Valerie Dumaine at Unicorn Boutique!

The lovely Valerie Dumaine will be doing a meet and greet at Unicorn Boutique on Thursday June 3rd!

Her Spring/Summer collection will be 15% off for the evening.

RSVP before June 1st! RSVP info and more on Unicorn's blog.

Make Do & Mend Redux

If you've flipped through a copy of the Mirror this week, you may have read about the very cool talk taking place at the new Ethik Boutique on St Hubert tomorrow night.

Part of a series of ethical fashion events, fashion historian Pamela Grimaud will be talking about the return to a more conscious consumption of clothing (mending, modifying and upcycling) and the rise of handmade, ethical and environmentally friendly fashion.

Tomorrow, Wednesday May 26th at 6:30 PM
Ethik Boutique, 6050 St Hubert
$10

The full Mirror article is here and the Ethik Boutique has a facebook page here.

All Hail The Studio Sale: Eve Gravel & Station 8

Previous season Eve Gravel, and Eve's men's line Station 8, will be on sale at the Eve Gravel atelier on De Gaspe starting on Thursday and continuing through Sunday.

Wine n' cheese on Wed evening as well - more info on Candice Pantin's Montreal In Fashion blog and Eve Gravel's site under News.

Swap n' Shop on May 29th

Bigger and better than ever, a date has been set for the next Montreal S.W.A.P.!

Brought to by the awesome folks of The S.W.A.P. Team, this massive clothing swap will go down at Musee Juste Pour Rire on May 29th.

They've changed up the format this year and it's going to be very exciting: a one day event starting at 2pm and going to 3am, DJs, a fashion show (styled by yours truly!), on-site fashion consultations from Ludique, and a V.I.P. lounge for those swapping haute couture labels!

This year, due to overwhelming demand and limited space, you pay for your entrance (a nominal donation to the non-profit) by buying your ticket beforehand here. The Couture Salon is extra but well worth it if you have some luxury brands hanging at the back of your closet to trade in for some same-caliber duds.

How does the S.W.A.P. work?
You donate clothes and get 1 ticket for every piece of clothing (must be in good condition, no stains and rips!) and you can trade in every ticket for a new piece of clothing you find at the swap.

How do you donate your clothes?
It's so easy - email clothingpickups-MTL@theswapteam.org and they'll pick it up for you!

For way more in-depth information about the swap, check out http://theswapteam.org/happenings/take-off-your-clothes-montreal.

Don't miss out!

Guest Blog: On Fashion, architecture and flowerpots...

I'm so excited to have this awesome guest blog from Samantha Etane of Montreal visual blog tam+sam! I couldn't check out the Open Doors Design Montreal event so Sam generously agreed to cover it for my dear readers.

Here we go!

This past week-end Design Montreal organized the 4th edition of 'Portes Ouvertes' Design Montreal; designers of all trades - and calibers - opened the doors of their boutiques, studios and atelier to the public.

I saw so many creations, fell in love with so designers, but had to make a choice...

Helmer.
A Passionate creative force who specialize in delicate & unique embroidered pieces for women, Helmer Joseph welcomed us in his St Laurent's boutique-gallery. The designer gives us plaids, polka-dots, lacework, and precious bling with a classy twist.




Incidentally Helmer worked with my next 'coup de coeur' Philippe Dubuc , a designer who embodies the spirit of Quebec's creativity. He welcomed us in his 'atelier' and chatted about his creative process, his upcoming women line he's preparing for Simons, and the challenge of designing women's garment.






Next stop Cardin, Ramirez & Julien , an architecture firm located on The Main. They specialize in sustainable development, and have recently won Rio Tinto Alcan Competition for the design of our new Planetarium.




Jamais Assez is an interior design heaven. There, you can get colorful and original pieces at very affordable prices. On top of it, made in Quebec.






'Portes Ouvertes' Design Montreal is one of these event that makes you realize how lucky we are to live in a city where the artists and the art are so accessible.

