City Legging | Bike To Boardroom
I love how this woman is poised halfway between the bike and the boardroom. The double-breasted gilet brings authority to an otherwise very get-up-and-go outfit. Could you rock this look with our City Trouser or Leggings, a Vince Camuto vest, and a Melie Bianco handbag?
Image credit to Stockholm Street Style.
Bike Friendly Cafes and Restaurants
I’m thrilled to see studies suggesting a positive relationship between bike lanes and restaurant revenue. Still, not all cafes and restaurants are equal when it comes to courting cyclist business! Some places are hard to lock up at within the block; some are just less than friendly.
Here’s a few places in Seattle and farther afield with a bike friendly business model.
- In Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, Peddler Brewery explicitly caters to cyclists. Step inside for a brew, and you can also make use of their pump and bike stand for quick tune-ups.
- Also in Seattle, Café Presse boasts one of the city’s several iconic bike racks built to resemble a car (and show, indirectly, how much less space each bike occupies). It’s also your go-to place for viewing the Tour de France.
- Fuel Coffee, a café that has expanded into multiple locations in Seattle, actually sponsors a cycling team! Some mornings you can see the 20/20 Fuel Cycling Team grabbing a cup before a ride.
- I can only envy New Yorkers for places like Red Lantern Bicycles, which not only sells and repairs bikes, but will sell you a latte while you wait for your bike to come back from the shop.
- Montreal’s Maison de Cyclistes is a combination cafe and bike shop located at the intersection of two major bike paths. Us Seattleites, we’ll just have to keep waiting!
If you’re unsure of where to go in your town, the first step towards figuring out which places will welcome your hard-pedaled dollars is to check out the Bicycle Benefits sites. Bicycle Benefit is a nationwide program that gets you discounts all over town for being a cyclist. $5 gets you a helmet sticker that entitles you to 10% off at places as various as wine bars, restaurants, hardware stores and breweries.
What is your favorite bike-friendly spot?
Images via Peddler Brewing, Milk in the City, and Smith Ratliff.
New Collection on Kickstarter
We’re almost halfway through our second Kickstarter campaign to fund the production of our new collection. Our previously funded Kickstarter project transformed the first Iva Jean line from an inspired idea into a wearable, touchable reality. This new collection builds on the expertise of the first and complements it with pieces that blend expert tailoring with the generous silhouettes you need to bike comfortably.
Our tops are made from ultrafine merino wool and feel unbelievable on. These pieces are resistant to wrinkles and odor in a way that makes them perfect for days when you can’t stop to change from your bike to work apparel. Our pants and leggings are both crafted from our favorite favorite schoeller®-dryskin fabric, whose features include four-way stretch and a damn fine feel. Our “Hell-Yeah” tee? Well, that’s just pure in-your-face fun.
We have worked so hard and are so excited, to bring this collection to market. Purchase our new collection on Kickstarter today and be the first to own one or more of these unique pieces.
City Style | Pastels With Bite
Honestly, I’m a little shy of pastels. Sometimes those sherbet hues are over-sweet. But looks like these keep the sugar to a minimum and fit perfectly into the city landscape. A witty mix of tailored pieces with casual ones creates the kind of surprise that gets my attention and turn heads on a bike. I can’t decide which outfit I like more: do you prefer pink with your blue, or blue with your pink?
Chic Travel: Trip To Europe | Iva Jean
Europe in the spring! Now is the perfect time to go, before peak season. Pro tip: though we love chic athletic shoes at home, the trend doesn’t always translate abroad. Pack sophisticated sandals like these Medwinds espadrilles instead, $138. When sandal time is done, we love the MM6 by Maison Martin Margiela, $195, because what’s more fun than bright pink on a derby shoe? All eyes will be on you in these Waiting for the Sun Essential bamboo sunglasses, $175. At the beach, we’re liking the comboo of the Jamdani cotton sarong, $96, with this Beautiful bottoms plume print bikini, $135. Between a pair of bold-printed bottoms like these Master & Muse x H Frederiksson cupro pants, $433 and a go-anywhere chambray top like Madewell’s Perfect ex boy-friend shirt, $69.50, you’re set for chic travel. Minus, of course, our Iva Jean Racer Tunic, now $100 on Kickstarter.
What will you take?
