7: funky T-shirts and Japanese toys in San Francisco

Esme Vos — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 18:59:39 +0000

Few articles of clothing allow us to express ourselves as much as T-shirts have done in the last thirty years. The T-shirt has become the uniform of modern civilization. So I’m always on the lookout for tees that are much more creative and unusual than those you would find in a chain store. That’s why I like Super 7, a funky emporium located in a tiny shop in Japantown, San Francisco, started by SF artist Brian Flynn. And they have more than T-shirts. Read my review on NBC Bay Area News.

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Check out our sister site, Mapplr.com, for travel news and reviews of the coolest boutique hotels and restaurants around the world.

Filippa K: cool edgy Swedish style

Esme Vos — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 01:42:11 +0000

I love Filippa K’s clothes and I recommended them in a recent article I wrote for NBC Bay Area news. Filippa K is a Swedish clothing company that makes basics for men and women. Started by Filippa Knutsson in 1993, it has become a must for people who want clean, minimalist clothes that are well-made and slightly edgy. What should you buy from Filippa K? Their shirts, trousers and coats are beautiful and they last a long time.

I discovered Filippa K clothing in 2000 when I traveled to Stockholm frequently as Chief Legal Officer of Spray Network, a pan-European portal launched out of Sweden (note: it was acquired by Lycos Europe in late 2000). Since then, I have shopped at their Amsterdam and Stockholm boutiques.

I love their approach to design, a very Swedish philosophy that can be distilled as follows: no unnecessary ornamentation. Although almost every clothing company sells white shirts these days, I find Filippa K’s to be superior in fit, styling and quality. Unlike traditional purveyors of shirts, these are not stodgy or old-fashioned. I also recommend their menswear, especially the coats and jackets which are sophisticated, urbane and durable at the same time.

Filippa K
66 Kearney Street
San Francisco, CA 94108
+1 415 951 0210
www.filippa-k.com

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Check out our sister site, Mapplr.com, for travel news and reviews of the coolest boutique hotels and restaurants around the world.

Agnes b. SF store is closing

Esme Vos — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 23:06:10 +0000

One of my favorite boutiques in San Francisco, agnes b., will be closing this month. So many shops in downtown SF have closed down or are planning to do so. This one is especially sad because I love agnes b. clothes. I’ll have to update my SF shopping guide. Now you’ll have to go to New York or LA for her clothes.

Cop.Copine adds a quirky twist to French chic

Esme Vos — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 20:47:30 +0000

Here’s my latest article on NBC Bay Area news about Cop.Copine, a French brand that has just opened a store on Union Square in downtown San Francisco. Cop.Copine’s style is edgy and urban, a bit more high-tech and futuristic than agnes b. and Comptoir des Cotonniers, my other favorite French brands. But it’s still very feminine. What I like about Cop.Copine is that the clothes are eclectic and distinctive, but they don’t fall into the purgatory of the weird and unwearable. Once you’re in the store and you begin trying on the clothes, you’ll have a very difficult time figuring out which pieces to buy. You’ll want them all.

Cop.Copine
343 Powell Street (at Post)
San Francisco, CA
+1 415 989 9035
www.cop-copine.com

They just opened a store in the 2nd arrondissement in Paris, one of my favorite areas in the city, right on the rue Etienne Marcel. Watch the store opening video showing a model wearing some of their clothes. Cop.Copine has several stores in Paris.

Cop.Copine 2nd arrondissement store
37, rue Etienne Marcel
75001 Paris, France
+33 1 5300 9480

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Shopplr’s favorite boutiques in Paris

Shopplr’s favorite boutiques in San Francisco

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Check out our sister site, Mapplr.com, for travel news and reviews of the coolest boutique hotels and restaurants around the world.

Urban chic, Italian style: Max&Co.

Esme Vos — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 23:55:37 +0000

Looking for a new casual look that screams Italian chic without ruining your budget? Love Max Mara and Sportmax but can’t afford the bubble prices they are still charging?

My advice is to go to Max&Co., the younger sister of the Max Mara Group. You won’t get the same luxurious finish, but the clothes are young, fun, and very Italian. They have stores in many cities around the world, including San Francisco. Read what I have to say about Max&Co. in NBC Bay Area news.

Check out my favorite pieces.

For accessories, I like the open-toe platforms in pink/dusty mauve and boots which are practical but stylish.

If you are looking for a lady-like bag, something that’s not big, chunky and studded with metal (aren’t we a bit sick and tired of that look?), this bag (below) does the trick. They carry it also in black which I think is more elegant.

Urban Chic with a European Twist (NBC Bay Area News) by Esme Vos

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Visit our sister site – Mapplr.com – for the best travel news, reviews of boutique hotels and restaurants.

Hideo Wakamatsu bags let you travel in style

Esme Vos — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 23:50:52 +0000

This week’s post in NBC Bay Area news is about traveling in style with the right luggage from Hideo Wakamatsu, a Japanese designer. I understand that we like to wear comfortable things when we travel. But must we look sloppy and have ugly luggage? There are very few places to get beautiful luggage that is also strong and functional. Forget the luggage shops. You’ll end up with cookie cutter trolleys.

My articles for NBC Bay Area news: Hlaska and Rickshaw Bags

Esme Vos — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 19:25:24 +0000

NBC San Francisco Bay Area has asked me to contribute a weekly article to their fashion section. Last week, I wrote about Rickshaw Bagworks whose laptop and messenger bags can rescue even the most hardcore geeks from looking dweeby. This week, I have written about Hlaska, another San Francisco-based maker of gorgeous leather and fabric laptop bags and briefcases. The styles are very different: Rickshaw is for people who want a rougher, urban look; Hlaska has a more sophisticated style. Rickshaw allows you to customize your own bag (you can bring your fabric to their atelier). Hlaska is for people who prefer leather bags.