Melissa Jovanoski

#DIY Romantic Mason Jars

#DIY Chain Woven Bracelet

#DIY Chain Woven Bracelet

‎#DIY Chalkboard Mugs

Greta Constantine - Toronto World MasterCard Fashion Week

Greta Constantine - Toronto World MasterCard Fashion Week

#DIY night for the Oscars

TOMS #NEW Ballet Flats - Now Available in Canada

Countdown to TIFF

Looking for ways to lose yourself in action, fantasy, comedy, avant-garde, or even a little voyeurism…? Let the countdown to #TIFF begin! Only two weeks out from one the most highly anticipated festivals of Toronto, where stars, creative visionaries and masterminds combine to bring TO the most spellbinding, cutting-edge and innovative creations in cinema.  TIFF is by far my most favourite week of the year, surpassing vacations, holidays, and even – dare I say – Fashion Week… sorry fashionistas, but this girl’s a film geek!

TIFF offers film enthusiasts a wide array of selection from star-cast action, dramas and gritty content to Canadian documentaries and international features. Aside from my annual attendance to the opening and closing festival premieres, this year my hit list includes:

• The Ides of March – Directed by George Clooney, Starring Ryan Gosling
• Jeff, Who Lives At Home – Starring comedians Jason Segel and Ed Helms
• Twixt – Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, Starring Val Kilmer
• Take This Waltz – Directed by Sarah Polley, Starring Seth Rogan, Sarah Silverman and Michelle Williams
• A Dangerous Method – Starring Viggo Mortensen and Keira Knightley
• Butter – Starring Hugh Jackman <3, Olivia Wilde and Jennifer Garner
• And SO many more – See full list at TIFF.net

And, 2011 marks the first year of TIFF Bell Lightbox being included as a venue – a tres chic theatre/entertainment mecca with delicious O&B restaurants: Canteen and Luma.

TIFF is the perfect tourist attraction for Toronto. City locals, socialites and Hollywood starlets will mix & mingle over 11 days of premieres, after parties, special events, fine dining, and even just boutique shopping in Yorkville. If you haven’t attended in the past, I highly suggest you immerse yourself in all the wonderment TIFF has to offer – I’ve even got a couple plus ones, so holla!

See you at the box office!

-MJ

Learn More: Facebook | Twitter

Commemorating An Avant-garde Fashion Visionary: Georges Lévesque

Condolences to friends and family of former #Cashmere designer Georges Lévesque. One of Montreal’s most avant-garde fashion visionaries passed suddenly yesterday while working on costumes for Cavalia. Georges was known for his one-of-a-kind designs and created a detailed baby doll for the White Cashmere Collection 2007. The frothy, one-shoulder bodice had a multi-tiered skirt that cascaded from its empire waist. A pert bustle with an oversized blossom and bow completed the piece and is a perfect reflection of Georges’ fashion-forward style and attention to detail. His innovative designs and unparalleled talent will be greatly missed by the fashion world.

Full story in the Montreal Gazette & Facebook

 The Commission of a Man

He hoped to be successful, to make his parents proud and to sleep with more than one woman at the same time, but how to make these all compatible? He wanted to feature in magazine articles, and hoped one day for a retrospective of his work, without having any clear notion of what that work might be. He wanted to live life to the extreme, but without any mess or complication. He wanted to live life in such a way that if a photograph were taken at random, it would be a cool photograph. Things should look right. Fun; there should be a lot of fun and no more sadness than absolutely necessary.

-David Nicholls, One Day

Little Girls in their Mother’s Pearls

Everyone remembers the pearls, the hair, the sunglasses, the quellazaire, but most of all… the little black dress. As if walking along Fifth Avenue in a LBD at six in the morning didn’t suggest enough, Audrey Hepburn’s brilliant performance in Breakfast at Tiffany’s plays on every modern woman’s secret fantasy of being a good girl turned “wild” in the big bad(ass) city.

Tonight I treated Mama Jov to TIFF’s “Books on Film” series for a little mom date.  Although, having just moved downtown, I’m sure the last thing she wants me to identify with is an icon based on a promiscuous character – sorry mom. However, Holly Golightly (spite the name) actually embraces two types of women: the #PRettyAndPRimal and the innocent and vulnerable.

