Some of of knew Jamer from way back, some of us knew him from more recent times, some of us knew of him only from his work; Any way we knew him we were all affected by his tragic passing yesterday, January 12 2012. Read a beautiful writeup from a close friend over at Scout Magazine Online. We'll miss you Jamer.

It was with the utmost anticipation that our friends at Big Wheel Burger opened their doors at 341 Cook Street this past Autumn staking their claim as the "Best Real Fast Food in Victoria". In a city like ours it would seem every other foodie dining out is seated at their table eagerly drafting their review of the service/food/atmosphere/decor of the establishment on the tiny screen of their smartphone before the main course is even finished; Thankfully for these same Victoria foodies, Big Wheel Burger will leave them slipping smiley face emoticons into their reviews after finishing one of the absolute best burgers in the city.

Located in the vibrant Cook Street Village, a hop, skip, and a jump from Beacon Hill Park, Downtown Victoria, and the Dallas Road Waterfront, Big Wheel Burger is the perfect place for take-out picnic supplies, fun family meals, and speedy business lunches. The result of great ideas coming together between the brains at Pig and Zambri's, Big Wheel Burger has immedately harnessed the heart, soul and food quality of a legendary burger joint working with only the finest ingredients.

Sourcing product from within 100 miles of their location, Big Wheel Burger limits their carbon footprint while support local economies. Their burgers are ground fresh daily, using locally raised, hormone and antibiotic free meats and cooked well done on a cutting edge flat top grill all the while embracing a philosophy of fresh, local and delicious. They use only environmentally safe packaging materials and have instituted recycling programs on every product level.

You've probably heard the buzz surrounding the hottest new burger joint in town, so next time you're biking, walking or driving down by the water or up through Cook Street Village, be sure to make a pitstop at Big Wheel Burger and tell them "Hi" from all of us at Still Life.

We don't aim to be music critics or experts at Still Life, but we know what we like to hear, we go to concerts of our friends and favourites and we buy the albums we know we need when they're released. With the help of the new and expanded Ditch Records & CDs location up on Fort Street we were able to add to our vinyl collection at the stores better than ever in 2011. Here is a recap of some of our favourite releases this year, albums you very likely heard playing on loop at the stores or stripped for parts, carefully crafted into seasonal playlists.

Despite expanding into two locations for the last half of 2011, plenty of albums found their way onto the iPods and record players at both Still Life For Him & For Her. It was easy to work through an entire day before realizing we'd been listening to albums like Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Destroyer - Kaputt and James Blake - James Blake on repeat for eight hours. Other albums including M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming, Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost, Youth Lagoon - The Year Of Hibernation, Washed Out - Within And Without and Charles Bradley - No Time For Dreaming may not have got to "full-day re-play" status, but made our stores feel like home as soon as the first note came through the speakers.

Albums For Him: The fun of having a menswear specific location to start the AW11 season with was not lost on our music choices. Albums like Dirty Beaches - Badlands, Timber Timbre - Creep On Creepin' On, King Krule - The Noose Of Jah City and Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo got repeat listens within the walls at 551 Johnson Street while maybe not quite as many spins at Still Life For Her across the street. Turning up the volume on classic rock, soul and hip hop staples also helped make the Still Life For Him space feel a little more comfortable for our guys.

Albums For Her: A new store with a new feel meant new music to get our ladies comfortable in the newly opened Still Life For Her back in August. While there were plenty of crossover hits at both locations, albums like Adele - 21, Feist - Metals, Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes, tUnE-yArDs - w h o k i l l and even Beyonce - 4 had our some of our new staff at Still Life For Her setting the mood themselves in new location with their favourite albums.

After Hours Jams: One thing a passerby may notice about Still Life For Him & For Her if you happen to walk by at 9:30PM on a Thursday night is that the music coming from the store is generally decidedly different (and louder) than what you heard earlier in the afternoon at the store. If a crew of staff was at the shop receiving product or pricing goods this year you were fairly likely to hear something from Jay-Z & Kanye West - Watch The Throne whereas depending on the specific combination of staff working late you'd be more likely to hear something from Lana Del Rey - Video Games EP, A$AP Rocky - LIVELOVEA$AP or Frank Ocean - Nostalgia, Ultra blasting through the windows. Not albums we'd necessarily play throughout the day, but definitely a few tracks from these albums made their way onto our playlists.

Lastly, a huge shoutout to our friends & family that worked so tirelessly to put together another absolutely phenomenal event in Rifflandia IV this year! So many amazing shows, so many of our close friends, and such fantastic venues! We can't wait to be kitted up in our Tretorns and Native Boots again next September stomping around the Lounge at Royal Athletic Park!

Have a Safe and Happy New Year Victoria! Lots of love from the crew at Still Life For Him & For Her! See you in 2012!

