Stores

Where We Shop: The Skincare Line and Kids’ Craft Shop Delighting the Duo Behind Banquet Workshop

Banquet Workshop’s delightful illustrations and typographic designs adorn everything from greeting cards to comfy tees. Here's where the founders of the Vancouver brand love to shop.

By Stacey McLachlan /

That “Chips & Dip” tote you see everywhere? That’s Banquet Workshop. But if proclaiming your devotion to snack food isn’t your speed, the Vancouver brand has got plenty of other delightful offerings: cheeky greeting cards, vibrant flower-print tees, hats embroidered with “Read More Books” in a charmingly wobbly font and throw pillows decorated with a pattern of neon-pink moths. Though founders Sarah Edmonds and Tammy Lawrence have found an international audience, everything is made right here in the city with the help of three team members. “Our cards are our bread and butter, but we get excited about the weird new things,” says Edmonds. The apparel in particular brings moments of joy to the team of friends. Adds Lawrence, “I’ll see someone carrying a tote bag on the Drive, or wearing a hat at the farmer’s market, and it’s so exciting. It’s like we won a prize.”   1249 Cartwright St., banquetworkshop.com

WE LOVE LOCAL

A few of Tammy Lawrence and Sarah Edmonds’s favourite Vancouver haunts.

SUNJA LINK

3761 Main St.  sunjalink.com

“Everyone we know that uses the house line looks better,” says Lawrence.

COLLAGE COLLAGE

3697 Main St. collagecollage.ca

“It’s things parents want to buy for their children, but also that kids want to buy,” Lawrence says.

THE BLOCK

350 W Cordova St., theblock.ca

“They bring in nice European lines, like Henrik Vibskov—just things you can’t get anywhere else,” says Edmonds.

WET COAST WOOLS

2923 W 4th Ave., wetcoastwools.com

“We always have a sweater or something on our knitting needles,” says Edmonds.

 

Stacey McLachlan

Stacey McLachlan

Stacey is the editor-in-chief of Vancouver magazine, and a senior editor for our sister mag, Western Living. She's also the author of Vanmag's monthly Know It All column—if you've got a question or wildly unsubstantiated rumour about our city, she wants to get to the bottom of it: [email protected]