Vintage Montreal: 01

anyone who knows me knows that i'm a self-proclaimed history nerd and, specifically, a montreal history buff. i feel that my blog is missing... montreal meat, if you will. this month's fashion week left me feeling disinterested and even annoyed with local designers and their lack of originality and so i'm looking to beef this up in other ways. i'll soon start posting photos of random montrealers with style, i've begun style profiles on locals and i have begun to put together a few pieces on local establishments. 

i've decided to start posting photos that i've uploaded to my montreal tumblr over here. after about twenty of these, i'll see what the response is like. if it's lukewarm, i'll stop and, if the photos generate enough attention to deter from the rest of this blog, i'll set up another blogspot account just for that. 

and so, without further ado:

boulevard gouin. 1920.
photo: anonymous

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Monochrome Madness: My Top Picks For Affordable Mod-Inspired Dresses

for the third and final installment of my series on mod culture, i'll point you to my top ten favourite, affordable dresses (in no particular order) that are either reminiscent of the original era, perfect for mod revivalists or simply pretty and wearable for anyone who loves the looks and wants to style themselves to fit it, without necessarily immersing themselves in any aspect of the overall lifestyle. 

the criteria i set for myself when looking these up were price, versatility (who doesn't love not having to change for dinner or drinks after work?) and silhouettes that could work on more than one body type. this latter point was a but more difficult to address, as the main mod icons were ultra-skinny for a reason: mini skirts and short a-line skirts usually tend to be less flattering on curvier women. and i say this not to discriminate. there exists clothing and styles to compliment every body type; i just don't feel that most of what mod fashion has to offer was made with anyone but the skinny girl in mind. that said, there are ways around this, with proper styling and always making sure that you're wearing clothing that fits. 

the back in london tunic dress from shopruche.com is only $39.99

the ponte colorblock dress by tibi is currently on sale at $120 at neimanmarcus.com. regular price: $345

bloomingdales.com is offering up the rory color block dress by cynthia steffe for $228.

i'm also digging the in de stijl of the night dress at modcloth.com. $79.99.

a personal favourite of mine is the hello collar dress from modcloth.com. bonus? it's only $49.99.

another color blocked shift dress is up for grabs at forever 21. $24.80.

 the asos swing dress with short sleeve and collar. $37.30. asos.com.

also from asos we have the sister jane geo embroidered dress for $115.29:

and the sister jane shift dress with holographic feather collar for $122.08:
(they really like directing this model to tilt her head to the side...)

and not versatile at all but still quite cute, if not hella bold is the asos petite exclusive mini dress in checkerboard:

addendum: i really underestimated a couple of things when i first set out to put this together. firstly, most mod-inspired dresses are not incredibly versatile. you can style them, yes, but i'm looking at the length of these dresses and i'm thinking there is a)no way i could wear this to the office and b)i have curves. this just doesn't work. the second thing i discovered was that it was way more difficult to dig up these dresses than i thought it would be, especially if you consider the fact that i really tried not to present you with monochromatic redundancy. 

all of these dresses are cute but will they work on just anyone? no. if you're looking to wear something mod-inspired and you're not quite sure where to look or you're a mod who wants to find a few non-vintage pieces, i hope this pointed you in a few interesting directions!

this concludes the three-part mod series. next up, i kick off montreal street style photos with a beautiful, classic, lolita, wrap up the roots series and profile a kick-ass shop in st-henri.

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Mods: A Style Profile. Dominic Chevrier (or "This Charming Man").

from now on, toward the end of each month, i'll be featuring a stylish montrealer and posting their answers to a series of questions, along with some photos of them in their everyday garb.

i thought it would be fun to start with a mod, given the theme of the current series but also to kick this trend off with a profile of a man. 

this particular man not only dresses sharply, has a sweet ride and has great taste in music but he would invite his girlfriend to a dinner for six if he could invite anyone at all, dead or alive, and knows well enough to not recommend the tiki restuarant on sherbrooke east. read on...

Name: DOMINIC CHEVRIER

Birthday: AUGUST 17/ 1974

Occupation: SALES MANAGER FOR LACOSTE FOOTWEAR

What, to you, embodies the essence of the mod and do you think this has changed between the time the movement started and now? 

It is simply related to music, clothes and how you feel it every day.

When did you first start relating to the mod lifestyle? How old were you and what do you think sparked it? 

It will be funny to mention that but I’m really into the movement since 3 years. I met a guy in England who became one of my best mates and when he started talking about it, I related to it right away. Since I was very young I was attracted to scooters, dressing well (loafers, parkas, clean stuff…) All without knowing what it was really was. I was always saying, "Like those guys in England."

