Hold on for dear life, people: the French 75 cocktail packs a punch. This boozy delight was first named after a .75mm handgun–because apparently, that’s how hard this drink will hit you. Of course, with the ELLE Canada team couldn’t resist seeing whether the drink lives up to its name. The verdict? It’s a good thing tomorrow’s Saturday. Ka-pow.

You will need:
1.5 oz of champagne (we used Chandon)
1 oz of Tangueray gin
lemon
0.5 oz simple syrup

Click through to see how to make the French 75
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In honour of The Great Gatsby’s release today, we’re celebrating with a month of jazz-age cocktails as fabulous as the Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin flick. Every Friday, we’ll post a Roaring ’20s-inspired hooch recipe to help you curate a cinq-a-sept that Daisy Buchanan would be proud of.

This week, we’ve recreated “The Moët Imperial Gatsby,” a champagne cocktail made with green chartreuse that’s currently exclusively available Manhattan’s swank Plaza Hotel. Cheers!

You will need:
1 bottle of Moët & Chandon champagne
1 bottle of green chartreuse (available at the LCBO)
sugar cubes
lime
Beautiful champagne flutes (we especially love these elegant crystal glasses from The Hudson’s Bay company!)

Click through to see how to make the Moët Imperial Gatsby cocktail
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MONTREAL: FAIR-TRADE FASHION
Status: This Saturday only
What: Spring clean your wardrobe and come home with 10 exciting pieces in their place at the Style Trade MTL Boutique event this weekend.
When: Starts Saturday May 11, 10AM to 3PM.
Where: 5524 Rue Saint-Patrick, suite 325, Door A, Montreal
Buzzworthy notes: Swap your much-loved but rarely worn pieces for must-have essentials this season, plus get advice from a fashion expert; tickets are $25 in advance, $30 at the door.

TORONTO: URBAN GARDEN
Status: Blooms this Saturday
What: The Toronto Flower Market sets up floral shop this Saturday with freshly plucked, locally sourced flowers and plants on display each month for the summer.
When: Starts Saturday May 11 (10AM to 3PM) and continues every second Saturday of the month until September.
Where: 99 Sudbury, 99 Sudbury Street, Toronto.
Buzzworthy notes: Take home a bouquet of over 80 varieties of fresh-cut flowers and 120 types of potted plants (think tulips, violets and hydrangeas), straight from the over 200 greenhouses in Ontario.

Click to read on about more fashionable events across Canada! Read the rest of this entry

Westwood (left) at her Spring 2013 runway show in Paris. Image courtesy of ImaxTree.

By Caley Skinner

Employees of Virgin Atlantic must be getting pretty excited right about now! Famed fashion designer Vivienne Westwood has re-designed the airline’s iconic red uniforms; the new looks will debut in July 2013, and the official launch will be in 2014. Westwood has been working with Richard Branson to create environmentally friendly uniforms – the polyester yarn used in the uniforms comes from recycled plastic bottles, while reused roadside banners make up the canvas. Of her ethical looks, Westwood stated, “Fashion – actually let’s call it clothing, because most of it isn’t fashion – is one of the biggest polluters, it must be with all that landfill. My main focus is quality, rather quantity, and I’ve been saying to people, ‘Buy less, choose well, make it last’, Rather than just keep sucking things up.” [Vogue UK]

MORE NEWS

Shoe designer Julian Hakes creates eccentric Iron Man-inspired shoes [Fashion Foie Gras]

Riccardo Tisci has unveiled his revealing ballet costumes [WWD]

Chceck out Vivienne Westwood’s Spring 2013 collection! [ELLECanada.com]

Pierre Hardy Poworama, 2011, displayed at the Out of the Box: The Rise of Sneaker Culture exhibit at The Bata Shoe Museum. Collection of the Bata Shoe Museum, gift of Pierre Hardy.
Image C 2013 Bata Shoe Museum, Toronto, Canada.

By Caley Skinner

On April 25th, Toronto’s Bata Shoe Museum opened an exhibit called Out of the Box: The Rise of Sneaker Culture. This marks the first North American exploration of the urban footwear style, which originally appeared in the 19th century. The Bata Shoe Museum is showing over 120 sneakers from across 150 years; standouts include a pair donated by rapper Run DMC and current designs from powerhouses such as Christian Louboutin, Prada and Lanvin. With the current explosion in sneaker popularity (or, more specifically, wedge sneaker popularity), it’s no wonder Toronto’s fab footwear museum has chosen to explore this type of footwear now!

For more information on Out of the Box: The Rise of Sneaker Culture, you can visit batashoemuseum.ca/exhibitions. [The Bata Shoe Museum]

More daily fashion news:

Heidi Klum starts a hair revolution at The Grove [CocoPerez]

9 fashion exhibits you should see now that aren’t about punk [Fashionologie]

The 10 best online shopping sites [ELLECanada.com]

WIN a ticket for you & a guest to attend a special advanced screening of “The Great Gatsby” in theaters across Canada.
***Contest ends tomorrow at 10am, so HURRY!

All you have to do is ENTER HERE

Participating cities are:
Toronto, ON
Halifax, NS
Gloucester, ON
Winnipeg, MB
Vancouver, BC
Edmonton, AB
Calgary, AB
Montréal, QC (in French & English available)

Photo courtesy of The Spa @ Equinox Fitness Club.

