I was in Calgary for a few days earlier this week, and when I landed to sunshine and warmth (a full 22 degree difference from what I left behind that morning) and no snow....I tossed my luggage and coat in my hotel room, and took a cab over to Chinook Centre (the city's premier mall) to check out the new Nordstrom. I've been in a few over the years, so knew what they are all about, but was a little leery of what the product and label mix might be (given other chains' inability to bring in certain clothing labels to Canada ) . I was steeling myself to be disappointed, but boy was I wrong! The store is gorgeous. A lot smaller than the others I've been in in South Coast Plaza and in Seattle, but most of the labels I love and don't get to see often were fully represented.

I was really disappointed by the accessories department. Not much at all in the way of jewellery and bags were strictly very high end - but I did buy a pair of Kate Spade reading glasses, a brand I've had luck with before. Burberry scarves were under lock and key, which was obnoxious , so I didn't get to look at them carefully. I was prepared to buy one, but not that way.

What I did appreciate was being able to see the Nordstrom house labels , how they were merchandised and where they were located in the store vis a vis other designer and bridge brands. Getting to see a Halogen and Trouve mini-department helped put what I see here on the forum into better perspective. I didn't get the sense that Spring was fully stocked yet - there were lots of sale racks, and I wasn't particularly blown away by anything in the lines I can afford.

I did love the Vince department though, as that's a line I never get to see in its entirety. ( The boutique I buy it from only stocks pieces, not the entire collection. ) I was impressed by the Trouve collection - despite being very UNimpressed with the first Trouve sweater I ordered on-line. Good quality for the money. Halogen didn't do much for me , nor did the Vince Camuto collection, sadly.

I nearly lay down and cried in the shoe department: it was that nice. We just do not get this variety in terms of brands and price points in our Canadian department stores. I didn't even try anything on as I was not prepared to buy, but the selection blows The Bay, and some of the Holt Renfrew stores out of the water for mid-higher priced shoes.

I went in hoping to find a citron or bright blue bag - and found nothing at all in citron. Funny when these "big" colours don't really show up at retail.

The cosmetics department was very lovely, every single brand I NEVER get to see (Burberry, Armani, Tom Ford, Diptique) I saw, but it was also very , very cramped and crowded. I experienced a bit of sensory overload and finally had to escape - and this coming from a beauty product freak.

All in all the store was great to see and lovely to shop in. Customer service was decent, and the store was hoppin' busy for a gorgeous spring-like Sunday afternoon. New stores are rolling out this year, and those of you in Vcr, Ottawa and Toronto are in for a treat

p.s. one thing I did find odd was that the prices of things I saw (and for example on the sweater below, that I inexplicably bought, not really liking it) are a lot different in the store than they are on-line for us Canadians. This sweater shows as $50ish on-line and I paid a grand total of $29 Cdn for it (the entire reason I bought it, plus I was tired and hungry) . Might be worth waiting to get to a b&m rather than ordering on-line.