As summer segues to fall, all fashion talk turns to transition pieces. This means nubby knee-length socks ’neath chunky sandals, boy blazers over feminine frocks, and for we West Coasters, the all important rain slicker.

Defeat downpours with Lily + Jae’s Charley Cape ($180). Made of rain repellent waxed cotton with double-breasted snaps, the cute hooded cover-up is perfect topper when caught in an unexpected September shower.

In black or caramel, the cloak can be found at the label’s new four month pop-up shop within One of A Few. There you can also snap up the rest of the sophisticated collegiate fall collection, past pieces and vintage sourced by designer Jude Feller on her global escapades.

Now you're cloaked in style.

Lily + Jae in One of a Few, 354 Water St., Vancouver, 604-605-0685, www.lilyandjae.com

The award for most agonizing item to shop for goes to the swimsuit, but in close second comes jeans.

If you identify, you’ll be riveted by Levi’s new Curve ID line. Focused on shape rather than size, the brand studied the bodies of 60,000 women, charting the difference between hip and seat measurements, to create three styles that account for 80 per cent of the female population. There’s Slight Curve for the straight-silhouetted who find waists too tight, Bold Curve for the hourglass girl who suffers from waist gape and Demi Curve for those in between.

Sans tears and gnashing of teeth, we got fitted in-store and found a skinny and straight style (there’s also bootcut) that looked sexy and felt comfy as all get-up.

Bye bye denim-shopping blues.

$79.50-$98 at Levi’s, 1068 Robson St., Vancouver, 604-331-9960, www.levi.ca

Whether there is any truth to the power of crystals to clear blockages from the body's electromagnetic field, they’ve certainly got an aura of cool.

What began as a therapeutic outlet became a bauble business, Solis Jewelry. Designed first in the rocky mountains of Nelson and now in Vancouver, the local line pairs gorgeous geodes and gemstones with delicate chains. Designer Carolyn MacKinnon’s weighty quartz point pieces ($45-$70) and raw citrine dipped in gold ($45) especially rock.

Consider it alternative medicine for your décolletage.

Available at the monthly Eugene Choo Market or online at www.etsy.com/shop/solisjewelry

For those who’ve ever left a pair of Chanel sunglasses in the washroom of a Petro-Canada, this dose is for you.

That latest edition to Montreal jewellry designer Mercedes La Rosa’s Bijougraphie collection is a spectacle holder ($70) to keep your glasses safely and stylish stowed around your neck. More luxe than librarian, the eyewear chain features the brand’s trademark hand-painted baubles in beautiful palettes and patterns.

That new Chloé pair isn’t going anywhere.

Available online at www.bijougraphie.com

From Generation X to Generation A, Douglas Coupland’s latest project is a collection of Canadian souvenirs for a new generation.

In collaboration with Roots, the Vancouver artist-author has designed a limited edition line of clothing and accessories that digitize the down-home, from a test pattern t-shirt dress for ladies ($68) to motherboard print leggings for babies ($14.95). There’s also laptop sleeves, passport wallets and backpacks emblazoned with Coupland’s idea of a Canadian crest, complete with moose, igloo and satellite dish.

And that a pop culture man like Coupland should get his own Gastown pop-up shop to house his colour-popping collection is only fitting.

Roots x Douglas Coupland pop-up store, 36 Powell St., Vancouver, 604-677-0614, www.roots.com/douglascoupland
See our photos from the opening party on today's Editors' Diary.

Fashionistas who flit between time zones may wear multiple watches for practical reasons, but knowing how the fashion gods have long pooh-poohed practicality (i.e. 10-inch Alexander McQueen alien heels), it’s safe to say most just like how it looks.

And we concur, it’s cool. To dial up the style for summer, double your time pieces with a watch from Swatch’s Colour Codes collection. In nearly every bright colour of the rainbow, they give a punch to the classic silver or gold one you already wear.

If only two watches could give us twice as much time in the day.

$65 at Watch It!, 2169 W. Fourth Ave., Vancouver, 604-733-0009, www.watchit.ca

How is killing three birds with one stone considered compassionate?

When the birds are summer trends (nautical stripes, espadrilles, wedges) and the stone is a shoe by TOMS.

Their new wedge with its jute rope accents and striped canvas upper fulfills all the requirements of a cute summer shoe. And the very fact that it's TOMS means buying a pair also puts shoes on a child in need of some.

It’s a win-win-win.

Red/white stripe and black styles ($85) at Twigg & Hottie, 3671 Main St., Vancouver, 604-879-8595, www.twiggandhottie.com or all styles online at www.tomsshoes.com

Shopping has its merits, but shopping at Philanthropy has that much more.

The new concept store by pop-up retailer The Latest Scoop sells products sourced by them, as well as items donated by the likes of Harriet Grey jewellery, New Balance, Christine’s Lingerie and Kiss & Makeup that directly benefit local children’s charities. Occupying the old Duthie Books location in Kits, the outpost only stays open for a few more weeks, but receives new merchandise regularly.

Retail therapy just got a whole lot more therapeutic.

Philanthropy by The Latest Scoop, 2239 W. Fourth Ave., Vancouver, www.philanthropybyscoop.com

Whether pops is bookish, a biker or both, there’s a present (from $25 to splurge) to show him you think he’s tops. Herewith, Vitamin Daily Vancouver’s five fab gifts for Father’s Day.

One good dad deserves another, so give yours fictional favourite Atticus Finch with the new 50th anniversary edition of Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird and inscribe the inside page with love. $17.82 at Chapters, www.chapter.indigo.ca

Whether he wishes he could play in the majors or is content just watching the Vancouver Canadians, a 19th-century-inspired, hand-stitched Lemon Ball baseball is an assured home run. $45 at Mr. Lee’s, 109 E. Broadway, Vancouver, 604-568-7103, www.mrleesgeneralstore.com

He doesn’t need to be a sailor to sport a sailor shirt—Picasso, among other greats, lived in them. Bring him aboard the renewed stripe hype in one by National Anthem that’s made in Vancouver. $80 (in white or navy) at Inventory Stockroom, 45 Powell St., Vancouver, 604-568-5889, stockroom.inventorymagazine.com

If he refuses to ask for directions, a TomTom portable GPS navigation device with downloadable celebrity voices like Homer Simpson, Darth Vader or Knight Rider’s KITT should do the trick. $140-$280 at www.tomtom.com

Get him biking to work and reminiscing about his boyhood with a Raleigh road bike like the “OneWay” or “Sojourn” that comes outfitted with an aged, honey-hued leather seat. $730-$1,287 at The Bike Doctor, 137 W. Broadway, Vancouver, 604-873-2453, www.thebikedr.com

When it comes to weddings, we wish that compiling the mailing list was our highest priority (or at least the future mother-in-law does), but lets be honest, it’s really all about the dress. 

Just in time for spring fever (and summer engagements), Vancouver designer Jason Matlo has launched a line of fashion-forward gowns. From ballerina ball skirts to sleek-and-slinky jersey, retro details like asymmetrical necklines, Grecian draping, and tons of tulle define these hand-finished couture creations.

Now, back to that mailing list….

www.jasonmatlo.com

To see more dresses, view photos on the Editors' Diary.