Orfus Road - Part I

Orfus Road is outlet heaven. You need to put aside an entire day so you have lots of time to check out every store that interests you. You also need to pick a good weather day (not too hot, not to cold) to shop on as there is no shade or protection from the wind/blowing snow. The most important thing you need to know is there are no public washrooms.

It is possible to get there by TTC. I find the easiest way is to take the subway to Yorkdale, walk through the mall, exit through Sears (last opportunity to powder your nose), walk through the parking lot, then head south on Dufferin for two short blocks to Orfus.

Fabricland is set back from Orfus Rd in a little strip mall. This location is very home decor oriented. They have a large selection of drapery and upholstery fabric as well as hardware and trims.

Dollarama - stop here first to pick up a pop, juice or water for just a dollar a bottle. On hot days, it's a must.

Jessica Cosmetic Nail & Beauty Supply - this store is so new, the staff were still stocking the shelves when I walked in. I had my best find of the day here: Essie nail polish for $5 a bottle and OPI priced at $8 each or 2 for $12 (my faves: Russian Navy, OPI Ink, Didgeridoo Your Nails?, Pink Before You Leap). They carry at least four other brands of nail polish that I'm not familiar with, as well as all the tools needed for manicures/pedicures, hair colour and hair colouring supplies. Short orange sticks with pointed ends are $2 for four dozen and the longer sticks with squared ends are $3 for four dozen. They sell both retail and wholesale.

Beddington's - not as large as the Bloor or Beach locations, but they carry a good selection of bed and bath linens. They had soft, thick beach towels for $10 and 300 thread count sheet sets in queen size for $40.

Tabi - a great place to pick up affordable, quality tank tops or t-shirts with lots of colours to choose from (3 for $30). Capris were reasonably priced at $20 and came in both regular and petite sizes. Check out the earrings, necklaces and bracelets before you leave. I'm sure you'll find at least one of each to accesorize your new outfit.
Giant tent sale August 24 - Sept 3. All items under $20.

Bentley - this use to be my favourite store on "the strip" but my recent visit was quite disappointing. As soon as you walked into the store, it used to be nothing but purses for miles! Their purse selection has been cut by about 75% and been replaced with luggage, knapsacks, messenger bags and (horrors!) the kind of plastic "stuff" you can buy at any dollor store. Some of the lines they carry: Nine West, Kenneth Cole Reaction and Baby Phat. For a little fun, check out the scarves ($4.99 with 50% off) and brightly coloured fashion panty hose (2 pairs for $0.99).

Deblins - my favourite discount linen store! Rows and rows of sheets in all sizes, colours, prints, thread counts and countries of origin. There's always a table of flat and fitted sheets in a variety of sizes for $10 each, ranging from 250-300 thread count. For those with champagne taste, they have a large selection of Egyptian cotton sheets in 500 and 800 thread count. I like that each bathroom theme has it's own little display stall. All the items from the set are displayed together: shower curtain, soap dispenser, garbage can, toothbrush holder, towels, bathmat and even framed photos. Cute hand ($10) or fingertip towels ($7) with either shoes, purses or umbrella drinks embroidered on them make great housewarming or hostess gifts.