There’s a small piece of Vancouver that is once and forever hippie, and one of its meccas is Rastawares (1505 Commercial Drive, East Vancouver, 604-255-3600). Owner Patrick lannone travels annually to Asia and South America to buy hand-knit sweaters, bamboo did-geridoos, teak drums, Thai fisherman pants, and so many styles of woolly hat you’d think the place was run by a crazed milliner. Most everything, says lannone, is handmade of natural materials.
Two blocks north, on the opposite side of the Drive, Beckwoman’s Folk Art (1314 Commercial Drive, East Vancouver, 604-254-8056) is spottable for its casbah-style entrance. Bonita (no surname) has run the place for twenty years, and keeps it chock-a-block with cheap cloth-ing, jewelry, and assorted junk she buys overseas. Beaded curtains are a specialty.
Wonderbucks (909 West Broadway, Central Vancouver, 604-742-0510; and 1803 Commercial Drive, East Vancouver, 604-253-0510) sells a lot of unexceptional kitchenware and garden stuff, but it’s worth seeking out for its hard-to-find aluminum, tin, and wrought-iron containers and decorative fixtures, as well as gorgeous wrapping paper and fridge magnets.
Army & Navy (27 West Hastings Street, Downtown, 604-682-6644) is the department store for all things cheap, and it’s looking pretty spiffy (if you don’t look too closely) since millionaire socialite Jacqui Cohen accepted the challenge of keeping the family firm afloat. It’s been at this location for generations (“since 1919”). The selection is wide ranging to say the least — from cheap runners, through markdown, sheets and towels, to cut-price Chef Boyardee Beef Ravioli.
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