Boo-boo beautiful?

By: Lara Ceroni, Image courtesy of Cynthia Rowley

Fashion designers have long lent their creative minds to areas outside of clothing design. Todd Oldham (remember him?) is vested almost entirely in home decor; Armani and Missoni are visionary hoteliers and Lagerfeld, well, Lagerfeld has his stamp on everything from downhill skis to gold lamé guitar cases. These collabs aren’t all that surprising. Most make sense in our world (minus the guitar cases…sorry, Karl), but once in fashion’s blue moon we come across a partnership that has us pondering why. Take Cynthia Rowley’s project with Band-Aid (It’s not an off-shoot of Live Aid, in case you were wondering.) The American fashion designer has worked with the brand to design super-chic, limited edition boo-boo bandages that are, surprisingly, really pretty, really fun and make us want to show off our stiletto-induced blisters with aplomb.

Read the rest of this entry

By Jennifer Weatherhead, Photography by Geoffrey Ross

Name: OPI Nail Lacquer in You Don’t Know Jacques

The specs: A muddy-grey shade that transcends seasons.

Why we love: As a self-proclaimed nail polish lover I usually switch up my colour a couple of times a week, and with the endless options out there, it’s tough for me not to get bored with a shade. Not so with OPI’s You Don’t Know Jacques. Ever since this perfect grey shade hit the market over a year ago, I have been completely obsessed with it (I’m nearing the end of my third bottle). The perfect alternative to black or super dark nails, it fits my fall wardrobe nicely. And in the summer it’s a great way to break up the usual hot pinks and pretty pastels that grace my nails.

Where to buy: Available at salons and spas, $10.95.

Need a mani/pedi? Before you hit the spa check out the latest options for getting your nails perfectly polished.

ELLE Canada reviews opening night of Doc

By Ava Baccari, Photography courtesy of Soulpepper Theatre Company

For a country that loves being labelled light-hearted, we have a pretty dark sense of humour. Ottawa Citizen film critic Jay Stone once wrote that “if you judge us by our films, we’re a country filled with dysfunctional families, incest and tragedy.”

Last night’s packed theatre for the opening night of Doc at the Young Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto’s Distillery District, proved that we don’t really mind if this attitude also creeps up onto our stage (well, minus the incest.)

New Brunswick-born playwright, Sharon Pollock, loosely bases her 1984 play, Doc, on her experience growing up in the midst of family dysfunction, tragedy and suicide (the Holy trinity of successful memoir-writing) which premiered to standing ovations last night.
Read the rest of this entry

Jeanne Beker makes her personal edits public

By Phoenix Tarampi

Last night, Canadian fashion icon Jeanne Beker hosted an intimate afternoon event at The Bay in downtown Toronto. In a small, brightly lit room overlooking Queen Street, Beker presented her new EDIT by Jeanne Beker line. The event featured complete outfits styled by Beker and a rack of other select pieces, allowing viewers to explore, feel, and try out styles on their own. Read the rest of this entry

By Noreen Flanagan

Donna Karan strives to achieve a yogic in-the-moment mindset, but she took a moment this week to reflect on her 25-year career in the business. On Tuesday, the New York designer did a Q and A with editors and loyal followers of her brand at Holt Renfrew in Toronto. “Where did the time go?” she said. “Wow, but I appreciate being here right now. It’s an honour.” Karan began her career as an assistant designer with Anne Klein in the late 60s and became head designer after Klein’s death in 1974. “I wouldn’t be here today without her,” Karan said. “I hadn’t planned on being a designer.” In 1984 Karan started her own company intent on designing “modern clothes for modern people.” Her Essentials line—seven easy pieces that could be mixed and matched—earned her a loyal following of women who appreciated her architectural yet feminine silhouettes. Her fall/winter 2010 collection—Forever Black—captures her signature sculpted tailoring and draping as well as the spirit of her original Essentials line. “I’ve developed a system of dressing,” Karan said. “You get your core elements and you build upon them.” When asked about her pet peeves, Karan’s seize-the-moment philosophy kicked in. “Too much information!” she said laughing. “The Internet is wonderful, but we shouldn’t be seeing spring [2011] collections in the fall. Let’s be in the now and not think about what’s coming.”