Matt & Kim enjoyed a well-deserved break from Still Life this weekend and headed to Vancouver for some R&R with friends & family. One of the first stops they made once they touched down on the mainland was at Union Wood Co. with our good friends Craig Pierce and Cara Donaldson.

Union Wood Co. is the company name by which Vancouverite, Craig Pearce creates his arts-based approach to custom furnishings. Founded in the summer of 2009, Union Wood Co is simply, an asthetic of vintage and industrial objects. Nostalgic of the solid floors of the docks, foundries, mills and factories upon which this city was built, and the men that did it. Union Wood Co. is inspired by the simpler times of centuries past, but living in today's modern lofts and heritage homes.

Using materials mostly reclaimed and repurposed from salvage yards, antique stores, demolition sites and other sources, Union Wood Co. create pieces that are solid, bold, and one of a kind.

Available for custom work on a commission basis for projects both large and small, Union Wood Co. is open Thursdays/Fridays 10AM-5PM and Saturdays 11AM-4PM at 503 Railway Street, Vancouver, BC. You can reach them via telephone 604.675.9033 or on The Union Wood Co. Website.

Still Life is proud to have existed in downtown Victoria, BC since 1984. The long and winding story behind the store, brand and space has been told thousands of times to visitors into either location, from the days spent with Robert at the helm to the current setup with Matt & Kim owning and operating both Still Life locations (For Him & For Her).

This past week Matt & Kim spoke out with our friends at Mosaic, a lifestyle blog based in Victoria. Every week their talented team of writers and photographers strive to present regular daily editorials, weekend updates and columns about the things that they appreciate and capture their interest. They asked to spend time with us and write a feature on the newly expanded Still Life brand, speaking to Matt & Kim about the past, present and future of the shop, and we couldn't be happier with the result.

Click through read the feature on at weareMosaic.caAnd a very special thanks to Brian Van Wyk Photography.

Still Life For Her is proud to be a part of the very first Girl's Night Out by the Downtown Victoria Business Association alongside some of our best friends and favourite shops. Starting this Thursday, October 6th and continuing onwards the first thursday of every month in Downtown Victoria is Girl's Night Out! Grab your ladies and come out on the town for deals, promotions, giveaways and entertainment at your favourite shops, restaurants and studios.

Be sure to add the event to your Social Calendar and we'll see all our ladies Thursday night at Still Life For Her!

Rifflandia No. 1 started as most Rifflandias have since, with a 10x10 tent and a handful of colourful pins. They set up in front of the McPherson Playhouse with a boombox and some astroturf. Victoria got its first taste of Wristband Connct and of the Rifflandia choose-your-own-adventure-one-wristband-for-everything mantra! Highlights from 2008 were neon yellow wristbands, Black Mountain at Alix Goolden and Z-Trip at the Strathcona. Rifflandia 2008 was 3 days, 7 stages, 65 artists. 1500 people were there to witness it.

Rifflandia No. 2 grew considerably with 2500 wristbands on the scene. Market Square was added as a large outdoor venue and the weather was glorious! Hey Rosetta!, Mother Mother, Tegan And Sara and Longwalkshortdock and many others came to play and graced the pages of the inaugural Rifflandia Magazine. Wristband Connect expanded to over 50 participating businesses and Phillips' Rifflandabrau... Oh Rifflandabrau... Was brewed and drank dry throughout the city.

Rifflandia No. 3 was the charm. Growing again the festival expanded to over 3500 wristbanded Rifflandians. Men Without Hats reunited after 20 years for an epic performance at the Metro Theatre. Aesop Rock, JFK, The Gaslamp Killer, Gord Downie and Melissa Auf Der Maur amongst many others (165 artists in total) performed on 11 festival stages. Another batch of Rifflandabrau and another festival magazine was absorbed by fans. Wristband wearers were able to enter to win amazing things like pizza parties and helicopter rides through Rifflandia's city wide treasure hunt called Win!Landia!

And so we arrive at Rifflandia No. 4. Royal Athletic Park has become home base of Rifflandia operations with the park set up with two stages, food and beverage tents, entertainment, costumes, and more music than Victoria knows what to do with. RifflandiaTV is up and running after a strong debut at Rifflandia No. 3 and the city once again opens its arms to bands like Broken Social Scene, City And Colour, Cold War Kids, De La Soul, Blackalicious, J Mascis and Ra Ra Riot.

Still Life For Him & For Her are once again proud supporters of Rifflandia - wristband wearers can get hooked up with a handsome 15% Wristband Connect discount all weekend long, and we're even hosting a special secret RifflandiaTV live performance in store on Sunday, September 25 at 12 noon (hint: the name of the performer(s) is in the above paragraph...). We hooked up with RifflandiaTV hosts Coral Osborne and Chris Vickers this week to get them outfitted in proper Rifflandia attire, watch below and have a fantastic Rifflandia weekend!

