San Francisco - Alison Bing [99]
CITY DISCOUNT Map Housewares
415-771-4649; 1542 Polk St; 10am-6pm; 1, 19, 47, 49, 76; California
Bargains never tasted so sweet: heart-shaped Le Creuset casseroles, frighteningly effective Microplane graters, Brika espresso makers and other specialty gourmet gear, all at 30% to 50% off the prices you’d pay downtown. Hard-to-find appliance replacement parts, parchment paper and cooking tips are all readily available from dedicated foodie counter staff.
VELVET DA VINCI Map Jewelry
415-441-0109; www.velvetdavinci.com; 2015 Polk St; noon-6pm Tue-Sat, to 4pm Sun; 12, 19, 47, 49, 76; Powell-Hyde
You can actually see the ideas behind these handcrafted gems: Lynn Christiansen puts her food obsessions into a purse that looks like whipped cream, and Enric Majoral’s Mediterranean meditations yield rings that appear to be made of sand. Shows here reveal brilliance behind the baubles; during the Ethical Metalsmiths’ ‘Radical Jewelry Makeover,’ the public was invited to bring broken trinkets to be recycled into new jewelry, with sales supporting a campaign for responsible sourcing practices.
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JAPANTOWN & PACIFIC HEIGHTS
BENEFIT Map Beauty Products, Local Maker
415-567-0242; 2117 Fillmore St; 10am-7pm Mon-Wed, 9:30am-7pm Thu & Fri, 9am-6:30pm Sat, 10am-6pm Sun; 1, 2, 3, 4, 22
Get cheeky with BeneTint, the dab-on liquid blush made from roses, or raise some eyebrows with Brow Zings tinted brow wax – they’re two of Benefit’s signature products invented in San Francisco by the twin-sister team. Surgery is so LA: in SF, overnight Angelinas swear by LipPlump and Lindsay Lohan dark-eye-circles are cured with Ooh La Lift.
CLARY SAGE ORGANICS Map Beauty Products, Clothing & Accessories
415-673-7300; www.clarysageorganics.com; 2241 Fillmore St; 10am-7pm Mon-Sat, 11am-6pm Sun; 1, 3, 12, 22, 24
To top off your spa day at Kabuki Springs & Spa, Clary Sage will outfit you with effortlessly flattering tunics made from organic Californian cotton, organic plant-based cleansers and lotions with light, delectable scents, and homeopathic flower-essence stress remedies.
KINOKUNIYA BOOKS & STATIONERY Map Books, Stationery
415-567-7625; 1581 Webster St; 10:30am-8pm; 2, 3, 4, 22, 38
Like warriors in a showdown, the bookstore, stationery and manga divisions of Kinokuniya compete for your attention. Only you can decide where your loyalties lie: with stunning photography books and Harajuku fashion mags upstairs, vampire comics downstairs, or the stationery department’s washi paper, supersmooth Sakura gel pens and pig notebooks with the motto ‘what lovely friends*they will bring happy.’
HER Map Clothing & Accessories
415-923-9628; www.her-sf.com; 2053 Fillmore St; 11am-7pm Tue-Sat, noon-5pm Sun; 1, 2, 3, 4, 22
Count on Her for universally flattering Ella Moss dresses and pencil skirts that skim your curves. You could get the star treatment with a personal shopper from Her dispatched to your home, but then you’d miss the smoking-hot sales rack for deals of up to 70% off.
MARC BY MARC JACOBS Map Clothing & Accessories
415-447-9322; www.marcjacobs.com; 2142 Fillmore St; 11am-7pm; 1, 2, 3, 4, 22
The USA’s hippest designer usually charges prices to match, but here alongside the $800 satchels and $300 flip-flops are bins of accessories under $25: $6 chunky resin bangles, $14 yellow belts and limited-edition $24 clutches with funky designs by SF’s own Creativity Explored.
SUPER7 Map Clothing & Accessories, Local Designer
415-409-4701; www.super7store.com; 1628 Post St; noon-7pm Mon-Thu, noon-8:30pm Fri, 11am-8:30pm Sat, 11am-7pm Sun; 2, 3, 4, 38
After tiresome T-shirt trends of self-promotion (‘Porn Star’) and retro-irony (‘Virginia is for Lovers’), it’s a shock to find piles of limited-edition T-shirts this original.