Toronto finally has a shop dedicated to...itself. Spacing Magazine has converted their side biz making TTC buttons and streetcar T-shirts into a permanent store in the 401 Richmond building, creating a shrine to Toronto iconography (and the ultimate gift store for every infrastructure nerd).

Amy Kwong spun her successful greeting card line, Smitten Kitten, into an entire Liberty Village storefront festooned with tinsel, hints of neon, and plenty of offbeat, oddball gifts. Her cards (printed in the in-house studio) are still represented, in addition to home goods and gadgets (cell signal-blocking handkerchief, anyone?)

Homegrown furniture lines Stylegarage and Gus*Modern converted the former AWOL Gallery on Ossington into this sprawling, two-floor showroom, now chock-full of modular, customizable pieces that ooze contemporary Canadiana.

North-end home goods store Elte set its sights on a younger, cost-conscious demographic when it opened its more modern offshoot, Elte Market, in the Castlefield Design District this fall. With thousands of pieces in stock, they're aiming to be a one-stop shop for folks kitting out new homes.

St. Clair West's newest home boutique stays true to the name with plenty of '50s and '60s pieces (including a sea of teak and rosewood items), but they also offer reproductions of retro design classics, as well as custom-order sofas.