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

All Hail The Sale: Style Cutters

I'm doing one last show this holiday season and I'm really stoked about it - three fashion designers, two jewellery designers, two handbag designers and a reclaimed wooden toy maker will descend upon Blizzarts, our favourite plateau watering hole.

More than just shopping - enjoy cocktails, desserts, music and old films.

We will be there all day, from 12h - 19h. Come by, say hi, and gift your loved ones or yourself with local creations!

Featured Designer: Simone's Rose

One of the best things about doing the Holiday Craft Fair circuit is meeting and bonding with other designers. I had the great pleasure of hanging out with the wonderfully effervescent Michelle Maynard of Simone's Rose, a Pyxus Passion Project.

When I first met Michelle at Smart Design Mart I tried to limit myself to one piece, the first being this fantastic Amour Houndstooth high-waisted skirt (as seen on me here at the Billie Boutique Blogger's night. Paired with a Pretty Raccoon fringe shirt).

But I spent the week dreaming about the Hailey dress, and so when I saw Michelle at Puces Pop/Rusty Plum I had to try it on. It fit like a glove and it was mine!

This is the dress you'll be seeing me in at a holiday party near you. Paired with my new booties, of course.


Just look at the gorgeous pleating of the sleeve...


Simone's Rose is a brand new line, built upon years of experience creating custom clothing and designing in the commercial fashion industry. Michelle's taste in cut and fabric are impeccable and the quality of the workmanship is undeniably high. Check out her Etsy shop, facebook page or make an appointment to stop by her Mile-End studio. You'll be happy you did!

Bloggers (and booties!) at Billie Boutique

The lovely Annie and Veronique of Billie Boutique hosted a Women Bloggers night this past Wednesday and I had a blast meeting other fashionistas, getting photographed and well...shopping.

The boutique:


The bloggers:


The booties:

Yes, I will be wearing these to a holiday party near you.

So many opportunities to buy local...

The last one on this post is happening TONIGHT and features my favourite DEBORAH ADAMS and her recycled leather bags n' belts!

Featuring the crazy-talented, my jewellery role-model, Anick.
This one is happening tonight - get yourself or a loved one a gorgeous recycled leather belt and bag from Deborah Adams!

Belt yer outfit!

Oh look, another belt-themed blog post! Oh belts... how do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

#3882647: Belt That Outfit:

I have been admiring this trend from afar, skeptical about its practicality (I love the look of a winter coat belted with a wide belt not part of the coat... but when you wanna take it off or just zip it open on the metro?) but loving the silhouette it creates.

When Adrienne showed up at my door wearing this cute grey dress with studded belt, I had to try it out on her. She already looked awesome, having taken a shapeless girly dress with great pleating work, and deciding to belt it, not just with anything - some black studded leather to add some edge - and topping the outfit with a black cardigan. The cardigan was a perfect candidate, as it had no buttons or enclosure of any kind - it was actually built to just hang.

And so we belted it. I think it looks awesome and I can't wait to try this look out more often.

The September Issue and the Meaning of Life

SPOILER ALERT.

Thanks to the lovely folks at Worn Fashion Journal, I won tickets to see The September Issue. I was fascinated all the way through - it was crazy seeing how shoots come together and I had no idea designers showed Anna their goods before the clothes even hit the catwalk. But what I was most enthralled with was the juxtaposition of Grace and Anna and what it taught me about how I want to live my life.

Grace Coddington is the Creative Director of Vogue USA, and responsible for styling many of the fashion spreads that appear in the mag. Anna Wintour is the Editor-in-Chief, and held responsible for bringing Vogue back to relevancy.

If one were to judge them by their Wikipedia entries, Grace would be a mousy, unimportant blip in the world of Fashion, and Anna the Emperess. They are both older women, Anna being 60 this year and Grace almost 70, and they've worked together at Vogue in NYC for over twenty years. (There is a much better biography of Grace here.)

The film inadvertently pits them against each other: Grace styling gorgeous, romantic, and eye-candy-laden shoots, and Anna cutting them from the issue. Designers, staffers and famous photographers cowering in front of Anna, and Grace cheering them up afterwards. In the end, much of the magazine is filled with Grace's talent, though Anna will always get the credit.

Throughout the film, Anna lives up to her Ice Queen reputation, often responding with cutting insults or simply a blank stare. Grace makes us laugh, defends pot bellies and cries at the beauty of the gardens at Place Versailles.

Though Anna has lengthy Wikipedia pages to her name, I would rather live my life as Grace.


P.S. Help us ban Zimbabwe Blood Diamonds by signing the Avaaz.org petition here!