Lida Baday

Lida Baday is a Canadian fashion icon, much beloved by your average Holt Renfrew shopper, but a virtual unknown to the Under-30's.  She's been running her own label since 1987, which is about as long as I've been sucking in air and expelling CO2.

Above and below are some looks from recent spring shows.  Very minimal, in a Costa-era Calvin Klein way.  Everything is clean, spare, and monochromatic (which isn't meant to read as "boring", but does to us more experimental youngsters).

I can see why office-appropriate Baday isn't a strong seller to the girls who shell out bigger and bigger bucks the higher the hemline travels.  Cocktail dresses are now like fine dining, in that the more you spend the less you seem to get.  I, too, thought I needed a party dress with a little bit of Zazz! to it: gotta show off those adductor muscles, otherwise what's all that bike riding for, my health?

Then, I found this demure navy number at Value Village (which I say in a Pepe le Pew voice so it sounds like a French Boutique.  Hope you do too.)

The picture doesn't do it justice, although the wrinkles really do look defined.
It's incredible.  I still feel like I stole the darn thing since I got it for $6.99.  Whichever V-squared peon priced it clearly didn't know what it was; the wretched Old Navy apron dresses were running you $7.99. 

The cut is meticulous and the fabric is high quality.  Even the lining is so silky, I just want to rub it on my face.

The construction is 'just so'.  Corsetted bodice/cap sleeve combo is super flattering.

Best part = whoever this Lida Baday woman is, she must be cutting on a dress model that is shaped exactly like me!  It fits so well it's almost creepy.  I am now her biggest fan.  Must.  Buy.  More.  Baday.

Denis Gagnon

  I admit, I am woefully uninformed when it comes to Canadian designers.  I hadn't heard of Denis Gagnon, the bespectacled French Canadian who's been in the business for a decade, until I looked into who designed that zipper dress that's been featured in every October/November fashion rag around:

It's sad that I only take notice of a domestic talent once it's featured in an American glossy, eh?

Like Schiaparelli before him (who is sometimes credited with being the first to put ornamental zippers on gowns), Gagnon is an artist first.  He obviously places a premium on inventiveness, letting the wearability of his garments and commercial viability slide.  This (commendable) approach to the industry had everything to do with his shop closure and restructuring, circa 2007. 

His comeback show (the 'Denise' Collection) was well-received, containing the zippered and fringed dresses that have been given prominent placement in recent spreads and editorials.  While his trademark is leather, artfully swirled, pieced, and puckered...

his new vision also includes bias knits, chunky pendants with matching silver cuffs, and the interplay of heavy fringes/zippers with light silks and softly slanting hems.

His show is a striking study in comparison and contrasts, made all the more cohesive and involving for it.  The pieced-together leather pants reference the concentric swirls of zippers that form the neckline of a layered chiffon dress.  Articulated elbows could look like knight's armour, if they weren't accompanied by similarly structured sweater dresses that are tucked and folded just so.  As a layperson who doesn't always 'get' the concept of a runway show, I adore how precise and focused Gagnon's work is.  He has a vision, and he's letting us take a peek at it.

I would recommend Gagnon to fans of Rick Owens, Martin Mariela, Haider Ackerman, Gareth Pugh, and Mark Fast.  They all share that kind of brooding, somewhat gothic, romantic, and razor-sharp intensity.  Back in August, Gagnon did a cheap-chic line with retailer Bedo that was all those things.  The severe, all-black collection showed his signature leatherwork, eye for detail, and edgy aesthetic.

While I'm stoked to see a great Canadian talent experiencing a bona fide comeback, I hope this collaboration is a one-off and not the seeds of future commercial cow-towing.  It's clear to me that Denis Gagnon creates works of art that just happen to be clothes.  I would hate to see these beautiful means unto themselves weaken and become mere means to some profit-motivated end.

Fringe

Zippers

Stripes

Sorel

Baby, it's cold outside.

Baby, it's too cold outside

for those fugly 20 year old snowmobile boots you're hoofing around in. 

Gallant effort, though.

