[bc_video video_id="6260888337001" account_id="2226196965001" player_id="rkljM4WDEg"] What is Gender Bending? Gender Bending. Pushing against heteronormative ideals about gender and its relationship to the clothes we wear. Bottom line: gender is a construct, not a fact.  This simple truth has always been at the heart of queer style. It was the queer community who first challenged society’s ideals about gender loudest and proudest, best encapsulated in the fashion he, she, or they wore, unapologetically so, sometimes even in public spaces where both civilians and the police were forced to reckon with the idea of nonconformity. Listen, fashion has always been used as a conduit for self-expression.  Punks wore spikes and chains as symbols of rebellion.  Royalty wore tiaras to signify wealth and position, but it was the queer community who decided to challenge gender stereotypes through their choice of cloth.  And they did so to topple the prevailing sentiment that it’s the clothes that reflect one’s gender, rather than the other way around. The revolutionary thought was really quite simple: My clothing doesn’t dictate my gender, I do. History It wasn’t easy, though, historically, to live this ethos as the legal apparatus was setup to criminalize gender bending/fluid style. Throughout the 1940s to 1960s, “three-piece laws” meant trans people had to wear three articles of clothing that were associated with their birth-assigned gender to avoid getting arrested for cross-dressing. Via: BBC Everything changed with the Stonewall Uprising of 1969.  This event became THE marker for the gay liberation movement that was to follow and had great impact on queer fashion rights.  Until then cross dressing, bending gender norms, remained illegal.  Drag queens and kings were arrested frequently.  When the 200 patrons of Stonewall decided to fight back against the police, it was really the first time the queer community had publicly and in such large numbers resisted against ‘the man’.  This outward defiance led to an unprecedented societal acceptance of cross dressing, particularly, in public. Cross dressing arrests decreased subsequently (still legal in SF until 1974). The 1980's queer culture Ryan Murphy, the renowned producer behind hits like Glee, American Horror Story, and Pose, said it best when he said: “Beauty and glamour and light and music. That’s how we as gay people and trans people have gotten through our pain”. Think about the Harlem ballroom culture of the 1980s – glitz, glam, a sheer extravaganza for the senses, an opportunity for marginalized queer folk to congregate and celebrate through brazen, bold, and unapologetic style. These were elaborate pageants, complete with catwalk competitions, and vogue battles. Via: The Rolling Stone Runway categories like ‘Femme Queen’, ‘Butch Queen’ and ‘Sex Siren” meant that the disenfranchised had the chance to throw a big middle finger to commercial constructs of gender. These categories often played with notions of not only gender but race and class, too. Queens walked executive looks (how well one could pass as a corporate worker), thug realness (hyper-masculine representation), and ethnic. Through these categories, the queer community could explore themes of resistance and conformance, both breaking gender norms and acknowledging that, in order to fit into a society that condemned them, one would have to embody the archetype as well as possible. Fashion became about escapism for the queer community, a fantasy of who they were in the deepest part of their souls. It allowed participants (predominantly black and brown folks) to construct their own worlds, spaces, and identities, and in a safe space. Via: Vogue Gender didn’t matter and modern constructs of it were pushed, prodded, and poked. The queer community, once again, proved itself ahead of the fashion curve, as real pop culture progressives. Think about the terms “Werk, shade, realness, slay, yas”. Queer origins! Genderbending in the mainstream world We have come a long, long way, and I have to say, the power of celebrity has played a huge role in exporting gender fluidity in fashion across the globe. In the 90s, stars like Ru Paul, Grace Jones, Prince, and Boy George paved the way for new constructs of what it means, today, to be fluid (in dress).  Each also played with new understandings of the relationship between gender, sexuality, and fashion. Jones/Prince arguably straight, didn’t subscribe to gendered constructs of style, proving it’s not one’s sexuality that necessarily dictates how one dresses.  Why are we a society so obsessed with labels? Via: Billboard The 2000s brought us fashion design powerhouses like Marc Jacobs and icon Lady Gaga, both flirting with the idea of gender reconstruction.  Jacobs in his campaigns, his own dress sensibility, and his choice of models.  Gaga in her belief in gender fluidity and her appearance at the 2011 VMAs.  