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.

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!

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.

All hail the sale: AU CŒUR DE LA MODE

If you missed the Braderie, here's yet another amazing sale of many local designer labels. AU CŒUR DE LA MODE is a Quebec fashion sale that raises money for the Farha Foundation. The proceeds of AU CŒUR DE LA MODE assists the Farha Foundation to continue to help the more than 20,000 men, women and children living with HIV and AIDS in Quebec.

Click here for deets and here for a full list of designers.

Springin' Lightly

I think it's safe to say that all Montrealers are yearning for warm breezes, sun and a respite from winter. It's looking like the weekend just may bring us that and so here's my spring fashion roundup. My eyeballs are thirsty for colour, florals and DRESSES. Mmmm.....

All of these goodies are made right here in la belle province by our incredible talent.

Kimono Nudo by Simone's Rose.

Bailey by Valerie Dumaine.

Diana by Jennifer Glasgow.

Carolina Wren by Birds of North America.

Aurore by Jennifer Glasgow.

Tiffany by Simone's Rose.

Rock Wren by Birds of North America.

Fauna by Valerie Dumaine.

Dream Team: The Perfect Bag Arrives

Once upon a time, I had a dream. A dream of a purse that could rearrange itself into a variety of bags - laptop, clutch, purse, shoulder and messenger. This dream bag would be a classic black, made of soft leather that was easy on my conscience, and hardware that would stand the test of time. Best of all, it would be hot-to-trot and go with anything I wear.
The bag of my dreams (and yours) has arrived. With a Conscience. The 007 is made from upcycled leather, has plenty of inside and outside pockets, interchangeable fringe and strap accessories, and Mini-me (a detachable clutch).


The creation of a dream bag takes a dream team. In this case, The S.W.A.P. Team, Montreal Couture and local recycled leather accessories designer Deborah Adams (about whom I haven't stopped raving on this blog) joined forces to crowd-source and design the perfect bag, a portion of which will go to supporting the SWAP and Montreal Couture's not-for-profit endeavours."So how do I get my hands on one?!", you ask? Simply sign up for the SWAP's newsletter here to ensure you receive your invite to the exclusive online pre-sale. Only the number ordered will be made to reduce waste. The price has not yet been released but is guaranteed to be less than the retail average with a higher quality production (being the owner of multiple Deborah Adams bags and belts, I can personally guarantee it!).


Ok, stop drooling and go sign up - I don't want to hear "I wish I'd gotten one" when you run into me, 007 and Mini-me on the boulevard.

Featured Blog: In LIfe & In Fashion

Time's been a little precious lately and so I wanted to share with you a post I really liked, on a blog called In Life and in Fashion. A friend of mine recommended Kena's blog to me, and when I went to check it out I was pleasantly surprised to find a refreshing take on style & grace - from a fellow brown blogger no less!

I thought that this post about Making a Most Coveted List would be a great way of imposing some restraint on our wallets and wardrobes. I think this is a great trick for foregoing another round of cheap n' dirty shirts to save up for some Made-In-Canada goodness.

All hail the sale: Preloved!

It's preloved's Annual Warehouse Sale! Preloved makes stylish new duds from recycled and used garments.

10$, 20$, 30$, 40$ Maximum price 50$!

4 Days Only:

Thursday January 21st 12-9pm
Friday January 22nd 12-9pm
Saturday January 23rd 11-6pm
Sunday January 24th 12-6pm

4832 Blvd Saint Laurent

Bodacious Bras

I recently visited Secrets from your Sister, a bra-fitting boutique in Toronto, Ontario. There I learned the truth behind a well-fitting bra (see bottom of post for a summary of what I learned!) and that we can apply conscious consumption to what's underneath our clothes.



I asked the very helpful staff about Made-in-Canada lingerie, and they showed me Grenier, pride of our own belle ville de Montreal since 1860! The collection covers all the bases - from plus sizes to wireless to teddies to control tops and bottoms - all reasonably priced and proudly made in Canada.



I also picked up a couple bottles of Soak, the Made-in-Canada no-rinse handwashing soap for your delicates (as seen on Dragon's Den!). I've been using it for 3 weeks - so far, so good!



Bra-fitting tips!

1. Cup sizes are relative to the rib size. So a 32 D is not the same cup size as a 38 D (it's smaller).
2. If your bra rides up in the back, it's not the straps, it's the rib size - it's too large.
3. When trying bras on, try it on the loosest hook so that over the years you can tighten it.
4. Handwash your bras, don't throw 'em in the machine! They will last many years this way.
5. Wash them every 1 - 3 wears.
6. Most of us'll "pudge" out of any bra - don't judge the fitting by it.

All hail the sales!

January is a great time to get some good deals. It's rare that boutiques carrying a lot of Made-In-Canada designs have major sales, but there are some jems this month.

I'd highly recommend popping by Jeans Jeans Jeans - I was in there helping a friend pick out a pair of made-in-Montreal Second Yoga Skinny jeans, and found a rack of Guido & Mary, Lois and Seconds at half-price. Plus, the second pair is seventy-five perfect off! And that's off Jeans Jeans Jeans' regular prices, which are below suggested retail.

Another great sale is going down at La Gaillarde in St Henri. It's on until the 24th of this month.


I've had my eye on a young designer, THIRD EYE by Dessaivre, whose eco up-cycled creations are carried there. Her work is romantic with an edge of dark, using lots of creams and black and lace.

S.W.A.P.'s 2010 Challenge

By know you've probably heard about H&M slashing & dumping new clothes instead of donating them to charity.

There have been some interesting reactions, such as H&M and Wal-Mart saying they will ensure it will never happen again.

Another is The S.W.A.P. Team's 2010 challenge to swap instead of shop, shop local when buying clothes, and downsizing, amongst other things. Read the full challenge here and sign up in the comments!

