Small town charm in the Marina

Take the 45 a couple blocks down Union and you'll find a mini shopping heaven packed with designer boutiques, cute kids stuff, and tasty restaurants. 

I talked with Lauren at Marmalade, a girly lingerie store on Union at Octavia about the style she sees out the shop windows.

Sol y Sombra: Who do you see shopping Union?

Lauren: Yuppies, to be honest. The kind of person who wants skimpy lingerie and BCBG but can afford to live in the Marina. Marmalade sees mostly women, mid 20's and 30's but some men come in to buy presents for wives or girlfriends. 

SyS: What do you think makes Union so charming?

L: It's quaint. The way all the old Victorian houses are kept so nice, the way all the shop owners know each other and help each other out. It's just really personal and quiet without the tourist aspect of Chestnut Street or the Haight or downtown. 

SyS: Why do you think the tourism is so low around here?

L: They all know about Chestnut or Union Square and just pass around here. It's only a few blocks of Union that are the main shopping area so our smallness makes us pass under their radar. 

Polk St.

Where North Beach is lost to tourism and Union Street is relatively protected from it, Polk is actively pursuing the tourist trade. With a mix of  stores ranging from music instruction to hardware to thrift shops to green interior design, Polk can accommodate a similar wide range of tastes. Saturday nights, the streets are full of scantily clad club girls and boys and Sunday mornings are crawling with hung over hipsters going from coffee shop to diner and back home, never without the ubiquitous dark sunglasses. 

 

Find down Polk: bird-sf.com (music, yoga)

realfoodco.com (grocery)

mascaravintage.com (heavily 70's, 80's, accessories, records)

http://www.yelp.com/biz/royal-ground-coffees-san-francisco-3 (go in the morning, Morrissey on the stereo, Ahab manning the steamed milk. Great way to start the day.)

Microbuses and murals

San Francisco's Haight district is full of fixies, moccasin clad scene kids, left over hippies and punks and a motley crew of german and french tourists.

 Likewise, the sidewalks are lined with used record shops, used book shops, second-hand clothing shops, smoke shops, skate shops, and funky eateries. Crepe Express is a tiny, pretense free restaurant slinging sweet and savory crepes, sandwiches and salads. Paired with sassy employees with take-it-or-leave-it attitudes, Crepe Express is a perfect example of the Haight's rebellious nature. Look them up on Yelp!

 

Doe, for women, men and children. Stock also includes housewares, stationary, bath and body products. doe-sf.com

Art covers all surfaces, from murals on shop walls to stencils sprayed on the sidewalks.

 

All the trappings you need to attract that hipster-sceanster-strung out crowd. These are the folk who search for hours through milk crates for one record or through the racks at Goodwill, Aardvarks, Held Over, Buffalo Exchange, Crossroads...etc. These are kids who value personal style, whatever that might be.

Along those same lines, the stores up and down Haight Street vary from modernist, sleek displays, like at Kid Robot. The all white shelves and floors and ceiling really show off the bright vinyl and packages that comprise their stock. kidrobot.com

   

to ramshackle, been-here-forever attitudes

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In the San Francisco style, even the architecture contributes the the street's vibe of casual mix-matching.

W is for Western

Drawing from a collective inspiration of strong women, bold embellishment, and a dose of masculinity, Western wear is a striking trend. 

Hermés

Givenchy

Anna Sui

X is for Xagerated Hips

Everyone seems to be celebrating the female form, from clingy numbers that show it all off to cages that frame and exaggerate curves. Soft drapes enfold some curves while material is built up on others to enhance them.

Luella

Alexander McQueen

Christian Lacroix

Aquascutum

K is for Kicky Pleats

Sweet details for a kicky flip. Pleats add that little extra swish to your step.

Miu Miu

Lanvin

Giorgio Armani

D&G

O is for Oversized

Blowing up proportions for emphasis and drama. 

Vivienne Westwood

Viktor and Rolf

Lanvin

Christian Lacroix