ara

ara has commented on the site 25 times, submitted updates to 0 shops in the guide, and suggested 0 of the shops that were added to the guide.

ara's Favorites

Favorite Brands

Brand Name	Notes
Matfer Bourgeat	I love my Bourgeat cookware.
Pierre Hardy	In my opinion, the best women's shoe designer right now.
Rachel Comey	My favorite shirt (I admit I have a favorite shirt). Her women's clothes are always creative as well--great prints, beautiful details.
Raf Simons	Saw a few of his jackets at Atelier. Incredible. If you ever have $1-2k burning a hole in your pocket...
Rick Owens
Stephan Schneider	Designs his own textiles which are amazing. Everything made with great care in Belgium.
Surface to Air Black Label	Great T-shirt graphics. Shirts themselves are soft and fit well.
Veronique Branquinho	Love the Belgian minimalism and impeccable construction.

Favorite Stores

Store Name	Notes
826 Valencia	Three words: pirate supply store.
Bblessing	Nice stuff all around.
Dover Street Market	Like a temple to the avant-garde.
IF	Old school clothing shop (no website, hand written receipts) with all at Belgian and Japanese avant-garde and minimalist clothing a person could want.
Isotope	Every comic book shop in the world should look like this.
Kiosk	A most humble design shop. If you ever wondered what pencil sharpener kids in Germany are using these days...
Oak	Impeccable taste and knack for finding great new designers.
Project No. 8	A concept store done right. Really good at finding up-and-coming German designers. Beautiful items everywhere.
Scout
Seven	Hip, edgy, a knack for finding new talent--the type of store that you'll only ever see in New York.
South Willard	It's scary how fast I can spend money here. So I have to limit myself to going once or twice a year.
The Future Perfect	High concept design from younger designers. Most of this stuff you won't find elsewhere.

Jargol, featuring exceptional fashion and design and a guide to the best independent stores.