I texted my brother when I was in Italy at the holidays and asked him if he wanted an Italian belt for Xmas, which he enthusiastically responded to. The only thing was... when he responded, it was hours later and I was no longer in an easy place to find a men's belt. I figured I'd pick one up later on the trip, but I completed forgot until I got back to Santa Barbara and started packing gifts I had bought on the trip to send to family and friends. I was horrified which I realized I forgot to get a belt for my brother, but remembered the belt maker at the Sunday craft show at the beach. He makes gorgeous belts that are easily of Italian quality, so I went there, but he wasn't there and one of his artist neighbors said he was on leave until the spring. I spent the next month of weekends trying to find a nice Italian belt in a local shop. One weekend, it was the leather shop in Solvang and Jedlicka's. They had nice belts, but they were all stamped Made in USA and most were Western style, so that would never fly. I hit up Coast Village Road... Whiskey & Leather, Civilanaire, K. Frank... and only saw one great Italian belt at Civilanaire, but it was 1 size too small and had been tried on for years. There wasn't even a price on it, it was so old and worn. I went downtown to State St. and found nothing. My last effort before I was going to have to head south towards LA was to hit up MC Swan and Upstairs at Pierre Lafond in the Village. MC Swan had 3-4 Italian belts, but they were too big or too small and also too traditional. I was looking for something more artisan/casual looking for my retired brother who lives in jeans. Last stop before giving up on finding it in SB was Pierre Lafond. Hadn't been there in years, but it is as filled with gorgeous, unique, expensive items as it ever was. It was super hard to find the belts. The cashier told us where they were, instead of showing us, and we looked all over the area and couldn't find them. So, we figured they didn't have any and by then, I was distracted by the awesome collection of reading glasses they sell. I got caught up trying on glasses and at some point, the cashier came over and showed us where the belts were. Totally unintuitive spot behind a wall!!! They did have a small collection of 3-4 unique, casual, super soft Italian belts, and none of which would fit my size 36 brother. However, I did identify that the brand name of my favorite Italian belt they carried was Orciani and I made a mental note of it. The whole trip wasn't a bust though. I managed to drop a bundle on some beautiful, unique note cards and my new go-to readers by Izipizi and Eyebobs. I also want to add that when got back to the car, I pulled up ebay and quickly found a new Orciani belt, similar in design, in my brother's size and ordered it before we left the parking lot. It arrived in no time and my brother said it is the best-looking belt he has ever owned. I owe that to Pierre Lafond, for introducing me to Orciani belts. How can I not come back? This place is the mecca of unique, high-quality gifts. read more

Upstairs at Pierre Lafond - Izipizi readers - Women's Clothing Near Me - Montecito, California

RUDE. We arrived in an Uber from downtown Santa Barbara eager to visit a store I love and a well known store in Montecito. We arrived before 5:45. Before ordering the Uber I checked the closing time on apple map sand it said 7:00 pm. When we arrived we stepped over a vacuum cleaner cord stretched from one room to another. Two women were talking about someone they both knew they were worried about. They were talking loudly so that their voices would carry from one room to the next. A few minutes after arriving one of the women said, oh, hello. About five minutes later after trying to shop with the vacuum cleaner going, I said, looks like you are closing up. One woman said yes, we close at 6. I explained online it said 7. No attempt to find out where my information came from or no care to fix it, or that they cared at all; just "we close at 7 starting April 1st". I looked at my apple watch and it said 5:43. The patio appeared to be locked so we couldn't even investigate the wares there. Who the hell trains staff to vacuum BEFORE CLOSING WITH CUSTOMERS IN THE STORE? We left. Not because we didn't find anything charming, but because we were treated poorly. Shopping amidst employee gossip and a vacuum cleaner going is not fun or relaxing. My employees would have asked where the erroneous info was and offered to stay open as late as I needed to shop. My employees would have never pulled out a vacuum before closing. My employees would never have taken 5 minutes to acknowledge a customer. My employees would never have acted like their conversation was more important than the ambience and mood for visitors. Don't waste your time at this has-been store where they don't care. read more