PS: A huge Thanks to Eric, from the Dubuc store, who was rocking the brand like it was nobody's business.

Street Stylin': May Day Moments

May Day has come and gone and it was a blast. General 54's 4th year anniversary, the celebration of Local 23 and the unveiling of the new Local Annex space went down next door to the General this past Saturday. There was a fashion show, drinks, DJs, giveaways and projections.


The theme for the first show was Nautical Garden Party, featuring vintage dresses and new designs by grob, Enfants Sauvages and Jennifer Glasgow, to name a few. The models, hot-to-trot ladies from the hood, did a fantastic job walking the runway and posing en tableau.


Reema, of Cocoa Locale, looked simply splish-splash in this Glasgow dress, hot off the presses from the Spring/Summer collection. She's also sporting the Brazen Design anchor necklace and vintage shoes.

The second show was a little more glam, and the models poured champagne in the General's honour from an oversized cutout bottle.

The crowd was a fashion show in and of itself and many sported our local talent.

Reanna and Emilie were the suave stylists behind the show.

Reanna (left) was representing Australia in her Something Else by Natalie Wood top and denim leggings by Sports Girl.

Emily (right) is wearing a vintage onesie from their vintage collection Caesar Pony, on sale here. Also, check out Reanna's blog at reannatime.blogspot.com

My little sister Monica (left), wearing Noemiah earrings.

Deborah (middle) is the talent behind Deborah Adams recycled bags and belts and the sweat behind a number of local designer sewing machines. She is wearing boots from Sam Adelman purchased at Little Burgundy, an H&M waistcoat scored at the last S.W.A.P. and a pair of Teenflo pants from the 90's.

Aaron (right) is sporting a Viola Blanca ascot, black 514 Levi's also obtained at the S.W.A.P. and Fluevog ankle boots.

Roxy (left) is wearing a blouse from d.e.p.t., and Hoss ankle boots. Michelle, the genius behind Simone's Rose, is wearing a Vanessa Moore necklace, Betsy Johnson purse, Miss 60 shoes, Pants from Paris Pas Cher!, Foxy Jeans by Michelle Maymond sweater and Brazen Design earrings.


Elaine (left), mastermind behind Elaine Ho (aka Roadkill) jewellery and pepito mimumo clothing, is wearing a Les Copains jacket, belted vintage oversized camisole, Groggy leggings, Full Circle coat and vintage boots found at Value Village, and some knotty roadkill bling.

Yana (right), superstar of Supayana, is wearing a thrifted scarft, cardigan, jacket, purse and vintage boots.


Jenn (left), the 'jenn' of Jennifer Glasgow Design, is wearing a mashup of vintage Glasgow pieces.

Elizabeth (right) of Land of Talk, is wearing an Oasis leather jacket, Vexy shirt, Silence + Noise blazer, and jeans and tanktop purchased at "that sample store on St Viateur near Park". The boots are vintage Charles David and were purchased in New York right before playing on Letterman.


Jeremy (left) is wearing Lucky Jeans shirt and pants and sneaks purchased at Gravity Pope (when're we gonna get one of those?!).

Poppy (right) is wearing an H&M top, American Eagle jeans and Kensie shoes.


Reema (middle) is wearing vintage shoes and an altered vintage dress with a hilarious backstory; her and her father were thrifting in Hamilton while her mom was out of town (a habit they shared that mom didn't condone) and Reema hadn't found anything. Her dad, who is actually colourblind - grabbed a hideous muumuu from a rack and said "What about this?". That muumuu is now the dress you see in the picture, with the sleeves and hem shortened, and one of her go-to favourites.


Tamara, the lady behind This Ilk, is wearing This Ilk, an H&M sweater, Norwegian Wood leggings, Derek Durand camisole purchased at Puces Pop and Aldo sandals.


Monica with Tamara after purchasing a This Ilk necklace. The General opened for an hour after the fashion show and Monica ran over to buy this Enfants Sauvages (left) and grob (right) dress worn during the show.