Audrey’s character, Holly, creates an appeal to be single and free in a time when marriage began to depict tetherball – being constantly attached to someone… pass.  Six degrees of separation isn’t always enough. “People don’t belong to people, I don’t belong to you and people sure as hell don’t belong to me.” While posing a front to be a careless free spirit with a craving for attention, Holly reveals her fear of getting too close to someone and exposing any sort of vulnerability, sound familiar?

Whether you’d like to admit it or not, women are a lot like Yin & Yang. We have two sides, and once in a while it’s okay to let the other side takeover. You can be a diamond in the rough or a rebel with a cause, just remember ladies – “There are certain shades of limelight that can wreck a girl’s complexion.”

 -MJ

Did you know…

• Blake Edwards originally wanted Marilyn Monroe for the part, but she declined because the role was too racy for her image…. really Marilyn?
• The film was shot with an alternate ending, staying more true to the original novel.
• The black dress was made my Hubert de Givenchy, who Audrey had exclusively make the dresses for all her films – even though when he first agreed he thought it was for Katharine Hepburn.
• The there were two versions of Givenchy’s LBD made for the film – one with slits for movement shots and one without for still shots.
• Due to production codes in Hollywood at the time, films could put forward the idea of kept men, but a woman acting as a call girl was prohibited.
• Audrey Hepburn’s LBD sold for more money than Marilyn Monroe’s LWD

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”

Shake Your Moneymaker

The weather’s getting warmer, which means weekend getaways, sun dresses and fancy patio dinners. Everyone knows that few things are as satisfying as a great summer weekend. The trick is how to indulge in everything summer has to offer without breaking the bank.

With markets fluctuating due to recent global events, now is the time to review your investments to ensure they align with your personal financial goals. Everyone has a guilty pleasure, and investing can help keep your secret indulgence on this year’s agenda!

There are many ways to build and maintain your investment portfolio. However, not everyone has the time or financial knowledge to do it alone. Here are a few tips to keep you financially afloat this year – in a pink water tube, wearing Ray-Bans with a daiquiri in hand of course!

• Diversify Your Investments – consider both conservative and aggressive investments in order to balance risk
• Invest Year-Round – establish a pattern of regular contributions that work for you
• Combine Your Assets – have all your assets at one financial institution so it’s easier to keep track of fluctuations
• Talk To An Adviser – have “the financial talk” with a pro; it will help you save money, time and keep you up-to-date with current financial situations

See you on the patio!

-CW

#TrendEdit

On Tuesday, April 26^th Fashion Group International hosted #TrendEdit, an event featuring a panel of designers, retailers, media and trend forecasters discussing designer influences beyond colour and fabric, how the retail landscape has changed, and how customers drive the relationship with brands.

 2011 Fall Trends

 Women’s
1. Grunge – Velvet & checks
2. Maxi skirts – The new length: below the knee to mid-calf
3. Swampy colours – Dark and moody: Russian black and spice red
4. Luxe Sport – Baseball jackets and utilitarian pockets
5. Leather – Mixed textures with focus on skirts
6. Poster Brights – Fuchsia and saffron orange
7. Minimalism – Lack of detail, monochromatic with focus on quality
8. Menswear Inspired – Early 90s Bill Cosby sweater and shirt dresses
9. Tunics – Shell and ‘T’ shapes worn over the maxi skirt
10. Muted Neutrals – Warm greys and camel colours   

 Men’s
1. Luxe Fabrics – Velvet, cashmere, furs, 3-ply haring bone
2. Neutral Tones & Colour Blocking – Pale grey, red, turquoise or cobalt blue in nordic and fair isle prints
3. Old World Glam, Old World Classics – Return to tailored goods and military, city meets country, and neo-preppy (geek chic meets urban hip hop), which is 80s meets 50s
4. The Confidence Cut Suit – Form fitting, tapered and narrow, pleats and single breasted suits with 2 buttons
5.“Eye’ll Shoe-ly Hat It” – Detailed finishing touches with key accessories: sunglasses with plastic frames, slip on shoes (loafers and slippers) and Amish hats!

