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Crystal-clear message: Save water

Feature | Boutique
2008-2-1

You don't need a crystal ball to know China is short of water. Swarovski, the crystal maker, is teaching school kids along the Yangtze about their precious resource, writes Michelle Zhang. French writer Antoine...

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Buy a watch you love, not a fancy brand

Feature | Boutique
2008-1-16

Chinese watch enthusiasts should buy because they love timepieces. Frederique Constantine lures them with high Swiss quality at non-prohibitive prices, writes Fei Lai. The legendary Swiss craftsmanship and meticulous...

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Bellissimo: Shanghai's taste of Italian style

Feature | Boutique
2008-1-16

An innovative and adventurous Italian from historical Venice, who came to Shanghai via Europe and the US, is drawing on his roots to create striking architectural designs, writes Jenny Hammond. Shanghai has one...

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Big brand bargains at 1st Selection

Feature | Boutique
2007-11-12

Selina Zhou travels regularly to France and Italy, attends all the shows and has set aside deals with some boutiques. She even gets clothes right off runway models' backs - perfect for Asian sizes, writes Michelle...

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Superior time pieces a focal point for watch lovers

Feature | Boutique
2007-10-8

Chinese people have long been known as lovers of clocks and watches. Mechanical clocks and watches were once the Chinese emperors' favorite gifts from the West, while one's pocket watch used to be indicative of one's...

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Two ceramics stores fire the imaginationents

Feature | Boutique
2007-9-3

One Xintiandi ceramist paints nudes on porcelain displayed in her high-end showroom, another uses polymer clay to make jewelry and mold meticulously executed scenes from history, writes Fei Lai. Attractive ceramic...

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Luxury store says: I L ve You

Feature | Boutique
2007-8-6

In brittle Shanghai, our hearts have become as hard as the skyscrapers around us. So Zhou Wenqi is driven to ask where is love, and that sentiment inspired her Q Luxury store where attendants greet you with "I love...

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The quiet boutique on Taiyuan Road

Feature | Boutique
2007-7-23

The customer is always right, says the "creative director" at AIAIA - it is the fashion style she wants that matters most, not what the director may think when on a buying expedition, writes Fei Lai. Not all fashion...

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Jim Dandies - boutique selling chic clothes, art

Feature | Boutique
2007-5-14

One of Shanghai's "undiscovered" shopping gems is Jim Dandies, tucked away opposite IKEA in the Xuhui District. It sells chic clothes and art by painter Yurika (Eureka) Nakae from Suzhou, writes Jenny Hammond. One...

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New store provides a taste of Vietnam

Feature | Boutique
2007-3-26

After flowing through several Southeast Asian countries, Vietnam is where the Mekong River empties into the South China Sea. From its source at China's Tibet-Qinghai Plateau, it drifts through five other countries,...