<--perfect for those slushy days, the "Sorellington"

Why not pick up a new pair of Sorels this year.  Founded in 1962, the Canadian company is cooler than ever, with a host of new styles that will keep your tootsies toasty down to -25.  The website has an impeccable user interface: rotate each model to view from any angle, sort according to price or temperature resistance, and ship all over the world.  Not a netshopper?  Even chi-chi boutiques are stocking Sorels now, alongside the $500 Fiorentini & Bakers and $800 Costume Nationals.

the "Joan of Arctic"

Case in point: Sorel was recently tapped by Parisian retailer Colette to design a limited release boot.  It's just as practical as the Tivoli duck boot style, but has an extra pop with bright blue laces over the high camel tongue. 

A gift to the French, the Sorel "Collette"

I consider it a triumph when any brand you can acquire through the Sears catalogue makes the 'Do' list.

the classic "Tivoli"

If Geeks Had Girlfriends...

...they could buy these amazing 'Tron' heels.

Canuck designer Jerome Rousseau (yep, like the philosopher) was tapped to create the limited edition platform heel, which will sell for a measly $795 at LA pop-up shops to coincide with the movie's November release.

As with the rumored Snooki memoir deal, or Snook-a-Book, someone should've thought this one through:

I love a good Venn.

John Fluevog

John Fluevog, the Vancouver-based cobbler, is celebrating his 40th Anniversary this year. The business was launched as a partnership under the name Fox and Fluevog. Today, the flagship stores in Gastown (above) and on Granville St. are more than commercial outlets; they are 'Flueseums', flocked to by fans of the distinctive brand's punk/psychobilly aesthetic and neo-Gothic detailing.

As of yet, I have only been an instore gawker. I noticed that most shoes leaving the store were going home with half of a happy couple, as if the other had been saving up for a special birthday or anniversary gift that was just redeemed. They are certainly a 'get' for people interested in unique footwear. Nowadays John's designs aren't all clunky Munsters; the more versatile boots and pumps are office appropriate and sleek, but with that unconventional Fluevog flair and humour.

Fashion flashback: In 1991's Truth or Dare Madonna opens a box to reveal hot pink Fluevogs, which she then proudly prances in for the camera.

Mackage

Fall/Winter 2010

It's about to get cold. In less than a month, Calgary's corporate fashionistas will be swanning in and out of The Core wearing their melton wool coats, mid-length, with leather piping, exaggerated funnel necks, and asymmetrical buttons. Most of them will be wearing an actual, or imitation, Mackage (see also: sister brands Soia & Kyo and Rudsak). Even their earliest designs (mine is 10 years old) still look sharp and modern.

Lexi $495

The company, founded by two Montreal natives, just debuted at New York Fashion Week (Calgary Herald article here). Big whoop - the inaugural Spring/Summer collection was shown in 'The Tents'; it's their top-quality outerwear that has already made Mackage a colossus North of the 49th. With prices in the $350-$700 range, it could be considered an aspirational brand. Still, in my part of the country which has but two seasons (Winter and July), I cannot think of a more worthy investment.

Marie $570

True North Strong & Stylish: The Bay Blanket Coat

I just had the pleasure of visiting Vancouver's Hudson's Bay Store on busker-lined Granville St. Had it not been for that pesky HST, this could've done some serious damage. As it was, I mostly wandered around enjoying creative marketing and display cases that would make Simon Doonan (creative helm of Barney's) proud. Witness below the elegant arrangement of upcycled Bay Blankets coats amidst canoes, furs, and other assorted stereotypes.

Each was reimagined by a notable Canadian designer (10 designs in all).
(left: Comrags)
(below, from left: Lida Baday, Pink Tartan, Jeremy Laing, Smythe)

The Smythe hooded swing coat was available for a steep $695 at the Vancouver store during the 2010 Olympics. I understand it sold out quickly. I do hope that this obvious commercial viability gives the company impetus to once again produce Bay Blanket Coats; I have been trying to find a vintage version on eBay for my Mom's Hanukkah present since 2005, to no avail.

My holiday shopping aside, it's definitely time for our nation to embrace the Point Blanket as the integral piece of our history and cultural identity it is. Remember doing fur-trade dioramas and War of 1812 essays in Grade 5 Social Studies? The Hudson's Bay Blanket is an icon of Canadiana. Or at least, it should be.

If America was built by men wearing Levi's Dungarees (forgetting the disenfranchised Chinese who constructed the all-important railroad), then the True North equivalent is the seminal Hudson's Bay Point Blanket (forgetting the rich tradition of the indigenous peoples who braved the climate sans woolen coats).

Not familiar with the Hudson's Bay Point Blanket? Please feel free to Wiki That Shit.