 Panel

• Carly Stojsic – WGSN, Market Editor
• Faith Orfus – RAC Boutique, Co-founder
• Carrie Hayes – Carrie Hayes & The Paddock, Designer
• Franco Rocchi – Le Chateau Inc., Senior VP of Sales & Marketing
• Deirdre Kelly – The Globe & Mail, Fashion Journalist
• Leesa Butler – The F-List.ca, Founder

Discussion

What’s New

• Silhouettes and the polarization of a clean silhouette with textile fabrics and lots of detail in the prints (mosaic of patterns)
• “Trendy has gone from flattering to insult” - Franco Rocchi  
• People want their own personal take on trends
• Stores are becoming like galleries and try to appeal to the sense of style in an individual
• Crowdsourcing: taking photos of outfits and sharing via social media to poll opinions 
• Increased presence in micro retailers with disappearing cash registers - products being scanned with smart phone via QR codes (as seen during LG Fashion Week) - “online shopping in person” 
• Talks of retailers charging customers to use change rooms due to increased store traffic for trying on clothes but purchases being made online.  
• Introduction to “Twopping” (Twitter Shopping), where retailers tweet out new arrivals, and consumers can re-tweet to request sizes and place items on hold 
• Brands that are making waves with customer engagement via Social Media:
• Lululemon via twitter (@lululemon) – matches its followers and replies to all tweets
•  FCUK via YouTube (You-Tique - http://bit.ly/jt15hV) – virtual online shopping experience

 The Modern Consumer

• “We are living our lives in a series of screen grabs” – Leesa Butler
• Fundamental shift in the consumer because it’s not enough to just be affordable, the new mind set is quality over quantity
• Consumers have an increased consciousness of sustainable production and ethical consumption
• Boomers are not interested in engaging with age-based behaviours – introduction to timeless/ageless retail and season-less collections
• “Is fashion art or a commercial enterprise” – Deirdre Kelly
• Narrative drives consumer decisions; they are drawn to an experience
• E.g. Starbucks’ famous concept - people visit Starbucks not only for the coffee, but the experience as well: lounge chairs, music, friendly staff, etc.
• “We’re not only selling clothes, were selling a lifestyle” - Carly Stojsic

Fashion Sustainability

• All fashion organizations must be socially responsible and must implement CSR initiatives from their sourcing and production stages to their retail and consumption stages
• Sustainable fashion enables clothing to be multi-facetted
• Runway To Green - http://www.runwaytogreen.com/
• There is a fine line between implementing sustainable practices and promoting those efforts – companies suffer more scrutiny and are placed under the microscope once they put their initiatives out there

-MJ

“Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius, and it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.” – Marilyn Monroe

TOMS One Day Without Shoes

“What Will You be Doing Without Shoes?”

On Tuesday, April 5, TOMS Shoes – the progressive One for One™ shoe company – is asking the world to go without shoes so that kids don’t have to with its annual One Day Without Shoes. This year, TOMS is hoping to get one million people around the world to go without shoes, and Canadians are encouraged to join the movement. It’s so easy to make a difference… just go without shoes for the day, five hours or five minutes! 

Millions of children around the world grow up without shoes at risk of infection and disease. TOMS Shoes was founded on a simple premise - With every pair purchased, TOMS gives a pair of new shoes to a child in need.  One for One™. 

Canadians Can Make a Difference… Without Shoes

The idea of One Day Without Shoes came about as a way to call attention to the need for shoes around the world and the issues surrounding that need. Canadian celebrities - band members from Michou, Danny Fernades, Jacynthe and Aliya-Jasmine Sovani of MTV Canada - have already lent their support to the initiative.  They join other international star supporters, such as Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen, Olivia Wilde, Kristen Bell, Heather Graham, Brittany Snow, and Demi Moore. To find out more, Canadians can go to www.OneDayWithoutShoes.com to get all the latest updates, create and join events in their area, download an event tool kit, and see what others around the world will be doing on April 5.  

-MJ

The Way We Were

Memories maybe beautiful and yet… what’s too painful to remember, we simply choose to forget. So it’s the laughter we’ll remember, when we remember… the way we were.

Song from one of the most memorable films of the 70s by Sydney Pollack – The Way We Were. I was delighted to catch this classic on TMC while perusing the TV guide looking for ways to spend my Sunday evening. For the misfortunate ones who have yet to experience this timeless wonder, here it is in 150 words or less:

Barbra Streisand (Katie: stubborn yet witty political activist) and Robert Redford (Hubbell: aloof jock by day, writer by night) captivated the silver screen with their not-so-typical, boy-meets-girl and they fall in love story. Their romance blooms over a number of awkward encounters, Katie begging, persuading and pretty much forcing herself onto Hubbell. The love develops through a typical “opposites attract” bond where Hubbell falls for the tenacious, reckless abandon he sees in Katie. The tried relationship goes through a rollercoaster of failed attempts to fix something that’s been long broken, depicting the reality of any North American marriage where one gives up his/her’s passion in life to settle for comfortable, mediocre circumstances. What makes this story so original is its mesmerizing script and story parallels to post WWII life in Hollywood, the battle for freedom of speech and censorship issues in film.