Our friend who's a local said this is her favorite store, and we had to stop in, so we did. We love it, too! It's not too big, but has such an incredible selection of unique, interesting things - clothes, purses, cool household stuff, beautiful artwork, furnishings, jewelry, unusual books, precious baby and kids' stuff, super soft stuffed animals, crafty things, including stamps. There were 5 of us, and I think we all got something. I fell in love with their paintings by South African artist Karen Bequidenhout. She is definitely an up-and-coming artist; one of her paintings is even on the cover of the Sundance Film Festival catalog. She had a huge painting of stylistic sailboats on the ocean that was incredible, but it had already sold (and I probably couldn't have afforded it any way). But settled for a wonderful little piece of a woman walking on the beach w/ her dog, which is now featured prominently in our entry way at home. Upstairs at Pierre Lafond will definitely be a must visit stop on all future trips to Montecito/Santa Barbara! read more

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Beautiful things from all around the world are to be found at this highly curated shop deep in Montecito. Against the backdrop of those stunning hills lies this little slice of heaven. Everything is rustic and soft and well, just perfect in my eyes. Yea it's pricey, yea it's a bit snobby (sorry it's true!), but it's still earthy and fabulous and everything beautiful. Blankets and quilts from India made from cotton and cashmere... the most stunning hand embroidered pillows from Mexico... Beni ouarain rugs and lanterns from Morocco ... dishes, paper goods, clothing, shoes, books, jewelry, fragrances, soaps and many more items... all the world's finest can be found here. Doesn't get any better than this. read more

Great shop for gifts. French designer infant and children's clothing, the sweetest books and most adorable gift items. Shop also has beautiful coffee table books, French designer candles and soaps, exquisite cotton bedding, housewares, women and men's clothing, jewelry, handmade rugs, etc. it's upstairs from the Pierre La Fond Wine Bistro in Montecito. There's a pleasant sitting park adjacent. read more

What a fantastic mix of clothing, gifts, and, well, stuff. Cool stuff, mind you. Great selection of bags and jewelry for any occasion. I believe the only reason this place hasn't received a review yet is the regulars surely don't want anybody else to know about it. Also a terrific shop for outdoor cool stuff. Love this place! read more

Magical! A day trip with a friend required a stop at Pierre Lafond. Picked up a exquisite flannel jacket for an upcoming trip to Europe. Some beautiful & unique items- I spent an hour just looking around. Definitely worth a visit. Will be back soon! read more

Amazing staff and my favorite store ever. So thoughtfully curated. One in a million. Great for gifts and little indulgences!

I come here every time i come to Santa Barbara- love it! There is always great merchandise. They were absolutely charming to my shy little son who told them he wanted to be a painter! Look forward to future visits! read more

All you need is boatloads of monies to spend (as the locals surely do)....but every now and then I indulge in a few items this store has to offer. Should one want to shop where the "uber rich" spend their monies, this is the place. No "designer label" items, just a selection of the most beautiful and (unusual as well) things anyone would ever want to have. Your purchases will be your favourite treasures that you will own. Don't expect to see the high end (designer label) items that you would find the mainstream stores here in the US. Everything is a delight in this store! Whoever picks out the merchandise has the best taster ever. The selection changes and it is always amazing. I have to stop here at all times when I head up North. It is a hidden away little plaza that you will find pretty much only through word of mouth (as I, from an ex- wife of a famous drummer). The last time I was there I was awed by the finds this store had in their inventory. This store definitely deserves 6 stars at all times...unless something drastic happens. Looking forward to stopping there in a few days. Share with me your finds from here,,,, read more

I am so surprised that there arent several amazing reviews of this beautiful shop. The minute you take the first step up the trumpet vine laces staircase, you enter a delight to the eyes! Whoever does the buying knows their stuff! Everything for one of a kind hand made items, to beautiful linens, amazing housewares and darling childrens items....It's a must when in Montecito! It's one of my top ten favorite stores. I still have the beautiful wollen blanket we purchased here in the 80's! read more