Get ready to push up, lace up and maybe even get hugged by an angel, with the first Victoria’s Secret store in Toronto.

By Jennifer Weatherhead, Photography by Jennifer Weatherhead

Victoria's Secret model Adriana Lima

In case you haven’t heard, Toronto’s Yorkdale Mall just got a lot sexier. Thanks to the long-awaited opening of the first Victoria’s Secret store in Toronto, we’ll be getting a taste of what it’s like to be one of those beautiful angels. Gone are the days of blowing your exemption allowance in the States at the lingerie store — you can now get everything at the Yorkdale location, and more stores will be opening soon. I was lucky enough to get a sneak peek at the store (which is massive by the way) before it opens to the public today — and I got to test out some of the sexy bras they have in stock. And let me tell you the aptly named Miraculous Bra is just that. Increasing your bust size by two cups, with some major push and thrust. I thought to myself  ‘This must be what Heidi Montag feels like every day‘ as I looked in awe. Seriously. Those can’t be mine.

Read the rest of this entry

By: Lindsay Groves

Prior to our introduction a few weeks ago, this curly-haired girl had never used a diffuser. Perhaps I’m a little behind on the latest in hair care tools, and call me extra cautious, but there was something about exposing my thick, wavy hair to any kind of intense heat to achieve smooth curls, that scared me. (Let’s not discuss the damage I’ve done straightening these curls. I realize my logic is a bit flawed). It’s difficult to perfect curly hair, we know that. The product testing and patience required can be exhausting. Read the rest of this entry

By Noreen Flanagan

If you’re ready to graduate beyond the Hermes babushka, the tank/scarf or the classic Audrey Hepburn triangle but need a little sartorial inspiration, check out www.jaimemoncarre.com. This site, which was recently launched by Hermes, has street-style photos and videos of young women from New York, London, Paris and Tokyo wearing the signature square scarves in imaginative styles. Click on the pictures you like and follow the knotting guides for everything from the grand pirate and cowboy look to twilly tresses and the chic bandeau fleur.

Take that, Alexa!

By: Lara Ceroni, Photography courtesy of Wireimage.com (A.Chung) and www.asos.com (necklace).

They say imitation is the finest form of flattery, so when we spotted this cheeky skull cameo on our most-favourite fashion website (www.asos.com) we: 1) Instantly charged up the VISA (at $12.00 Canadian… seriously!), and 2) Felt very Brit-chic à la Alexa Chung.

Read the rest of this entry

Why a musical about hockey is fit to open our beloved film fest

By Ava Baccari, Photography courtesy of official Score website

Hockey night is back in Canada-cue the CBC soundtrack Olivia Newton-John. Um, pardon? That’s right cave-dwellers, the 35^th Toronto International Film Festival opens on September 9^th with homegrown director Mike McGowan’s Score: A Hockey Musical (and oh yes, it really is a musical about hockey.)

The choice may seem like a curve-ball move (sports metaphor—couldn’t resist) for TIFF programmers, given the tone of films selected to open the festival over the past few years. (Religious holiday scheduling conflicts and a world premiere snag of the more obvious choice—Barney’s Version, based on the book by Mordecai Richler— by the Venice Film Festival a week earlier, left the vacant slot open for the taking.)

Given the doom and gloom tones of previous festival openers— you wouldn’t have seen Glee-style musical numbers in either last year’s Darwin biopic, Creation or Paul Gross’ WWI tribute Passchendaele, in 2008— it’s refreshing to see such an abrupt change of pace for the self-proclaimed second-best film fest in the world (and we’re OK with that too, Cannes!) Read the rest of this entry