Shopping in Barcelona - Phard

Last week after realizing that I had nothing planned for my week-long vacation, I booked a flight to Amsterdam to visit my parents. I couldn't have picked a better time to visit as they had planned a four-day trip to Barcelona.

I spent a good amount of time looking at the masterpieces (La Segrada Familia, Pregrada) of the architect Gaudi, but also managed to get a full day of shopping on Barcelona's famous 5Km Shopping line. The shopping line starts at the top of the Ramblas, through Placa de Catalunya, along Passeig de Gràcia and up Avenue Diagonal.

At Placa de Catalunya, you'll run into El Corte Ingles, a large department store. You'll find most of your popular luxury designers (Chanel, Valentino, Max Mara, Louis Vuitton Burberry etc.) along Passeig de Gràcia and it's a lovely street with wide beautifully-tiled sidewalks. It was on this street that I stepped into a Phard store for the first time. I had never heard of them before but was impressed with the fit and quality of the clothes. I picked up two jackets and a pair of black skinnies all at amazing prices since they were having a huge fall/winter sale.

My top three picks from their Spring '09 Collection: