STARTED HAVING ONE OF THOSE DAYS

But then found this poem and now I'm feeling ready to work again.

Homage to My Hips
by Lucille Clifton

these hips are big hips.
they need space to
move around in.
they don’t fit into little
petty places. these hips
are free hips.
they don’t like to be held back.
these hips have never been enslaved,
they go where they want to go
they do what they want to do.
these hips are mighty hips.
these hips are magic hips.
i have known them
to put a spell on a man and
spin him like a top

Montreal is having one of those schizophrenic days where it snows and rains at the same time. I have no desire to leave my house for ANYTHING today, though I know I'll go out in a few hours for some milk to put in my coffee.

SOMETHING ELSE

So is it a perk or pet peeve to have me as a sister? Both, probably.

My sister MMH had a birthday last month and I finally sent out this gift to her after I got back from NYC. Now that I know she's received it, here's a glimpse.

Mostly I just love this buttery, pebbled leather I found. Oh, and I love Mary, she's my number one top girl ever. Happy (very very late) birthday M.S.S.

SOMETHING FROM THE WEEKEND

TARA ST JAMES

A few more photos from last week in NYC. While there Angie and I were lucky to stay with talented designer Tara St James, Montreal ex-pat and recent winner of the Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Award for Sustainable Design. Tara graciously opened her home to us even in the midst of fashion week madness as she prepared her F/W presentation. I also enjoyed visiting her studio and seeing a few glimpses of the collection pre-show.

The presentation itself was held at the Standard Hotel High Line Room and centered around a classroom theme complete with wooden desks and apples for teacher. Perhaps Tara wished to school the audience in the easy marriage of sustainable fashion and beautiful sophistication? The wooden walls of the room and afternoon sunlight pouring in through the windows added a fantastic warmth to this colourful, earthy, collection.

Lord knows I'm a sucker for redheads, but this girl above in her royal blue top and copper/silk jewellery was just striking. A fantastic combination.

I really loved the knitwear shown too. I've already told Tara to let me know as soon as the above sweater is available for purchase cause I want to wear it, like, now.

When sunlight hit this skirt it turned into a gorgeous, sheer, leafy landscape, like a patchwork of mossy glass.

Beautiful, effortless, second-skin sort of clothing. I'm so pleased I was able to attend and witness the final product of all the fantastic work Tara has done.

COMPLEX GEOMETRIES

I remember sitting in a Calgary bar with a couple former artschool friends sometime around the year 2000 when Clayton first told me his plan to make clothing. I've been following his career ever since then, watching his brand grow from accessories and simple T-shirts to beautiful adaptable jersey pieces and flowing hand-dyed silk wraps and dresses, always with a hint of darkness just beneath the surface. In my mind he was one of the first individuals that showed the lot of us other dinky little designers we could follow our visions and make a go of it.

The Complex Geometries F/W 2011 show was held at West Gentleman's Club in Manhattan, a perfect sort of venue for his glammy, gritty collection. Part Man Who Fell to Earth, part Mad Max, and part kimono-era Rush, I found a strong science-fiction-mystic vibe running throughout the pieces on display. A variety of textures and shades (including the introduction of burgundy and metallic silver to his usual palette of black, white and mauve) came together to create a diverse, cohesive collection. The fantastically high platform shoes (a collaboration with L D Tuttle) brought a welcome element of menace, though I don't envy the models who had to walk up and down stairs in them. All in all another covetable, wearable collection full of basics and knockouts alike, both sure to make the wearer feel special in them.

I adore this black dress, I want to wear it every day for the rest of my life. It's on my list.

As always it's a pleasure to see Clayton's work develop and grow. I excitedly await many future projects from this talented designer and wonderful human being.

Also - if you haven't already, go buy geodes now. Pretty rock slices are gonna be huge in jewellery over the next few months.

IFB

I spent last Wednesday in NY at the Independent Fashion Bloggers Conference with my friend & travel companion Angie. I felt like an imposter much of the time as I'm not a fashion blogger and somehow don't see becoming one as part of my career trajectory, nevertheless I found the panel discussions engaging and informative and enjoyed looking at the pretty girls (+ boys) all dolled up.

The discussions each consisted of a moderator and a selection of bloggers or fashion professionals from a variety of different backgrounds and perspectives. Panel themes included "the business of blogging", "who owns your blog content" and "working with brands gracefully" among others. Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez of Proenza Schouler served as the keynote speakers and touched on both the business of design as well as the necessity of social media and blogger/designer relationships to get one's message 'out there'. This was probably the most interesting and close-hitting discussion for me, though I did enjoy hearing thoughts on designers from a blogger's perspective too. Honestly though, I would've been happy just to sit and listen to Jack and Lazaro discuss process for hours. They just seemed so damn nice & normal.