On Her: Thoroughcraft Black Leather Boots, La Fee Verte Leather/Stretch leggings (not Muttonhead as Jordan stated), La Fee Verte Galaxy Print Tank, Only Hearts Lace Bralette & Fred Perry Cashmere Blend Cardigan.

On Him: Thoroughcraft Navy Leather Moc Boots, Nudie Thin Finn Jeans, Brixton Prine Tee, Ben Sherman Tonal Plaid Shirt, Ben Sherman Knit Zip Sweater.

"A happy accident, and a stroke of luck" is how Meghan Paterson describes her ending up in Refuge Cove, BC - a tiny community in the heart of the Desolation Sound area of the Inside Passage (a place consisting of approximately 20 families in the warmer months, dropping to a population of about 12 residents during the colder season located about 150km northwest of Vancouver).

Last summer Meghan accepted a summer painting residency in Refuge Cove - in exchange for the residency she was to help set up a community gallery for the local artists and creatives. Setting forth with no expectations, or plans on what she was to paint, she became inspired by the people and the places within the community. Meghan began developing ideas and painting what she saw: new, old friends with faces full of character, signage and typography of the surrounding area, and some of the inspiring locations found along the waterfront.

We've written about Still Life Friends & Family on our blog before, but Meghan is next-level Still Life Family. An old friend, travel partner, business liaison, drinking buddy, and this past June one of Kim's beautiful bridesmaids, there are few people we love more than Ms Meghan Paterson. This weekend as we set up Still Life For Her Meghan came over from Vancouver and brought with her stacks of paintings she developed during her time in Refuge Cove, helping us set up and ready the store for Saturday's opening and fill the brick walls with colour as she hung her incredible works of art. We couldn't be happier to have a piece of Meghan with us in Still Life For Her, and invite everyone to come down and view her paintings (as they last - they are for sale and we are all eager to see them sell). Much love and many thanks to Meghan for all her work this weekend.

This summer our own Matt Jensen ventured forth in a pack of motorbikes with a division of the Megadestroyer Crew (The Dugout Wrenches) on a The Southern Lord Tour of the Wild American West. Seven-thousand kilometres of freedom, beers, camping, skating, tourist shit, helmet laws, no helmet laws, casinos, weirdos, more beers, break downs, flat tires, hot weather, late nights and early mornings. Along the way the boys repped Megadestroyer hard - trips like this one are why the brand exists. These 100% cotton ringspun teeshirts, branded with the raddest & baddest graphic creations the extended Megadestroyer Crew can dream up wear hard and look better the more trashes you make them - cut the arms off in the summer, sew the front on a jacket as a patch in the winter.

Arriving in time for the launch of Still Life For Him, we've got Megadestroyer Artist Series tees from the creative minds of Henry Barros, Germ, Sharks + Hammers & Matt Jefferies as well as the return of the Werewolves tee and the classic Wingsbone tee.

We've promised it forever, but we promise we'll invite the entire Megadestroyer Crew over to the island this autumn and tear the roof off of Still Life For Him at 551 Johnson Street. See you soon boys.

Things are really coming together for this Saturday's 2nd Annual Johnson Street Fest (August 27th) benefitting the Make-A-Wish Foundation of BC! We'll have the Still Life For Him and Still Life For Her doors wide open all day from 10AM through 6PM with end of summer blowout sale pricing and lots of fundraiser treats and games for the whole family!

This year's Johnson Street Fest charity is the Make-A-Wish Foundation of BC. Since 1983 Make-A-Wish has made over 1,400 wishes come true for kids battling a life-threatening medical condition, and this year all proceeds from the Johnson Street Fest will help make 1 local Vancouver Island child's wish come true! These wishes provide BC children and their family a carefree and joyful experience that is far from the stress and anxiety of having a life-threatening medical condition. Their goal is to refocus attention on the positive by providing a unique, once-in-a-lifetime wish experience that a family might not otherwise have.

The goal of this year's 2nd Annual Johnson Street Fest is to raise $6000 to grant a wish of a local Vancouver Island child through fundraising activities all along the 500 & 600 blocks of Johnson Street including:

• Victoria's largest Yoga class at 10AM
• Silent Auction
• Dunk Tank
• Music by The ZONE 91.3
• Bouncy Castle & Sumo Wrestling
• Fortune Telling
• Tarot Readings
• Fitness Demos
• Dunk Tank & TNT Paintball
• Skate Ramp & Graffiti Paint In
• Jewelry Making
• Local Food Vendors
• And Much Much More!

Additional ways to help the Make-A-Wish Foundation are available at all your favorite Johnson Street Merchants before and during the big day: Wish Stars are an easy way to show your support by donating $2 (or more) to Make-A-Wish, write your name on it and stick it on the Wishing Wall. Remember that Johnson Street will be closed entirely to all vehicle traffic all day on Saturday, so hop on your bikes or walk down to visit and help support a fantastic cause. To find all additional information or contact the Johnson Street Fest organizers directly please visit www.johnsonstreetfest.com