front row, john legend, folioyvr, helen siwak, tim thom, vancouver, bc, luxury lifestyle, west coast luxury, oakridge park, retail insider

Joe Zee, John Legend, and The Front Row at Oakridge Park

Vancouver finally has a fashion night to call its own, and The Front Row at Oakridge Park arrived with all the glamour we have been craving. The development turned its North Atrium into a gleaming runway for an evening that blended a century of style, the newest luxury collections, and a headline performance that had...

haywire wines, okanagan crush pad, folioyvr, helen siwak, okanagan wine tastings, town hall brands

BC Sips & Stories: Unruly by Name, Precise by Practice, Presenting Haywire Winery

Haywire Winery sits on scenic benchland in Summerland, but its origin story is anything but polished. Named for the unpredictable wire fencing that once crossed the property, the label began in 2009 as a virtual project: no winery, no crush pad, just a tiny inaugural crop harvested from the organic Switchback Vineyard. The name stuck...

canfar, hiv research, vancouver, bc, vancouver luxury lifestyle, west coast luxury, yvr, helen siwak, folioyvr

Inside Vancouver Entertains: A Night the City Will Not Forget

Vancouver’s gala season leaves little room for a newcomer to stand out, yet in only its second year, Vancouver Entertains has done exactly that, its red ribbon already speaking volumes about the mark it is leaving on HIV awareness in this city. Each guest arrived at an assigned address, one of eight simultaneous dinners hosted...

Inside Vancouver Entertains: The After Party in Photos

Once dinners concluded, every guest converged on the fifth floor of TELUS Gardens for the evening’s second act. Hazel and DESTINEAK brought the energy, and the dance floor filled quickly with black-tie lapels, sequined gowns and an array of on-trend and avant-garde looks. Oakridge Park’s portrait studio became the night’s unofficial gathering point, camera shutters...

michael kenna, kostuik gallery, jennifer kostuik, yaletown, photography exhibition, vancouver, bc, canada, west coast fine art

A Privilege He Will Never Take for Granted: Michael Kenna’s Beautiful Fukushima Opens in Vancouver

The opening reception for Beautiful Fukushima brought award-winning photographer Michael Kenna and the people who follow his work together at Kostuik Gallery in Yaletown. Beneath the gallery’s exposed brick and timber beams, the atmosphere was warm as guests moved between the framed prints and the display cases, discussing the 50 sepia-toned silver gelatin photographs that...

global luxury, tuscany wine, town hall brands, helen siwak, folioyvr, montepulciano, olive oil, vancouver, bc, yvr

Tuscany’s Living Legacy: Wine, Olive Oil And The Art Of Preservation

In Tuscany, heritage is cultivated in vineyards, tended in olive groves, and carried forward through the knowledge of those who work the land. Across the hills surrounding Montepulciano, one of Italy’s historic wine regions is marking the 400th anniversary of Francesco Redi, the 17th-century physician, scientist, and poet whose writing helped secure Tuscan wine a...

Garnet Valley Ranch Winery, town hall brands, folioyvr, bc sips and stories,

BC Sips & Stories: High-Elevation Harmony at Garnet Valley Ranch

Above Summerland, inside a secluded canyon reached by dirt roads and switchbacks, Garnet Valley Ranch occupies the highest-elevation vineyard site in the Okanagan Valley. Part of the Haywire and Okanagan Crush Pad family, the 320-acre property sits well beyond the region’s usual wine-touring routes, functioning less like a conventional estate and more like a wild,...

red rooster wines, bc sips and stories, town hall brands, folioyvr, helen siwak, vancouver, naramata bench, yvr, wine tasting

BC Sips & Stories: Vibrant Expression and Creative Spirit at Red Rooster Winery

Perched high along Penticton’s famed Naramata Bench, Red Rooster Winery offers one of the Okanagan Valley’s most inviting and expressive wine experiences. Founded by European immigrants who settled in the region in 1990, the winery released its inaugural vintage in 1997. The estate quickly gained a reputation for refusing to take itself too seriously while...

From a Business Card to a Seven-Year Partnership: Michael Kenna and Kostuik Gallery

Yaletown is slightly overcast, the lush dampness of the foliage hanging in the air. From a chair inside Kostuik Gallery, I watch couples on the street socializing with their dogs and hot coffees as wet leaves lay heavy on the sidewalk. Within the gallery’s four walls, the light is bright and the room is calm,...

great kitchen party, vancouver, bc, culinary competition, helen siwak, folioyvr, west coast dining

Canada’s Great Kitchen Party Celebrates 20 Years With a Vancouver All-Star Invitational

Twenty years, six all-star chefs, and one big night in North Vancouver: Canada’s Great Kitchen Party knows how to throw an anniversary. The Vancouver All-Star Invitational brought some of the city’s most decorated competitors back to the kitchen to chase a podium finish and a ticket to the Canadian Culinary Championship, while guests sipped British...