Shopping anyone?
Les Ailes is the most stylish mall that I have seen since I visited Chicago. The entrance is surprisingly non-descript, I expected something breathtaking to set the mood for a unique shopping experience. At first I had a hard time believing that they managed to get so much space out of the building, it's amazing what can happen when you take four floors out of a building. Steve found it a bit claustrophobic, but I liked it, it certainly felt more intimate than your regular mall.
There is a mix of open concept and closed in areas with great, futuristic/deco lighting that is soft, yet not dim. At first, it's hard to get your bearings, because the main store is at the back of the building. There are escalators that go up through the centre of the building, as well as inside the main store. Sometimes, you're not sure where the main store ends and the rest of the mall begins. The true beauty of the design can be seen from the third floor.

Here, the floor plan suddenly becomes clear. The oval open 'roof' makes you feel like you're cocooned in the building. Oh, and did I mention that the roof lighting changes colour?

As Rebecca mentioned last week, the fourth floor holds a small art exhibit. I can't say that I was taken by anything up there, especially the three white canvases (you want *how* much for that?). I don't know if it's going to be a permanent exhibition area, there's not much room for anything else. The fifth to the eighth floor is supposed to be office space, I'd love to have a look at it, it's probably fantastic.
As for the store, I was surprised to find that there was merchandise that I could afford. There were tons of designer brands, but there was also there own label and their prices were comparable with the Bay and Simons. I didn't browse through everything, but they seemed to offer about as much merchandise as Simons, a bit more because they have a kitchen department. The one thing I did notice was all the sheep, which I assume were a big seller for the opening.

They also seem to have a nice kids department, but I didn't have a close look at the clothing because I was distracted by the merry-go-round.

If parents have a hard time with those quarter-operated, brightly painted monstrosities at malls and grocery stores, you can imagine what it's going to be like the first time you take them to Les Ailes. There's also a play area with a giant talking bear and some games.
Bathroom review, you must check out the bathrooms, especially the ladies inside the main store on the third floor and outside the coffee shop on the second floor. I was going to get pictures, but was not able to get in there alone, and didn't want to look like a total perv.