How long have you been riding a scooter? For enthusiasts out there, tell us about your current ride: 

My first scooter was at age 15. I wasn't a mod at the time but I enjoyed it so much. 2 years ago I was able to effort a vintage one. I own now a Rally 180 / 1972 and will soon purchase a Lambretta 65 150 Special.

What’s the best show you’ve ever been to? 

Even if I love Northern Soul and Brit stuff I have to admit that I’m not only into that. I like world music like Henri Salvador. I'm also into stuff like Joy Division, The Smiths, The stone Roses, The Jam, The Kinks and of course, Oasis, my favourite band.

One of the best concerts I've been to was Ina Brown in Manchester, in December 2010. This is when I met my mate from Nottingham and the crowd was just crazy. Show started at 1h30am and was just insane to see all those people singing and just smiling at each other. We had the time of our lives.

Fashion

How do you feel about all the spring/summer 2013 lines that are clearly influenced by mod style?

There is no Mod brand but some that really have influence on it. Personally I like new stuff mixed with vintage. In London last fall I had a chance to find a nice 3 button jacket from the 60’s that I will fit with tailored trousers.

I have to admit that I’m a big Pretty Green fan. The brand has some nice paisley prints, Kaftans and boating jackets. I like his 60’s and 70’s music influence.

I guess it is not just about what you wear but how it look on you. I like making my own proper style. I don’t care about what people will say.

I think it should comeback more to the roots : Tailor and create your own style. Don’t copy anybody.

What are your three favourite pieces of clothing? 

Boating jacket, kaftans and a my # one is a Parka.

Travel

What is the best place you've traveled to and why do you say it is so? 

London : When I’m there I feel like I want to put a foot back in time and live there for a moment. It came naturally.

Do you find that other cities have more of a mod scene? Which ones have surprised you, if any? Nottingham has a good mod scene. It is North; Northern soul .

What if…

What if you ended up shipwrecked on a deserted island for several years and this island, magically, has a record/cd player and a sound system. You can only listen to five records or cds while you are there. Which ones do you bring?

Oasis : What’s the story morning glory

The Smiths : The Queen is dead

Stones roses : Stone roses

Henri Salvador : chamber avec vue

Northern soul compilation that included : Frank Wilson / Do I love you

You could get a trip in a time machine but just to attend one concert. You can choose anyone in the history of concerts. Who do you see, when and where?

Oasis in  Knebworth in 1996 . There was 250,000 people and it is describe as phenomenal

You’re hosting a dinner party and you can invite five people, living or dead, famous or not. What does your guest list look like?

Liam Gallagher

Jonny Marr

Henri Salvador

I will put all my mates name in a pot and pick one.

The 5^th person will be my girl friend of course…

La Métropole

What are your favourite local bands? 

I don’t really listen to local bands but I like :

Kid Sentiment

Les Separatwist

Le Chelsea Beat

If a mod from out of town came to visit, where would you recommend he shop for clothing and go out at night?

For shopping : no where cause we've got nothing to show.

Restaurant : NOT to the Tiki restaurant on Sherbrooke . I will refer go to les Héritiers on Mt-Royal. One of my favourite French restaurant. After will go at the Mod Club. Crowd is very young and not Mod but at least some are supporting the scene and the DJs, who are also friends of mine, are doing their best to make it happen.

Where do you go to get your hair cut so that it’s just right?

I got my own hairdresser since more than 10 years. Roberto at coiffure sublime. I bring him a picture and he does what I want.

What is your favourite thing about Montréal?  

I’m free to be whatever I…

In your opinion, how do Mod Clubs in other cities compare to ours? 

No comment. Lol. The scene is too small to compare with the rest of the world. We show up with our scooter dress with jackets and kids ask us why we ride scooters? Are you going to a wedding? It is a subculture that no many know about it. It is very limited because what makes it different from the other culture is that when you part of this movement, you don’t decide to attempt to a group. It is because you feel it inside, in your soul and it is part of you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It’s a way of living…

What would like to see next, if anything, for Montréal’s mod scene?

I would like to see that movement grow or at least that the people who are influenced by the 60’s came more often. There is cool stuff to do instead of watching tv on a Friday or Saturday night.

My mate, Patrick Foisy, is doing a good job with his blog : Parka Avenue

He's also started a monthly event. Check it out on Facebook.

***

i've been following the aforementioned blog on tumblr for about a year now but, if you're into this scene, check out the full blog here.

***

all photos courtesy of dominic chevrier. 