TORONTO: SPA CALLING
Status: Opens this week
What: A relaxing sanctuary at the newly opened Equinox Fitness Club in Toronto, The Spa offers a luxe menu featuring 24-carat gold and caviar facials, seaweed wraps and microdermabrasion, with Rodial skin care products.
When: Opens Monday April 29.
Where: 199 Bay St., Commerce Court West, Toronto.
Buzzworthy notes: Head from your body-toning Pilates class to a Sculpt Facial appointment without stepping outside: The Spa @ Equinox offers access to the fitness club on the day of your spa appointment, plus a range of luxe facial and body treatments to indulge in a well-rounded “me”-day.

TORONTO: REEL TIME
Status: Screens this week
What: The official launch party of Toronto recording artist Kirty’s music video, Run River Run.
When: Tuesday April 30; doors open at 9PM, screen to take place at 10PM.
Where: El Mocambo Tavern, 464 Spadina Ave, Toronto.
Buzzworthy notes: Directed by Matthew DeFilippis and Elisia Mirabelli, whose most recent short film, Pretty Thing, will be screening at the Cannes Film Festival as part of Telefilm’s Not Short on Talent program, the underwater-shot music video is the Ryerson grads’ latest cinematic venture.

Click here to read on about more fashionable events taking place this week!

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Can you guess which celeb wore this Fall 2012 Giambattista Valli Haute Couture gown on Saturday? Image courtesy of ImaxTree.

By Caley Skinner

Stars always bring their fashion A-game to the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, where celebrities and political heavyweights mix in Washington D.C. every year. It’s a night for chic, demure ensembles – celebs who regularly dress for shock value tone it down and class it up for this foray into the political sphere. So we’re always excited to catch this particular red carpet’s fashion hits and misses. This year’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner, which took place Saturday night, didn’t disappoint – after all, belle of the ball Michelle Obama showed up wearing a shimmering black Monique Lhuillier gown! Some of this year’s standouts? Katy Perry in Giambattista Valli and Sophia Bush in Lela Rose. [Huffington Post] [CocoPerez]

READ MORE

Amanda Bynes shows off her buzzed head in new video [JustJared]

It only took one hour for Kate Middleton’s polka-dotted Topshop dress to sell out [Daily Mail]

Anne Hathaway wins Most Influential Film Hairstyle title [ELLECanada.com]

Photo courtesy of Mini Mioche.

TORONTO: LAW & DISORDER
Status: Now playing
What: David Mamet’s razor-sharp wit and skewering commentary lives on stage with director Daniel Brook’s racially and sexually charged Canadian Stage production of Race.
When: On stage now until May 5.
Where: Bluma Appel Theatre, St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts, 27 Front St. East, Toronto.
Buzzworthy notes: Beloved Canuck Jason Priestley serves up his trademark suave as the fast-talking, BS-detecting lawyer forced to defend a man accused of rape – think To Kill A Mockingbird meets, well, Beverly Hills 90210.

TORONTO: STYLISH MINI-MES
Status: Now open
What: The Canadian-made, eco-friendly children’s shop Mini Mioche opens its Toronto flagship in the Distillery Historic District.
When: Open Sunday to Wednesday, 11AM to 6PM; Thursday to Saturday, 11AM to 7PM.
Where: 6 Case Goods Lane, Distillery Historic District, Toronto.
Buzzworthy notes: The 1,705-square foot flagship features the launch of the new em + west line, a small women’s capsule collection made from organic cotton.

Click here to read on for more buzzworthy events taking place this week!

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Photo courtesy of Jonathan+Olivia.

The This is West Queen West S.O.S. clothing drive is probably the best thing to happen to your once-beloved last season designer clothing that’s gently stowed away in your closet for, uh, safekeeping. From Monday April 22 to April 28, Jonathan+Olivia boutique is asking shoppers to bring in their gently used designer duds to benefit CAMH’s Suits Me Fine program, which provides clothing for patients to wear on job interviews. In return for donating your much-loved pieces, Jonathan+Olivia is offering 10 per cent shopping discounts to be used during the week of the drive.

We chatted with Jackie O’Brien, owner of Jonathan+Olivia, about the importance of hosting next week’s drive, and in leading by fashionable example, the fabulous piece she’s donating to the cause.

How did the idea of a shopping event in support of CAMH come about?

“The CAMH foundation initially approached us to donate clothing to the Suits Me Fine Boutique program, due to the brands and collections available at Jonathan+Olivia, and also because we were one of the pioneering stores in the neighbourhood. We sat down, threw some ideas around and came up with the idea of a clothing drive with a distinct type of clothing in mind. The idea then developed into inviting other West Queen West pioneers like Ruth (Fresh), Frank + Jeremy Laing and Richard (Parts and Labour) to host the event with us. With all of our friends and supporters combined, we could really make a difference.”

What’s considered appropriate attire to donate—for both ladies and gents?

“What we don’t want is jersey. We want attire that’s perhaps a little out of fashion or you just don’t wear it any more. We need clothing that will help the patients of CAMH, a great example is clothing for a job interview or a wedding.”

Read on to find out which fab piece Jackie will be donating!

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