Fine Italian leather makes Hide worth seeking
Shop sells locally crafted goods at a moderate price point
We were apprehensive about Hide leather shop.
It is located at 789 Dundas St. W., in a strip littered with restaurants, bubble tea shops, nail salons and run-down store fronts begging for reinvention.
The leather goods could have been artsy-craftsy, cribbed from Leathercraft For Dummies.
Or the boutique could have been so hip it hurts.
But as soon as we enter, our fears are dispelled. We are greeted by a disembodied voice from the back: “Let me know if you have any questions.”
Sandra Erazo, who co-owns Hide with her sister Susana, is sitting on a couch finishing a bowl of soup and chatting with one of the local lads, who looks like he could be a musician or starving artist.
“People like the idea that my sister works with leather. It’s usually the guys who do.” SANDRA ERAZO CO-OWNER HIDE
The siblings are Ecuadorian émigrés. Susana is the creative end; Sandra is the business side. Sandra is flying solo this particular day except for the resident cat, a rescued tabby named Pickles (which sounds like the Ecuadorian word for freckled girl — the cat has tawny freckling on her nose.)
They are so welcoming, you want to hang with them.
The shop has been open since the end of September and has attracted an artsy clientèle: young professionals with an eye for design, designers and artists. A web designer is checking out the bags with the idea of replacing the battered one she is schlepping.
Hide carries leather goods including bags, bracelets, belts, fringed-leather earrings, wallets and accessories such as hand-printed scarves in wool and silk.
The bags can be unisex — like the courier bag available in black or brown, for $449.
There is a smattering of frocks, consignment goods from designer friends including the owner of Thieves boutique, who closed shop and is taking a sabbatical, and local designer Karamea.
The price point is moderate — starting at $20 for a small wrist bracelet, up to $475 for a bag. Everything is locally made, most of it by Susana, who has been crafting leather goods for 10 years, and everything is made of Italian leather. You can tell it is Italian leather. The place doesn’t smell like a tannery.
The family settled in the Euclid Ave.-dundas St. W. area when they came to Canada so the location is a comfortable fit.
“I like the emerging neighbourhood,” says Sandra. “Queen is too gentrified. Dundas has that small-community feel and people like the idea that my sister works with leather. It’s usually the guys who do.” The asthetic is bare-bones loft/ factory, with industrial tubing, high ceilings and hardwood floors. Bags and bracelets are displayed on tree trunks. In its previous incarnation, the place was a graffiti artist’s gallery. It required minor tweaking, decorated with some of the finds Sandra has collected in thrift shops. A dramatic room divider separating the shop from Susana’s workshop consists of leather bits. Customers have been raving about it so Susana is considering selling them. There is a soupçon of acid flash- back in some of the bags, inlcuding a ’70s throwback vintage cowhide bag for $475 and a small disco bag for $169. A green leather necklace with silver-chain bib ($135) is very Donna Summer singing “Last Dance.” We lust after the tan Ralph-lauren-meets-hermès saddle belt with hardware for $249 and the versatile “Tiggy bag” with button detailing, handle and removable strap so it can double as a clutch bag. It comes in four colours for $325. Pickles rubs against our legs as we exit. Alas, she is not free with purchase. Bottom line: Seek Hide. Get in on this shop now, before the area explodes commercially. ritazekas@rogers.com