Shopgirls Boutique in Parkdale is an absolute smorgasbord of veggie-dyed, recycled, reclaimed, re-everythinged, and art pieces. And all designed in Canada, no less.

You can find everything from a table made from bicycle parts to necklaces made from shirt collars to earrings made from rusty nails. And there’s nothing rusty about this place. Owner Michelle Germain has a head on her shoulders; she acknowledges the futility of trying to compete with H&M. Instead, her shop, now in its third year, strives to bring its customers pieces that they’ll wear and love for years, rather than fast fashion with an expiration date.

But the real pièce de résistance is by far the rack of yoga jeans, which will do wonders for your bum. “I think I sold like six yoga jeans and one other thing yesterday,” one of the managers quipped. Yoga jeans, not unlike the jegging, are a stretchy cousin of the jean. No, they’re not exactly purposed for doing yoga, though Germain has had cases of people actually trying it out. It’s no surprise, they feel like stretchy denim mittens and my derrière looks fantastic — if I do say so myself.
–By Elli Stuhler