This is the weekly Style File, featuring what’s on the radar of The Globe’s Lifestyle desk – from travel to home and design, wellness, fashion or beauty. Sign up for The Globe’s arts and lifestyle newsletters for more news, columns and advice in your inbox.
Travel
Installation view of Emily Carr: A Room of Her Own, exhibition at the Vancouver Art Gallery, Sept. 30, 2023 to Jan. 5, 2025.Leila Kwok/Vancouver Art Gallery
Would you like some art with your tea?
In her story A Cup of Tea, Emily Carr – the great Canadian painter was also a Governor-General’s Award-winning author – describes a rainy, windy evening where a couple rescues a fisherman from the icy waters off the coast of Vancouver Island. Afterward, they serve him a steaming cup of tea in a tin cup.
The new Emily Carr-themed afternoon tea at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver is definitely not that. The hotel is teaming up with the Vancouver Art Gallery this summer to offer a swish immersive experience that will quench visitors’ thirst for culture – and a good strong cuppa (or perhaps something even a little stronger). Into the Forest with Emily Carr pays homage to the artist’s life and love of the British Columbia landscape, with themed decor and menu offerings such as a B.C. forest mushroom short crust tart and a classic buttermilk scone served with “Woo” bread (named for Carr’s pet monkey, Woo). For dessert, dig into a slice of huckleberry cheesecake or the Emily Carr macaron with birch cream filling. Wash it all down with a variety of teas, B.C. wines or on-theme cocktails such as the Emily Side-Carr (cedar-infused cognac, Cointreau, lemon and maple).
For a more steeped appreciation of Carr’s masterful work, start your day across the street at the gallery, where the exhibition Emily Carr: A Room of Her Own features a number of her forest paintings, including the striking Above the Gravel Pit (1937) and Young Pines and Sky (c. 1935). More info at fairmont-hotel-vancouver.com - Marsha Lederman
Style
iPhone covers.Cam Miller and Pela/Supplied
Saddle up!
The look and durability of Pela’s phone cases are not the only reasons you’ll see them on recent “Best phone case of the year” lists, from Cosmopolitan to GQ. They’re made of completely compostable material, which founder Jeremy Lang created and dubbed Flaxstic (plant-based bioplastic). In 2019, they caught the eye of the JAY-Z-founded VC fund which invested US$5-million into the Kelowna, B.C.-based company. Pela has been growing since, and now offers a variety of styles, including work of Canadian artists.
“You’ll never get bored of looking at the back of your phone,” says Cam Miller, the illustrator and screen printer who designed the collection released this week. Given free rein to express his love for the Wild West, Miller’s bright and bold iconography of outlandish, desert wasteland comes just in time for a summer refresh. “It’s a juxtaposition to have this kind of landscape on a compostable thing that can come back to the earth, be reduced to waste and turn to sand.” The cases are available for iPhone and Android on pelacase.ca. - Aruna Dutt
Food and Drink
Kraft new preservative-free dressing.Supplied
A top-shelf boost for summer salads
With all the attention being paid to the health dangers associated with ultraprocessed foods, Kraft Heinz Co. has launched a new line of premium salad dressings and marinades made with no artificial preservatives, flavours or colours. At $5.49 to $5.99 each, they’re not as costly as upmarket and small-batch brands. Called Pure J.L. Kraft, the 12 dressings, six of which are new to the Canadian salad-dressing category, includes flavours such as Pomegranate Zaatar, Honey & Shallots, Miso Lime Ginger, Moroccan Lemon, Orange Turmeric Poppyseed and Black Garlic & Cracked Pepper. Prepared in Canada, and launched exclusively here, the new product is a response to a company survey that found 51 per cent of Canadians feel the current selection of dressings are “boring and uninspiring.” Kraft also hopes to entice back shoppers who were increasingly turning to homemade salad dressings and marinades as a way to cut back on the processed additives often contained in these products. “With Pure J.L. Kraft, we’ve created products that use simple ingredients and taste like they are homemade but offer people the bold, globally inspired flavours they are craving and convenience they are looking for in the grocery aisle,” says Stephanie Goyette, head of taste elevation platform marketing and strategy at the Kraft Heinz Co. Canada. Recipes are available at purejlkraft.com. - Gayle MacDonald