Oh snap! Moi sur Clin D'oeil!

I forgot that I stumbed across this during the holidays - I got snapped at the Billie Boutique blogger's night but thought nothing of it until this came up in my google alerts.
Check it out - I'm on the Clin D'oeil Street Stylin' blog!


The entry doesn't tell you about all the made-in-Canada goodness I'm wearing so allow me:

Fringe Top by Pretty Raccoon Clothing
Simone Cardigan by Valerie Dumaine
Amour skirt by Simone's Rose
Yoga jeans by Second
Recycled leather Evelyn bag by Deborah Adams
Leather belt made in Canada for Bedo
And the bling, of course, is mine.

Happy New Year!

Dear readers,

I hope 2010 brings you goodness, grace and style galore.

I am making a resolution to only make vintage, second-hand or Made-In-Canada fashion purchases this year, in addition to clothes swapping. Wanna join me?


A new initiative from the city of Montreal will make it easier to buy local fashion while supporting local retailers. Montrealfashionmap.com is an interactive map that encourages supporting the local fashion scene. There's still a bunch missing, but designers can send their info to the Ville de Montreal to be added.

[Not convinced that second hand shopping is worth the work? Here's a glance at my New Year's Eve dress - I've worn it ever New Year's eve since 2005. It's a hand-sequined haute couture body-hugging mini, complete with snaps to hold in your bra straps (!)... I got for $5 at Value Village.]

Happy New Year,

Rachel

Made in MTL with Love

Holy cow, next week is like a not-so-mini pre-party for Montreal Fashion Week (which is more like three days, not a week, and will be upon us Oct 13th).

But first things first: we're gonna kick things off on Wednesday with Fashion Pop, followed by STYLIST'S OWN on Friday. Saturday will launch the Puces Pop annual Arts & Crafts fair.

FASHION POP

Wed Sept 30th
8 PM (doors at 7)
Espace Reunion, 6600 Hutchinson
This is an exciting fashion show and contest between 6 up-and-coming Montreal fashion designers. You can read my previous blog entry about Fashion Pop here.

STYLIST'S OWN

Friday, October 2nd – 10 am to 9 pm
Saturday, October 3rd – 10 am to 6 pm
Sunday, October 4th – 12 pm to 6 pm
Studio MW
400 McGill
Montréal

This is only the 2nd ever STYLIST'S OWN from respected Montreal wonder woman and stylist Azamit, and founder of souk@sat. She has gathered one-of-a-kind and limited edition items from over 60 Montreal designers. The perfect opportunity to get your hands on a gorgeous unique piece made with love right here in Montreal.

Brazen Design will be presenting a never-before-seen recycled leather/sterling silver collection and I'll post sneak peeks next week.

PUCES POP

October 3rd & 4th, 11am - 7pm
St. Michel Church Hall (105 St-Viateur O.)

Quickly becoming a Montreal institution, this Pop Montreal side-project-turned-raging-arts-and-crafts-beast, The Puces Pop Marketplace is an amazing assembly of handmade clothes, jewellery, zines, toys, ceramics, books and much much more.

I will be there all weekend, and the permanent Brazen Design collection will be on SUPER SALE so take advantage!

Montreal Geek Girls rule.

I had a blast presenting last night at Montreal Geek Girl Dinner's "September Issue" - A Passion for Fashion.

Aleece Germano of The SWAP Team talked about their amazingly successful Montreal and Toronto clothing swaps the past two weekends, and about why clothes swapping is so fun and important and sustainable.

If you missed my presentation, I have uploaded it to Slideshare and you can check it out here.

Someone asked about jackets for taller women. I found this one at Melow, and I found an entire collection designed for tall women: The O Collection.

I also mentioned that a great place to get one of my Top Ten Wardrobe Must Haves - The Boot - is at La Chatte Bottees vintage shoe sales at boutiques around town. Well, there is one coming up Friday September 25th at Headquarters Boutique, 6 - 9pm. Don't miss your chance!

The September Issue: Passion for Fashion at Montreal Geek Girl Dinners this Wednesday!

The second half of Montreal Girl Geek Dinner's "September Issue" (focus on fashion) is taking place this Wednesday at 7pm at Station C.

Aleece Germano of S.W.A.P. will be joining me to talk about conscious consumerism, buying local and helpful fashion tips and faux-pas for fashion newbies. It'll be fun and we'll head to the Sparrow for drinks afterwards!

You can read more about the event here at Montreal Girl Geek Dinner's blog.

When: 7 pm on September 16th, 2009
Where: Station C, 5369 Saint-Laurent #430 [map]

RSVP using the Facebook event page here .

Featured Designer: Jennifer Glasgow

Jennifer Glasgow's line has been a staple in Montreal wardrobes for the last decade. She's a wonderful, warm and funny person... and one of the brains behind mile-end institutions Local 23 & General 54. Last week, I had the privilege of getting a sneak peak at Jennifer Glasgow's studio and Fall/Winter 09. collection. Exciting stuff!


Above, Jenn is wearing the Tamarac dress from the new collection - like everything Glasgow, it has pockets (yay!) and we love her for it.

Below, Jenn is modelling the new Elderberry shirt. I love the scoop neck in back, and that she's taken the pouffy sleeve farther down off the shoulder. The skirt is the Greta, from her Spring/Summer 09 line... and on sale for 59$ here!

I love Glasgow's shirts - the tailoring is so unique and she has a real feel for noble and eco-friendly fabrics such as bamboo, linen and lyocell (a cellulose fiber made from wood pulp! how amazing is that?)

I am really looking forward to rocking some of these wool blend sweaters with swooping birds when the cold weather hits...

Check out the entire Fall/Winter 09 collection here!