Barefoot Contessa first opened it's doors on Main St in the Spring of 1999 – selling primarily collectible vintage goods and lovely handmade items. Owner and Vancouver Actor, Eva de Viveiros, quickly expanded the offerings with unique hand screened tops, dyed slips and pretty floral dresses and skirts, that she would sew herself. As the demand grew, so did the selection, branching into prestige brands with a feminine sensibility. Betsey Johnson, Nougat and Sweet Chemise shared space with 50's prom dresses and locally designed lines.more...See more text
The Barefoot Contessa is the stuff that dreams are made of. Flowery frocks, flowy tunics and tongue-in-cheek statement tees line the walls at the Mount Pleasant boutique. A t-shirt emblazoned with the word “Happy” seems emblematic of the store; this is a happy place to shop. Certainly, it’s owner Eva De Viveiros’s happy place. “My little shop is my little slice of happy,” she says.
The Barefoot Contessa is the culmination of a lot of hard work, a fair amount of dreaming and a lifetime immersed in creativity. Eva's childhood bedroom was her seamstress-mother’s sewing studio, replete with feather boas and rhinestones. When she was in theatre school, Eva began to make things — scarves, hats, silkscreened t-shirts — and sell them to friends. She would sometimes rent a table at a local craft fair to sell what she had made, and she dreamed of opening her own little shop one day.