'Who Owns Your Blog Content', l - r: Leandra Medine (Man Repeller), Richard Tong (Tumblr), Evelyn Tollinche (MTV)

The crowd

'The Business of Blogging' (ie. make sure you're on facebook/tumblr/twitter) l - r: Vahni Georgoulakos (Grit & Glamour), Caitlin Ni Chathain (Gucci), Tony Wang (Post Fashionism), Gregory Shove (Halogen), Piera Gelardi (Refinery29), Craig Arend (Altamira), Keiko Groves (Keiko Lynn)

Angie earning her keep interviewing bloggers for ALDO livestream.

'Working with Brands Gracefully', l - r: Kristen Knox (The Clothes Whisperer), Rebecca Stice (The Clothes Horse), Lindsey Calla (Saucy Glossie)

'The Rise of the Professional Blogger', l - r: Chiara Ferragni (Blonde Salad), Josh Rubin (CoolHunting), Wendy Lam (nitro:licious), Karen Robinovitz (DBA), Faran Krentcil (Nylon), Yvan Rodic (Face Hunter), Karla Deras (Karla's Closet). Other than the (occasionally heated) discourse between Karen Robinovitz and Faran Krentcil, I found this to be the most ho-hum of the panel discussions.

Stars of the show: Imran Amed (Business of Fashion) moderating the discussion with Proenza Schouler. Angie and I were lucky enough after the conference to have a quick drink and a chat with Imran who's originally from Calgary. We high-fived, yay Alberta.

So, yeah, an interesting day in a world not my own. It was really nice to hear a perspective and a voice in real life as opposed to through the filter of a blog. I liked that. Thanks for the ticket Angie!

NEW YARK

Will be posting a select few New York shots soon....stay tuned.

INSIDE/OUTSIDE

I'm in New York now but here are a couple shots of (one of) the last projects I was working on before I left.

Q: Which side of an ostrich has more feathers?
A: The Outside!

....Although 'tis not always the case. Sometimes I think the inside of a dress is just as beautiful, and quite frankly more fascinating, than the polished outside. Lucky with this piece I like both sides just fine. I apologize for the grainy final photo.

WAR DROBE

I'm at war with my closet.

Again.

For someone who loves looking at/touching/sewing/drafting & dreaming not to mention shopping for clothes so much, I sure do hate wearing them.

This last sartorial battle reflects my impending trip to NY for work/vacation/fashion week treats. Super exciting stuff that nevertheless causes me infinite panic and grief.

Anyway, since I should've been madly working on my collection before I leave tomorrow morning, I instead went through all my clothes. Again. Got rid of everything I don't wear anymore and which doesn't fit me anymore since moving to the land of wine and cheese and bread. Again. And paired things down to the bare basics. Once again. Here's what I have left (give or take about 20 other items not shown here):

Dresses, Clockwise from top left: Mono shard dress, H&M maxi dress, ACNE backless dress, Complex Geometries silk dress, Hastings and Main deep V-neck jersey dress

Sweaters etc: Ursa Minor wool tabard, Vintage blazer, Complex Geometries Silk bag dress (which I wear as a vest), H&M oatmeal cardigan, Vintage sequin blazer

Tops: Jennifer Ann Gilpin silk tank, Ursa Minor silk tank, H&M silver pullover, K Brower cotton top, Hastings and Main black silk tank, Hastings and Main red silk top, Vintage sequined top, Zara linen t-shirt, Complex Geometries silk tank top, Nokomis chambray button up, Mono silk tank top

Bottoms: Nokomis wool skirt sample, Oseiduro jersey skirt, Domino jeans, Ursa Minor leather and cotton skirt, Complex Geometries mesh leggings, Ursa Minor leather leggings, Ursa Minor tapered black pants

Shoes, starting at back row (and excluding my good 'ole LL Beans): Frye flat boots, Audley snakeskin boots, Buttero ankle boots, Modern vintage ankle boots, Vintage Guess cowboy shoe-booties, Argile sandals, Coclico sandals, Ferragamo pumps

Outerwear is a different story, I have lots of it and cherish almost every piece. Coats and Jackets are something I constantly want to add to my collection, maybe because they cover up whatever mess I've got going on underneath? Below a selection: Vintage wool cape, Mono leather jacket, Zara leopard coat, Vintage wool blazer + like, a billion others.

There are still many things missing from my wardrobe -- a classic, perfect black crew-neck sweater for instance. Also, a little black dress that fits me perfectly and isn't huge and drapey like most of my dresses. Some nice button up shirts for sure. Still, I must always remember that for me personally less really is more. Only with a completely paired down closet can I actually appreciate (and wear!) the pieces I have.

Now the question is can I fit them all in my suitcase?

AT A POINT

Are you like "what the crap am I even looking at?" Yeah, me too.

I'm as far along on this as I can get until I have my lining. I hate making things in pieces but so it goes.