Au Courant:
Gimme something I can spend to: Kelly Scott, who did for Isla Vista fashionistas what S.O.S. did for I.V. drunks-excuse me, social drinkers-with the opening of her boutique Miss Behavin’ (6551 Trigo Rd.) earlier this year, is giving the virtual world a similar style injection. Her e-commerce Web site, shopmissbehavin.com, got up and running this week, offering nearly all the merchandise she sells in her shop, including holiday dresses by BB Dakota, Harajuku Lovers accessories, Heatherette hoodies, and Free People loungewear. Bonus: the site’s boombox, which allows shoppers to select their favorite dollar-dropping soundtrack.
It’s like she never left: If fears about flea market maven/Punch Interieur owner Sara Gehris’s recent threat of pulling a disappearing act had you hot and bothered, chill: One of Gehris’s dealers, Pamela Amrine, has taken over the lease, and the two are now working as partners to keep Punch alive, which is great news for one-of-a-kind-find fiends everywhere. The new/old shop will stay put (4950 Carpinteria Ave.), but shall now be known as Punch Interieurs & Pamela’s Vintage Furniture, and they’ve already got another one of their famed Paris Flea Market Days planned for early ’08, on January 12. Um, welcome back? [UPDATE: Punch has since moved to 1223 State Street in downtown Santa Barbara.]
U too can be beautilicious: Salon U (1719 State St.) is rapidly becoming the go-to salon for all that is new and fabulous in the beauty world. The salon has begun carrying DiFiaba Hair Color, new not only to S.B., but to the entire West Coast; utilizing revolutionary micro-pigment technology, the stuff is said to deliver shinier, longer-lasting color. (Say it with me: Yes, this is my natural color. Good.) The salon’s also offering personal shopping, styling, and wardrobe consulting services, and slinging house products in the form of its BillyGirl Cosmetics and Ubody lines. The best part: mention The Indy, and score a free makeup application. Pucker up!
Spotlight On: Blackbird
In a little place like Santa Barbara, it’s always a pleasant surprise to stumble upon an area that can accurately be described as off the beaten path. But Parker Way, off lower State Street, definitely qualifies; and with its rapidly growing, eclectic mix of hipster businesses and gathering places like Energy Tattoo, Yoga Soup, Santa Barbara Roasting Co., and the most recent addition-an adorable little shop called Blackbird-this stretch of S.B. promises to become a destination unto itself. Opened this month, Blackbird personifies the area, oozing art-loving, om-chanting, Earth-saving sensibilities with just the right touch of edge. The shop’s S.B.-grown owner, Patricia Mera, said it was always her dream to open a store; she told her parents as much, and within a month, they’d found the space and set up shop. “I was an art major, but I was never good at art,” Mera said. “My mom said, ‘You should do a piece to hang in here,’ and I’m like, it’s here, this is my installation!” Mera was joking, but you could be forgiven for thinking otherwise. Local artists’ work studs the walls, and is reflected in the merchandise: skewing native, green, and graffiti-inspired, there are unique togs for men and women, goods for the house, and products for the bod. The name, Blackbird, references the Beatles tune: “If you listen to the words, ‘take these wings and learn to fly,’ it’s like my parents gave me the wings, and now they want me to fly. Oh god, now I’m gonna cry!” Whether flying or crying, Blackbird’s bound to find success.
Shop this:
Shhhh: In celebration of its recent move-and, you know, the holidays-stylephile must-shop Outfit (428 State St.) is kicking down a 30 percent discount (or more!) on everything in the store, now through the most wonderful day of the year. : If a lack of festive frocks is hampering the timeliness with which you’re RSVPing to those countless holiday soirees at which your stylish presence has been requested, take heart: For a very vintage Christmas, look no further than The Vintage Heart Boutique (208 W. Canon Perdido St.), where all cocktail dresses, evening gowns, and classic LBDs are 35 percent off, now through December 29. : The second installment of the Third Annual Holiday Art Bazaar benefit for the Unity Shoppe takes place this Saturday, from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., at Reds (211 Helena Ave.). An encore of the December 8 event, this affair will feature unique, giftable goods from area artists. Ten percent of all sales will go to the Unity Shoppe, and Reds will also act as an official drop-off location for Toys for Tots and the Unity Shoppe Food Drive.
Check Out: Bee’s Wing Arts
Since opening its doors in July 2005, Susannah Gordon’s Bee’s Wing Arts (3001 State St.) has provided a killer collection of high-quality handcrafted goods to Santa Barbara art-lovers, not to mention a potent dose of cool to the TriVina shopping strip. Here are three reasons why this little gem is worth checking out:
1) The incredible selection of burned-out velvet scarves, mosaic picture frames, stained glass, blown glass, organic soaps, candles, clothing, cards, mirrors, wooden tiles, and jewelry, jewelry, jewelry!
2) The one-of-a-kind candle holders, key chains, and picture frames from Resource Revival: they’re made of repurposed bicycle parts, and look as cool as they sound. Cooler, in fact: the Fat Tire logo was perfectly adorable, displayed in a picture frame made from an old bike chain.
3) The likelihood that one of Gordon’s artists might just drop by while you’re there, admiring her work, as happened on a recent Friday afternoon, when Barbara Larson stopped in to deliver a batch of her handmade ornaments-torch-cut steel sculptures adorned with lamp-work glass beads-while another customer was purchasing one of her pieces.