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Mods: Their Roots, The Revival and How Mainstream Fashion Has Borrowed From it Again

as thrilled as i've been to see ad campaigns featuring bold, geometric prints and a-line mini dresses, all topped with bouffants and beehives and multiple layers of lashes, i'm also, at times, annoyed at how other fashion writers are presenting these to the masses. titles and captions enticing people to be "go" or "become" mod are making me cringe, for reasons similar to the ones i've listed in a piece i wrote in november entitled no such thing as a punk fad: the effects of mainstream fashion borrowing from subculture style. in it, i briefly mention mod fashion and promise to write about it at a later date and so here we are.

firstly, let's look at an example of some of the recent designs i am referring to. the most notable collection, by a long shot, is marc jacobs' spring/summer 2013.

spring/summer 2013 louis vuitton by marc jacobs (courtesy of lifestyle.yahoo.nz):

and marc jacobs for his own brand, same season (courtesy of the marinrenaissance.com):

most designers included several mod-inspired designs and/or style elements in their spring/summer 2013 collection, even if nobody went quite as all out as marc jacobs. mini skirts, short, a-line dresses, trapeze coats, bouffants, twiggy-inspired eye make-up, etc., could be seen marching up and down runways last fall and have been making their way down the fashion food chain and onto the streets.

it's not because you wear a mod-inspired dress that you are a mod.

the mod movement started in england, in the late 1950's and peaked in the early-to-mid 1960's. the word mod derives from the word "modernist" (the current and prior mod revivals make that a tad ironic, given how wonderfully retro it now is) and it was, essentially, a rejection of the strict, british class system. it was born out of the 1950's jazz scene, where appreciators of the genre were usually split into two groups: those who liked traditional or "trad" jazz and those who preferred "mod" or "modern" jazz. it was also a counter to the rocker culture, deeming that the former were stuck in the 1950's and represented all that was dated and stubborn and boorish (and american).

over the years, there has been much debate over what subculture morphed into the mod one and it's somewhat clear to me that both the mods and rockers were influenced by both the teddys and the beatniks. the teddy boys and girls (known as judies) were the first teenagers and it's normal that, while england and america's youth all started to rebel and a market was created for and targeted at them for the first time ever, many changes occurred and subcultures rapidly gave birth to other subcultures, causing them to pop up every few years. 

mods first listened to modern '50's jazz and blues. in the 1960's, rhythm and blues came into play. they watched art films, rode around on vespa and lambretta scooters, read italian fashion magazine and lived a life based on frivolity, excess and fun. 

important fashion and cultural icons of the time were mary quant, thanks to her mini skirt design. i highly recommend the vidal sassoon documentary on netflix. it delves into the professional relationship between he and mary quant and how, together, along with twiggy and jean shrimpton, they drastically changed the fashion world.

mary quant. (courtesy of celestemkaufman.wordpress.com)

jean shrimpton. (courtesy of thefrenchsampler.blogspot.com)

twiggy. (thanks to twiggyapp.tumblr.com)

more images from this time:

(courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/brizzlebornandbred/5130733677/)

(courtesy of hrrypnn.wordpress.co

the who in 1962. (thanks to radioningunaparte.blogspot.com)

in 1966, the mod movement experienced a sharp decline due to the commercialization of their trends and mainstream designers adopting them. hippies came in and psychedelic rock took over the masses, taking a lot of the mods in with it. the rolling stones, the who and the beatles all changed their music to fit the changing times. mods were also growing up. the 'hard mods'  of the mid-to-late 60's became skinheads. the poorer ones lived in same areas as people from west indies so ska was discovered. soul, rock steady and raggae was the music of choice for early skinheads. they turned away from the hippie movement, which was more middle-class and drug-oriented. 


it is important to note and to repeat that only the aforementioned 'hard mods' became skinheads. steve sparks, an original mod says, "mod has been much misunderstood... as this working class, scooter-riding pre-cursor of skinheads". 

for woman, the mod movement represented independent female thought. short skirts, androgyny, partying it up with the opposite sex and taking the first steps toward breaking away from the excessively patriarchal  society that had, until that time, been the only way.

there was a mod revival in the uk, during the late 1970's. quadraphenia came out in 1979. the jam became the most popular current band for mods but a lot of the new wave bands from that time were appreciate by this latest wave of mods.

the revival hit the states in the early 80's and especially in california. these mods were greatly influenced by england's two-tone ska movement.

the 1990's saw another revival, thanks to bands like oasis, blur and the verve. i remember someone i once dated and i talking about how all of those bands were before their time but i believe they started out both after and before their time. as you may have noticed, two out of those three bands are currently touring, having caught the latest mod wave.

it's hard to tell how many more mods there are this time around, compared to the last two revivals, but the internet makes it possible for us to see that the numbers have been steadily increasing for the last few years. this wave has been big enough to prompt designers to create new, mod-inspired lines, for mod-revival bands to pop up all over the place and for staple brands such as fred perry to open more stores in large cities around the world. mod clubs surfaced in bars around the world a few years ago and have recently been seeing an increase in regular patrons. 

