Quartier Mode is a fresh new face on St. Laurent recommended our way by the ladies of Citizen Vintage. Owner Tiffany Elton is a passionate indie designer working hard to feature others in her storefront and online, so I was delighted to find out her answers to a few of my favorite questions. Turns out we hit a goldmine this week: the lady and her gent are some savvy fashionable foodies with delicious tips!

"My name is Tiffany Elton, I am a local Montreal fashion designer and owner of Quartier Mode Boutique at 4276 Boulevard St-Laurent. I moved here 11 years ago, all by my lonesome, a scared young thing from Newfoundland chasing a dream. I have been carving it out ever since. September 2011 it all came together with the opening of Quartier Mode Boutique and the web store's launch.

I think of Quartier Mode more as a fashion community than a store. We sell local Montreal designers made in Montreal and independent designers from across Canada. The idea is a "fashion neighborhood" - a place to unleash emerging designers and to celebrate local talent. I am inspired everyday by the designers we carry here, their stories, their work and that pushes me. I love it!"

Post-Valentine's Day, either because of or in spite of the holiday, is when people in northern climates are the most depressed. So we've heard, right? I mean, I haven't seen any scientific evidence to back that up and am just as likely to chalk it up to an urban myth. Anyone feel like Googling that? Irregardless of the facts, February is a pretty dreary month, which is why this 13th annual Montréal en lumière festival is very welcome indeed. This year is sure to be extra special, as it's the first time the completed Quartier des spectacles (see the plan below) will be fully utilized to host the festival downtown Montréal. In previous years, it was spread out a bit (and focused more on the Old Port), but its more central location is sure to draw out the crowds. Lucky for us, this means there is a slew of free outdoor activities and concerts. There's the Loblaws spheres, the Milk Urban Slide, the Rickard's Bar, and more blatantly co-sponsored attractions. Did I mention this starts tonight?

Since Luc found himself a lovely lady this year someone's got to pick up the Valentines Day slack around here. And that would be me. His sage wisdom still applies, though, so get your notebooks out and hunker down for some love-learning.

atelier b. is a new breed of workshop/boutique; a beautiful industrial space reimagined with the support of the historic previous owners to make a home for modern, chic, eco, indie, local design. I'm excited about the clothes and outlook at this bright new light on St Laurent, so when the ladies of Citizen Vintage suggested atelier b. for this little interview series we've got going here, I jumped at the opportunity to have the designers and proprietors introduce themselves and answer a few of my favorite questions...

"We are Catherine Métivier and Anne-Marie Laflamme, designers for the young label atelier b. Our line of casual clothing for men and women is produced here in Montréal, with sustainable textiles. We are inspired by industrial design and production. Each of our designs is simple and minimalist. We focus on quality, and hope our collections pass the test of time. We enjoy mixing references from the 50's and 60's with new technology to create new feelings.

We recently opened our own atelier-boutique in the Mile-End, in the old Maple Leaf Hat and Cap factory, which has been a textile industry institution since the fifties. We were committed to adding to the history of this workshop, paying homage to its heritage. We collaborated with the SURFACE3 team to develop a concept for the space. The industrial-style boutique, which has been integrated into the workshop space, was ethically designed, as is each item of atelier b.'s collections."

General 54 and sister boutique Local 23 are like a cozy Mile End mini indie design empire run by Jen and Gen (Glasgow and Heistek.) With love and good taste these two shops on Bernard and St Viateur have helped dozens of emerging designers get their start, and so it's exciting for me to get their take on what's sprouting up new as this burly 2012 Winter starts to imagine Spring.

Jen Glasgow tells me "General54 was opened in 2006 because our first store Local 23 was in fact, too small to carry all the talented designers that came to sell with us. We incorporated a local designer boutique with vintage clothing shop to address the community needs. It meant you could find something cheap (vintage) and something a little more (designer.)  We house over 50 Canadian designers. Everything from home decor, one of a kind clothing and full clothing collections by some of Montreal and Canada's best. Gen has recently opened Annex Vintage right beside General54 and now the vintage selection is massive and only a step away!"

The Incurable Hobbyist is a highly subjective monthly series that examines various hobbies and the areas of the city that offer means to facilitate their practice. The goal is to inspire curious readers to develop hobbies they'll grow to love dearly, filling their hearts with the singular joy that comes with learning something special, something new.