Sex & the City even had an amazing reference in the season 2 finale entitled “Ex in the City”. All you S&TC fans know the ups and downs of Carrie & Big’s relationship – well this is the episode where Carrie tries to be friends with Big, one year post break-up, and learns that he’s now engaged to another woman. Carrie identifies with Katie’s character and sees similarities between her relationship with Big to that of Katie and Hubbell. The episode ends with Carrie running across the street to talk to Big – the way Katie does to Hubbell – in New York, in the same spot, in front of the same hotel where the end scene takes place in The Way We Were. She looks into his eyes and says, “She’s a lovely girl you got there, Hubble.” Then Big looks at Carrie with a perplexed expression and says, “I don’t get it.” Carrie sighs and just whispers, “And you never did,” then looks into his eyes one last time before gracefully walking away – classic.

Great lines from the film:

H: “Here’s to commencement.” K: “That’s a funny word for The End.”

H: “He was like the country he lived in; everything came too easily to him.”

H: “Katie you expect so much.” K: “Oh, but look what I’ve got.”

H: “If we stay together, we both lose.” K: “But what if we could both win?”

H: “It was never uncomplicated.” K: “But it was lovely wasn’t it.”

H: “You never give up do you?” K: “Only when absolutely forced to, but I’m a good loser.”

Click image for trailer

-MJ

Haute Springs – 2011 Fashion Trends

‘Tis the season for floral prints and peep toes. As spring fashion fills the racks at our favourite stores, we immerse ourselves in a contemporary wonderland and embrace all things pretty in pastel!

 To stay current and in vogue, here are the top picks in spring trends from some of your favourite fashionistas via Twitter!

@InStyle - Lace

No, it’s not new. But, like all trends that span multiple seasons, it has evolved. Lace influences for spring are more to the classic side with quality antique-style fabrics, as opposed to the all-over, stretch lace we’ve all come to know and love. 2011 lace is all about romance, and what better way to bring out your alluring feminine side than with a fabric that only faintly casts shade over your silky, smooth skin.

@NylonMag – Crop Tops

Spring 2011 pushes the crop trend forward and further into the mainstream (if not the masses). The crop top (a fashion staple for Cheryl) is not just about exposing one’s whole stomach, but about finding elegant new ways to show a peep of toned midriff.  This new, sophisticated and refined style of crop is a trend to be embraced, not feared.

@Elle_Canada – LWD (Little White Dress)

From sweet and pastoral to edgy and off-kilter, the innocent little white will no longer be taking a back seat to ubiquitous black in the fashion hierarchy. Sexy, chic and yes, even a little rock ‘n roll, the little white dress was the star of spring runways, showing up at Derek Lam, Jill Stuart, even Alexander Wang who is famous for his love of black.

@Chatelaine – Florals

It’s time to wake up and smell the roses … and the poppies and the lilies and the peonies too. Bold flower prints are hot off the runways from designers such as Vivienne Westwood, Mui Mui and Antonia Marras. Floral prints have always made up part of the holy trinity of perennial spring fashion trends (nautical, safari, and floral), but this season’s eclectic mix of everything from bold blooms to oriental prints may even persuade the most floral-phobic fashionistas to take the plunge.

@FashionCanada – Sheer Fabrics

Spring fashion is all about showing a little skin—even when you’re covered up. Sheer fabrics and peek-a-boo looks continue their reign this season, so if you didn’t indulge in the see-through trend last year, now’s your chance to flash a little skin without giving it all away. Whether it’s a touch of transparency in the straps of a dress or the float-y feminine layers of a chiffon skirt, the sheer look need only be as tame or as risky as you dare.

@VogueMagazine – Stripes

You can take on a nautical look if you keep the stripes clean and simple with a white or cream colour paired with navy, red or black. Stick with classic accessories such as a patent red handbag, layered pearls or a wedge sandal. Spring 2011 designers that embraced stripes on the runway were Marc Jacobs, Fendi and Tory Burch.

-MJ