RUE PIGALLE 927 Queen West, 647-352-8115, ruepigalle.ca
There’s a whole world of red-carpet-worthy jewellery out there that goes beyond the blingy bits and bobs you usually see on the most swagged-out celebs. Necklaces can be made from recycled pop-bottle plastic moulded to look like flower petals with sea sponge centres, or fashioned by tightly coiling nautical rope and then stringing the tubular lengths with fine sterling silver rings.
“The value of jewellery isn’t just in the material, but also in the time it takes to make it,” says Isabelle Fish, whose Trinity-Bellwoods accessory boutique, Rue Pigalle, sells both of the above (by Stefano Poletti and Eleanor Bolton respectively) and specializes in designers who make show-stopping pieces incorporating otherwise humble materials. “When you wear it, you’re wearing a part of the artist.”
That material-mashing philosophy also translates into Rue Pigalle’s other finishing touches, like clutches created using ornate kimono textiles, and high-top sneakers made not with canvas but with vintage silk scarves.
Rue Pigalle picks: A Hemma Artigues necklace features semi-precious stones and crystals strung on clear plastic cord, $250 a Noritamy bracelet is multiple sterling silver bands half-dipped in black car paint, $295 the silk scarf sneakers are by Soisire Soiebleue, $250.
Look for: The Peter Kent handbag collection arriving this week but officially launching on Fashion’s Night Out (September 6).
Hours: Tuesday to Saturday 11 am to 7 pm, Sunday noon to 5 pm.
