Forgotten treasures

May 5, 2014November 11, 20142 Comments

I am in a bit of a rut when it comes to dressing myself as of late. Owning your own shop (ps, online should be back in action in the next little while) generally means you forget to buy things for yourself (at least, for me), so after some time your closet starts to feel boring ’cause everything has been worn to death. A lot of the things I buy for the shop I would wear myself, but not all, either because of fit or it’s just not my style. So while I do get new clothes often, it never really feels like mine and I only get to wear them for a short time. I try not to become attached to something I plan to sell in the shop. All that to say, it’s nice when you go through your own closet and pull something out you haven’t worn in a loooong time, and you are able to look at it with fresh eyes. This trench and these sunglasses are a good example of that. I’ve had bangs since I was 14 yrs old, but I did go through a phase – I think when I started this blog actually – where I was growing them out. I bought these sunglasses around that time. I’ve shared them on the blog a few summers back, but when I saw the images, I hated the way they looked. However, wearing them while I have bangs, I kind of love. They now look right to me, and I’m sure they will get a lot of use this summer. The trench I’ve had for I can’t even remember how many years. I wore it to death when I first got it, and then grew tired of it. Yesterday was the perfect weather for a light jacket, and it caught my eye while I was choosing a coat for the day. I put it on and it just made sense to me. I now rememver why I held onto it for so many years. These are the reasons I will forever be a hoarder of clothing. I hate the idea of getting rid of something and then wishing you had never done so a few months, or even years down the road.

Coat: H&M (years ago)
Blouse & blouse: thrifted vintage
Belt: thrifted
Sunglasses: UO
Socks: Target
Shoes: Seychelles

In defense of selfies

April 7, 2014November 11, 20147 Comments

There are several positive things about the first truly warm day of the season. One, pretty well everyone is in a good mood. Two, bare legs! Three, rediscovering clothes that have been hidden for months. Four, realizing the coat, cardigan and scarf you wore on the walk to get produce is actually making you sweat. Five, bare legs!!! I was in very bright spirits for taking outfit pictures this weekend, not realizing that a HUGE number of people were also in very bright spirits and out walking on the first truly warm day of the year. Which brings me to my negative… my frequented spots for photo taking, the ones that have been void of people for months, are now filled with people. This scenario poses a problem for those of us who take our own photos (I’m assuming I can’t be the only one who feels this way) I avoid choosing locations where I know a lot of people will be when I am taking my own photos with a self-timer and tripod. Having people watch me take photos of myself makes me feel self-conscious, and sort of vain, even though having a personal style blog does not normally make me feel vain in the slightest. Had I had a friend taking these photos, I would not have felt awkward and strange at all. Sometimes I focus too much on what others could be thinking. In reality, I have no idea what they are thinking. My assumption is that it is entirely negative, but if I passed by someone taking photos of themselves would my first thought be negative? Definitely not. But I am entirely biased since I do this weekly. Maybe if I had zero insight into the world of taking, well, pretty much “selfies”, maybe my initial reaction would be different. However, I do not consider the photos I take “selfies”, and have a great disdain for the term. I dislike how that term has turned self-portraits into a negative, and we could deem anyone who takes photographs of themselves as self-obsessed. I enjoy playing around with my camera, choosing different outfits, locations, composition and movements to create a mood, and generally all I have is myself to work with. It’s more to me than simply showcasing myself, but with instagram and the internet, peoples view on the age-old style of photography has become very much skewed. Anyways, all in all, these photos are not what i wanted them to be. I let my mind get the best of me, and never really got into my normal groove.

Shirt: vintage dress worn as top via Common Sort
Skirt: Larkspur
Socks: Target
Shoes: Seychelles – no longer available, but can be found here
Coat: vintage via Gisela and Zoe vintage

Fashion shoots with Beck and Hanson, Courtney Love and Marilyn Manson

November 11, 2013November 11, 20145 Comments

Over the weekend I learned Gertie has a thing for runners (the people, not shoes). By thing I mean she wants to chase them down. Like a moth to a flame, she notices their unusual pace and bolts for them. This was a bit of a shock for us since she is normally really good at responding to her name (as far as I can tell, but Gus is deaf, so I probably think any sort of reaction to name calls is truly amazing), and I had had her off leash before without any worry. Ha! She showed me! It did not matter how many times we called at the top of our lungs, she kept going. I honestly was so concerned we were going to lose her. But she eventually stopped for whatever reason, and I retrieved the little monster. In retrospect, it was a pretty hilarious scene to behold, Matt running ahead of me with Gus in his arms screaming Gertie’s name, and me trailing behind, running in heels yelling “Gertie! Fuck! Gertie!” and whatever other curse words came out of my mouth.

Other than my dog trying to escape me, the weekend was pretty lovely. Friday evening was my pal Nick’s birthday and Saturday evening was spent decorating Meaghan’s apartment for a little surprise party her boyfriend Nick (different Nick) had planned, and I helped execute. While Meaghan didn’t actually end up surprised because she saw the light go out through her window when she pulled into the parking lot, it still ended up being a really great evening. Just picture a New Radicals-Natalie Imbruglia-Prozzak-Meredith Brooks dance party, while the tenant below banged at us with a broom, and Meaghan stated that she may actually be attracted to the lead singer of New Radicals (bucket hat and all). That pretty much sums up the evening.

Blouse: H&M (im not sure of this)
Skirt: vintage
Jacket: vintage via Public Butter
Tights: Target
Shoes: Seychelles
Necklace: gift

Babel

July 22, 2013November 11, 2014Leave a comment

You’d be hard pressed to find secluded, quiet spots in Toronto, devoid of any humans. They sort of exist, but they are few and far between. Afterall, Toronto and the GTA holds 11.5 million people (Meg googled this yesterday), so it is perfectly logical that every bit of the city will have at least one other person there at any given time. It is strange for me, coming from suburban Ottawa, with a forest directly behind my families backyard, and having no trouble finding solitude. And god knows I needed it back then.

I fortunately live just a short walk away from a quiet(er) spot of Toronto (that is when Muzik night club is not blaring it’s music at 7pm, and everyone is wearing white and you wonder what happens inside there? And you’re probably lucky you don’t know). I was pressing my mind for quiet spots that I could snap some shots in the early hours of the morning. Scadding Cabin is always a safe bet (Meg and I took some film shots there in the winter), because I don’t think a lot of people know of it’s existence. In the summer it is hidden by large surrounding trees, and the only visitors are usually other photographers, cause there is really not much else to do there.

I was all by myself for quite a bit, which was a true pleasure. I could move about freely without concerning myself with quizzical passer bys: “okay, why is she crouching about, and how come she looks so sad, and why does she keep contorting her body every which way?” Eventually a photographer, make-up artist, and a woman in a giant gown showed up to snap shots of what I assume was for a wedding. Fortunately this cabin has four walls (duh!) and I could scoot around to the next part when I felt too much like a strange woodland creature.

Blouse: thirfted vintage
Skirt: thrifted
Bow tie: handmade
Sandals: Miz Mooz