—————————————————— Best Fabric Store 2005 | High Fashion Fabric Center | Best of Houston® | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Houston | Houston Press
Navigation
Support Us

Houston's independent source of
local news and culture

I support

Houston Press
Houston Press
Local
Community
Journalism
Support the independent voice of Houston and help keep the future of the Houston Press free.
Support Us

Best Fabric Store

High Fashion Fabric Center

With the price of clothes these days, many DIYers are creating their own one-of-a-kind fashion masterpieces. And sewers in the know get their threads at High Fashion Fabrics. Within its gigantic 30,000-square-foot showroom, there's a wide selection of patterns to choose from, as well as fabrics and materials of all textures, including vinyl, faux fur and satin. High Fashion Fabrics has more cotton colors than a box of Crayolas and lacy fringes of just about every variety. Tina Knowles, Beyonce's mother and stylist, shops here for stage-outfit fabrics, making it possibly the only place in town where you can find the same fabric that gets stretched across Beyonce's ass, at a very reasonable price.

Best Magazine Selection

Brazos Bookstore

Has this ever happened to you? You head over to a huge magazine rack at a supermarket and are confronted with yards and yards of magazines, and every single one of them sucks. About one in five features the same celebrities; it's a sea of TomJenAngelinaBradTaraParis. And then most of the rest of them are narrowcasted toward hobbyists: Gun Psycho Monthly, Knitter's Illustrated, Scrapbooker's Gazette. That's not the case at Brazos Bookstore, where the relatively small magazine section contains a plethora of civilized magazines, journals and periodicals, both from the United States and abroad. So whether you're looking for your copy of Harper's, Mudfish, The Believer or Adbusters, Brazos has you covered. Just don't go in there asking for Motorhead Bikini Babes Quarterly.

Best Mall

Katy Mills Mall

As you're passing all those car dealerships on I-10 after a shopping trip to Katy Mills, the phrase "a little drive will save you a lot" will echo in your mind. Whether you just purchased a pair of designer shoes or those worn-and-washed jeans everybody's wearing nowadays, most likely you got them for a fraction of the price those Inner Loop suckers paid at some River Oaks boutique. Nearly 100 stores at Katy Mills are outlets, which means starving fashionistas can buy cool clothes and accessories for bottom-of-the-barrel prices at places like Off 5th Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus Last Call, Nine West, Banana Republic, Kenneth Cole, Guess? and Polo Ralph Lauren. Even bookworms can find an apple of a deal at Books-A-Million. In light traffic, the drive takes a little over 30 minutes from downtown. And the extra gas money spent getting there will be marginal compared to what you save at the end of the day. Driving a hard bargain never came so easy.

Best Psychic

Lai

Newly arrived from Boston, the single-named Lai is already making noises on the local psychic scene. The Norwegian native has been featured on television here and in Canada, and she uses a full array of metaphysical tools to help her clients: tarot, past-life readings, "straight psychic" stuff. Remarkably perceptive, she uses all her talents to tell you things about yourself you never knew. If you've been at loggerheads with your boss, you don't even have to feed her information -- she volunteers your past-life histories. Wondering why you didn't get promoted? Lai knows you tortured your boss -- he was a young, virgin girl and you a sand baron -- in Persia thousands of years ago. Some think Lai's own past life was as a gypsy.

Best Vintage Furniture

Mid-Century Pavilion

Frustrated thrift shoppers at the Washington Avenue Salvation Army Store inevitably wander across the street to marvel at Mid-Century Pavilion's mother lode of cool, retro furniture and find ways to convince themselves that Mid-Century's prices won't break their budget. (Most likely, the budget was left behind at the Salvation Army, anyway.) Mid-Century's space-age-bachelor-pad furniture is the main attraction -- tables, chairs, sofas and lamps that look like they were ransacked from the set of 2001: A Space Odyssey -- but customers can accessorize their purchases with vintage jewelry, clothing, kitchenware and objects, such as a vintage deco Bakelite ashtray ($395), which no self-respecting bachelor should live without. Hint: Don't be afraid to haggle.
Readers' choice: Star Furniture

