If Grandma’s topaz brooch isn’t to your taste, why not have it reworked into a dazzler you’ll wear?

Tamara Kronis and Kathryn Dieroff of Studio 1098 are pros at restyling and repairing baubles. They also design their own line of fresh, contemporary jewellery (from $85-$5,000).

Pick from statement pieces like a Brazilian amethyst cocktail ring or simple diamond-studded rolling bands in platinum or rose gold.

And as for the topaz—coloured gems are a girl’s new best friend.

Studio 1098, 1098 Yonge St.,Toronto, 416-659-5767, www.studio1098.com

If your aesthetic is Hollace Cluny but your budget is Ikea, why not spruce up the Ektorp with some colourful hand-crafted cushions from Australian designer Megan Park?

The pillows (from $47) are made from silks, linen and cashmere and are embellished with embroidery, beading and fringing. Mix in as many prints as possible for a look that is playful, bold and entirely your own.

At Hollace Cluny, 1070 Yonge St., Toronto, 416-968-7894, www.hollacecluny.ca

Just when we thought we’d cracked our no dough diet, the tease of slow roasted beef brisket on a springy white bun became too much to take.

Black Camel’s brisket takes five days to prepare and is so tasty, tender and moist we could have gone for a second.

Just as tempting are the seared steak and roasted pulled chicken sandwiches, and for the veggie there’s a delicious roma tomato, red pepper, arugula and eggplant option.

Of course, we could eat the fillings sans bread, but where’s the fun in that?

Tip: Sandwiches sell out fast, so check Twitter for updates and daily specials. 

Black Camel, 4 Crescent Rd., Toronto, 416-929-7518, www.blackcamel.ca

All those school dinners of soggy scampi and rubbery sole put us off seafood for years. But these days, we can’t get enough of it.

For the freshest, loveliest pick of the sea, we head to the recently renovated Pisces Gourmet, where thick slabs of seabass, salmon and swordfish await. Crustacean lovers will be clamouring for the B.C. Dungeness crab and East Coast lobsters.

On our last visit we snapped up some East Coast halibut as well as some fine Ontario pickerel to barbeque. The selection of sauces, marinades and oils is hard to resist, and for the preoccupied cook, there are plenty of pre-made delights like marinated skewers of salmon and tuna and veggies.

Now that’s a catch.

Pisces Gourmet, 1097 Yonge St., Toronto, 416-921-8888.