With a name like HAUS, I half expected to walk into some uberkool minimalist boutique at 1256 Bloor W. Maybe it had been transplanted from Berlin, missed its Yorkville destination and landed, confused but perfectly coiffed, on the wrong end of Bloor, smack in between Value Village and the Salvation Army? Visions of cigarettes dangling from hands at the end of crossed arms left bare by drapey black tank tops worn by waify blond boys... No?Well, no. HAUS could easily have been called plain old, English “House” – not because it’s plain (it’s not) or old (well, partly vintage) or… um, English, but because it sort of feels like home. It has a comfortable air, a warm, cozy vibe; vintage suitcases piled around as displays for vintage shoes, local art in antique frames and writing on the walls (yeah, so, this sounds exactly like my house). And there’s a lovely smiling lady behind the counter waiting to greet you (I need to get one of these). It’s the kind of place that makes you feel like you could just pull up a chair and stay a while. And, well, you can. And, so, I did.
The smiling lady is Rachel Beauparlant and I’m still pretty convinced she didn’t mind my lingering - what a gem. Rachel is one of the team of three that runs HAUS. They’ve been stationed quite perfectly in the quirky little neighbourhood of Bloordale since March, though Rachel says people constantly ask them why they’re not on Queen West. They had the opportunity to move into the QWW/ Parkdale hood, but she, William and Maurizio (the other two owners) felt their hearts were in Bloordale.
She started to describe the draw to the eclectic area; the feeling, the texture, the mix of neighbours. I got it, “the grittiness?” I offered. We know the feeling of that draw to those character-infused pockets of Toronto, the potential locations for the About Face space. HAUS wants to support local and up-and-coming designers, artists and makers of all kinds and felt like moving in to their chosen spot was, in a way, also helping to support an up-and-coming neighbourhood.
And up-and-coming it sure is. Rachel says they’ve seen a lot of new love for the ‘hood even in the short time they’ve been there. It helps that Bloordale is a designated BIA (Business Improvement Area). Rachel gave me a copy of Bloor Magazine, an amazing little publication offering insight into the culture, politics, businesses and other intriguing stories (in a well-designed format, I might add) of the Bloor Street BIAs. Pick this up (download pdf free from their site) then head up, over or down to Bloor, or grab one from HAUS or other local businesses.
If you work up an appetite shopping, I HIGHLY recommend heading toward the Junction and treating yourself to brunch or dinner (now serving!) just West on Bloor at Zocalo. The adorable little café –clad with reclaimed furniture and hand-picked flowers– is tended to by its equally adorable owners Paul Hardy and Heather Braaten. The dishes on the menu are every bit as creative as the clothing down the street and they’ve also chosen to source from our local offerings. Local and organic ingredients go into their daily vegan (but still so creamy) soups, served with corn bread (made with organic whole wheat and fresh corn) and current preserve. YUM. And the egg mash, (oh, the egg mash) which I “sampled” (slash, licked off the plate) from my fellow diner, complimented with fennel, mustard seeds, Quebec Brie and homemade tomato relish… I’ll just say that the content of the last set of brackets was not exclusively for effect.
Now the fresh breaths, Zocalo and HAUS are set to be mainstays as this strip of Bloor inevitably flourishes. For the moment, HAUS is happy to hang between the thrift shops -I should also take a second to shout out Bloordale pioneers Freedom Clothing and the 69 Vintage Collective- offering a selected option for the vintage hunter alongside local labels like Jool by Julie Phelps, our friends the Muttonhead Collective and affordable staples like Cheap Monday. And they just seem quite excited to finally have a space to do with whatever they like; art shows, photo shoots, parties. Rachel, for one, is just thrilled to finally be allowed to write on the walls.
-L
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