Best Builder

Benssons Builders

Anybody with a soul will argue that too many Inner Loop bungalows have been bulldozed to make room for that architectural atrocity of the 21st century, the McMansion. But like it or not, builders will keep at it as long as our fair city keeps growing. At least the folks at Benssons Builders are trying to construct something lovely from their Hardi-Plank dreams. A real mom-and-pop operation, the business is owned and operated by Steve and Lynda Anderson, along with British designer Sarah-Jayne Smith. They have been constructing sensibly sized, affordable "cottage homes" in the Heights for a few years now. They feature all the typical amenities, including granite countertops, hardwood floors and postage-stamp yards. And the charming exteriors have the tincture of a sweet home in, say, San Francisco or Boston. Best of all, Benssons stand by their homes. They seem to like nothing better than making their clients feel right at home.

Best Tofu/Soy Products

Rice Epicurean Markets

Sometimes we all need a break from chicken-fried steak and baby-back ribs smothered in mesquite barbecue sauce. And, well, some of us don't like to eat dead stuff. So when your inner hippie's stomach starts grumbling, hightail it to Rice Epicurean Markets. These classy joints are part of Houston's oldest family-owned supermarket chain, founded in 1937. The first Epicurean Market opened in 1988, with a mission to offer more than the usual fare. Although the folks at Rice Epicurean were the first market to carry Krispy Kreme doughnuts in Houston, you really ought to check out their health food selection. Silken tofu, extra-firm tofu, tofu lasagna, Dr. Soy snack bars -- they're all here. And with fair prices, there's no excuse not to give their broad selection a shot.

Best Sugar Job

Ati Shafik

The moaners and screamers are mostly men, Ati Shafik will tell you in her delightful Egyptian accent, as she applies a sticky paste of warmed sugar and lemon juice to your hairy parts. It's part of a hair-removal process called sugaring, akin to waxing, but allegedly less painful and damaging to your epidermis. True to her spa's name, Cleopatra's Secret, Shafik will keep your personal hair-removal designs and desires hush-hush, even offering options to protect your anonymity. (Guys wanting to avoid raised eyebrows from gym rats in the locker room should leave belly hair intact, she advises.) Female hair-haters might opt for "The Egyptian," a procedure as old as Cleopatra herself that promises you'll be bare down there, er, front to back throughout. (You'll understand what we mean when Shafik cheerfully tells you on the table to "turn the engine over.") This sugar mama is a savior for swimmers, bodybuilders and even camping enthusiasts, who swear by her back-door treatments when a leaf is your only source of personal hygiene.

Best Adult Video Store

Emporio 30 XXX

We don't care much for porn. It debases both the performers and the viewers, if you ask us. But we've got this, um, friend, right, and this friend of ours has been to just about every adult video store in this sticky city, and that's saying a lot, considering how many there are. So our friend just loves Emporio 30 XXX, even if the name is a little repetitive when you break it down into Roman numerals. (No worries: Next month the place is changing its name to Carmen's 24 Hr. Boutique & Video.) Our friend raves about the selection -- straight, gay, bi, transsexual, even the classics -- and our friend can't get enough of the viewing rooms, where you can flip through 127 channels of sweaty pleasure. And when our friend's done with that, there's an erotic boutique next door with even more fun. Our friend really loves this place.

Best Bike Shop

Daniel Boone Cycles

Thirty-five years ago, Dan and Joy Boone started refurbishing secondhand bikes in their backyard for extra grocery money. Today, they have one of the most popular bike shops in the city. The shop is still in the backyard, but they now have everything from $300 city bikes to a $4,000 specialty frame and fork. In addition to road bikes and mountain bikes, they have an extensive collection of clothes and accessories, including jerseys, gloves, shoes, cleats and helmets. If you buy from them, the shop will also service your new ride free for a year (not including accidents or abuse). As unique as the setup is, owner Joy Boone says the place is easy to miss from the street. "If you're not looking for the bike shop, you may just pass it by," she says. We recommend you don't.

Best Of Houston®

Best Of

California Privacy Policy California Collection Notice
Do Not Sell My Info
Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our terms of use, our cookies policy, and our privacy policy The Houston Press may earn a portion of sales from products & services purchased through links on our site from our affiliate partners. ©2024 Houston Press, LP. All rights reserved.
Powered By Foundation