thousands of photo bloggers on tumblr are newly proclaimed mods. a lot of them have interesting things to say and lovely wardrobes to display but i can't help but wonder about the slew of fifteen-to-twenty-year-olds claiming to be mods. what does it mean to them? is it only a fashion statement? fair enough, if it is but are they aware of their roots? a lot has changed between the earl '60's and today. 

also, parkas were and are worn by mods to protect their suits from mud and dirt from scooter-riding and, although they (like the doc marten boot, which used to be working boots) have become more than that over time, it still makes me chuckle to see someone who doesn't have a scooter or isn't even of age to own one wear one because it defines them as being a mod. i guess the same could be said about non-bikers wearing biker boots, cyber goths wearing aviation goggles on terra firma and around and around i could go but i'd much rather stick to the point and bring this home:

as i had discussed in my piece about designers yoinking punk style elements for their mainstream collections, there are pros and cons to this phenomenon. in short, clothing becomes more accessible and eventually so at reduced prices, as they make their way down the chain, but your culture becomes a fad and, before you know it, what you're wearing is not just retro, it's passe... at least it is for the masses, for those who don't get where you're coming from and so this is why i've added this piece to a few others out there. hopefully a handful of people will have learned something and may even express appreciation for an important part of cultural and fashion history! there a many publications out there for you to peruse, if you're interested in learning more. for a nice, visual representation of the times, check out "mods and rockers" by gareth brown. 

next up in three-part series: my very first style profile, that of a montreal mod.

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V-Day Un-Woes and Natural Born Quiller

i'm not a fan of st-valentine's day. not at all. and yet, some years, certain people do things that make me feel good enough about it. that is the case this year more than ever and i'm single so i clearly was not expecting that.

firstly, at my new office, everyone got truffles from the building owners and one of the developers went around and gave everyone more chocolate. i also tried my hand at table tennis for the first time in sixteen years and didn't suck, although that probably had nothing to do with valentine's day but it did happen at work and right before i handed out the truffles so just go with it...

last week, i got the sweetest surprise in the mail. my ridiculously talented friend, charlene, who owns the cleverly-named etys shop, natural born quiller, sent the kids and i some valentine's day treats:

she also sent me the beautiful bookmark you see in the third photo and sent my daughter the super cute bracelet in the last one. both gifts are from shanghai. 

i'm grateful to have this girl in my life for a series of reasons but especially because of how thoughtful she is! she remembers the craziest, tiniest details and hangs on to them until the right moment and then she surprises you like this. friendly gushing aside, check out her shop and add it to your favourites! what this woman can do with paper, man... i can't even make a paper airplane. just saying. 

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Involuntary Lull

i had several pieces planned for this week, including the third last installment of the "roots" series, some photos of a fantastic local shop and a three-day series on mod culture and its influences on current trends (complete with my first style profile, featuring a montreal mod) but it looks like i won't have time to sit down and write until this week-end. in addition to my nine-to-fiver and my photography class, it is a week for parent-teacher meetings, meetings with mentors and family coming in from out of town. 

i hope my fellow quebecers are dealing with this last leg of winter and are hanging in-- about six weeks to go!

oh! i will pop in for a moment to share something with you, after all! the kids and i got some beautiful, handmade, valentine's day gifts in the mail. ;-)

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My Take On Montreal Fashion Week 24, Written for CultMTL

check it out over here. ;-)

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Sheinart's is Closing

i have walked passed sheinart's large display windows at least three-hundred times in my life and i can count the number of dresses that have caught my eye in a good way on one hand. despite the gaudy collections of colourful, generic, bejeweled prom and bridesmaid dresses that have been staged here over the years, i must admit that my heart sank a little when i saw the signs announcing the closing sale they are currently hosting. 

sheinart's, located on atwater at the corner of ste-antoine, has been around for as long as i can remember and, while it may not be affecting as many people as when dunn's closed, i do think this is an iconic, lower westmount establishment and it always gives me pause when i come across familiar, well-loved (by some, i'm sure) businesses that are  in the process of taking their final breath, whether i liked what they had to offer or not. 

and maybe someone's mom wants to be alerted of this sale?

photo: taken with my iphone, last tuesday night.

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Montreal Fashion Week (and why I have to write about it).

please pardon the radio silence, which i'm sure seems all the more bizarre given that it's montreal fashion week. i'm currently working on a piece for a local publication and i want to be sure that nothing i write here overlaps with what i'm preparing for them. that said, i'll be sure to post something about it all within the next few days and you will be hearing from me before then, too! 

i hope everyone is having a great week. 

back to work i go!

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