Life was already tough for indie boutiques in Hayes Valley, where recent move-ins of bigger and better-funded brands have sent the price of rent skyward. For three of the neighborhood's longtime iconic storefronts—Ver Unica, Welcome Stranger, and Nancy Boy—closure due to the coronavirus was the straw that broke that fashion maven's back. But! Online stores are coming to the rescue...see how the stores are reinventing themselves, sans brick-and-mortars, for the pandemic age.
Plus, your roots are showing! Pump up your 'do with professional DIY color kits from two San Francisco hair salons. Then, nourish your epidermis with a free CBD facial serum and see the future more clearly in hip eyewear from the new Zenni x Cynthia Rowley collaboration.
Coronavirus proves too much for some SF brick-and-mortars—online stores to the rescue!
Two words: It sucks. There's no plainer way to put the fact that just as SF hits the two-month mark of shelter in place, a trio of beloved local retailers has shuttered their physical storefronts. It's not entirely surprising that Ver Unica, that cool AF vintage boutique, Welcome Stranger, a fave among outdoorsy/urban guys with a penchant for well-designed essentials, and Nancy Boy, makers of yummy essential-oil-based face, body, and home products, all used to live in Hayes Valley. Loss of revenue due to SIP was the last straw. But looming significant rent increases—caused by the hood's changing landscape to include well-funded/high-volume brands (i.e. Allbirds, Outdoor Voices)—also contributed to store owners' decisions to pack up and move out.
Alas, let's celebrate the good news: we, their loyal customers, can still shop Nancy Boy and Welcome Stranger online and Ver Unica on Instagram until its newly minted online store launches. Fingers crossed the city's new allowance for curbside pickup for retail shops will prevent further closures. #7x7shopslocal
SF salons have you covered with at-home hair color kits.
We have nothing but respect for everyone embracing their pandemic hair. But if you have reached your limit of grown-out roots and/or the multiplying grays that are now staring back at you from that dang Zoom box, we have most excellent news: Two of our favorite SF salons, Edo and Cinta, are offering individualized, at-home hair color kits.
Lower Haight's Edo Salon has teamed up with low-toxic color brand Original Mineral to serve up safe and smile-inducing at-home color. Each order includes a straw mixing bowl and color brush, biodegradable gloves, and custom color. Just email Edo with a photo and an educator will formulate your shade and ship it to you within three days. Then, set up a virtual appointment and a colorist will walk you through the steps to get your strands back to their glory days. Edo also offers curbside pickup on Sunday (11am to 3pm) and Wednesday (10am to 1pm). // 601 Haight St. (Lower Haight), edosalon.com
Cinta Salon also has a stylist-created home hair color kit that includes a client's customized and pre-mixed color formula, applicator bottle, disposable cape, and hair clips. Plus, a link to a color application tutorial makes for easy DIY-ing; virtual color consultations are also available for those who need moreForget about socially distant barbecues—celebrate Memorial Day with a free CBD face serum from Saint Jane.
(Courtesy of Saint Jane)
We became instant disciples of Saint Jane's Luxury Beauty Serum from the moment we slathered it on about a year ago. (Calm, hydrated, and glowy skin keeps us reaching for the gorgeous black-and-gold bottle on the regular.) Whether you, too, are hooked on the Marin brand's luxe CBD skincare products or have yet to try it, the time to shop is now. In honor of Memorial Day, SJ is gifting a mini version of its signature face serum with any purchase of $50 or more from Thursday, May 21st through Monday, May 25th. ICYMI: The silky, antioxidant-rich elixir contains a potent dose of 20 active botanicals and contains 150mg of full spectrum CBD. Along with the face serum, other shopping options include the Luxe Body Serum, Lip Shine, Luxury Lip Cream, and the newest member of the crew, The C Drops. We'll be adding the latter to cart. // saintjanebeauty.com
Zenni's collab with Cynthia Rowley is the perfect eye-do right now.
(Courtesy of Zenni)
All those PJs, sweats and no-pants looks become très hip when you put on a pair of frames from the just-launched Zenni x Cynthia Rowley collab. The 12-piece collection from the Novato-based e-eyewear brand includes prescription and non-prescription frames with blue-light blocking lenses and sunglasses—guaranteed to keep eyes healthy with all that extra screen time .
Available in pink, orange, rose, tortoiseshell and translucent hues in cat-eye, square, rectangular and round styles, the specs ooze with the quirky downtown cool for which NYC designer Cynthia Rowley is known and adored. (To our nearsighted eyes, Poppy and Dahlia are the bee's knees.) Each pair of glasses comes with a fun floral CR print case and lens cloth. Prices start at $35. Not sure which style to go with? Zenni's Virtual Try-On has got you covered. //zennioptical.com