And because both of these stars have broad, commercial appeal, the masses, who ordinarily might not be exposed to alternative modes of being and of fashion, had a gateway to the other side. Via: Billboard Today, you can look at the most important single event in global fashion, the annual Met Gala, sponsored by Anna Wintour and Vogue, and its 2019 theme of Camp: Notes on Fashion, The Met’s first explicitly queer exhibition. The exhibit thereafter as well as the night itself concerned itself with camp decadence, theatricality, and many of the tenets of the fashion indicative of queer culture.  At the heart of it all was an adherence to gender nonconformity and homosexuality as key foundations of camp. Queer celebrities in attendance like Lena Waithe, Ezra Miller and Keiynan Lonsdale epitomized what the gender fluid movement is all about: clothing is not gendered. And then take stars like Billy Porter and Harry Styles.  Billy’s 2019 Oscars tuxedo gown - man up top, woman on bottom - was a blatant refute of compartmentalizing one’s fashion, and one’s gender.  And then Styles, though not openly part of the queer community, proves that sexuality doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with gender bending.  Straight people can be fashion-fluid, too.  There are no rules, which is exactly what the movement is all about. Via: Vogue  Canadian designers to support There are so many wonderfully talented designers in Canada who choose not to conform to gender stereotypes when designing. Not only is it woke and reflects where we are in society, it also makes good business sense.  Here are a few of my favourites right now: Pedram Karimi:  Iranian born, lives in Montreal. Makes more sense from a social stance to design fluidly.  It also makes sense from a business/economical perspective to have 1 inclusive, broad spectrum collection, in lieu of a menswear and womenswear line. Sara Armstrong:  Gender inclusive designer living and working in Vancouver.  Cisgender, straight woman (don’t have to be considered queer to operate in the fashion fluid space), and not everyone who dresses fluidly identifies themselves as part of the queer community (which is the point).  Her design philosophy has always been that clothes are inanimate objects void of gender amongst other things (like season and age).  For Sara, clothes are for people and bodies.  People bring gender to clothes.  The interpretation is up to the wearer. EQ3:  Winnipeg-based designer/retailer, known for home goods. Their pride initiative includes these inspired slogan totes sold exclusively in-store.  100 percent of the proceeds from the sales of the bags will go to a local charity in each city supporting the LGBTQ+ community.  What’s great is that the totes sport a monochrome design instead of the rainbow as the queer designers behind the tote believe it’s about creating an item that symbolizes pride you can wear any day/year-round.  The black and white bag is also meant to reject the corporate embrace of pride Other gender-neutral clothing designers to check out: Old Fashioned Standards and Andrew Coimbra.

[bc_video video_id="6260890537001" account_id="2226196965001" player_id="rkljM4WDEg"] Although Pride festivities have been cancelled, you can still decorate and celebrate right on your front porch! I am hoping it starts a new trend…. this idea is from my adopted second home of New Orleans. Mardi Gras parades are a part of the culture down here but when covid hit, the parades stopped. Not only was this a hit to the culture of the city…but float making is an industry down here that employs lots of local artisans. So in 2021, right here in Old Algiers, the community launched the concept of House Floats. They took the concept of decorating a float and applied it to their front porch. Since Toronto has one of the largest pride parades, I thought why not launch porch floats or Pride Porches. Decorating I partnered with a local studio who make Mardi Gras floats Strong Hold Studio.. I had to pick them because they made my favourite house float with Saint Dolly Parton – who would be perfect for a pride porch as well to be honest. I did a sketch (picture below) and Strong Hold Studio cut out the plywood shapes me-that is something you can totally do at home. Take this cloud and rain drops for example. You simply sketch it out on a sheet of plywood, then cut it with a jigsaw, then prime the wood and paint it. Be sure to sand all of your rough edges and prime before you paint. It’s like a giant paint by numbers. Hang it up on your porch and get the neighborhood pride going. I promise you, once you do your house. Others will follow. Tip: Zip ties are a great way to install outdoor decorations without leaving holes Basic Porch Ideas Don’t call it basic babe, call it normcore. Pride is all about celebrating our differences, so your porch should reflect you and your aesthetic. You can easily pick up some metallic fringe curtains, some rainbow pompoms or even some rainbow felt banners. Add lights to create a night time pride porch! From: Amazon The trick is to decorate your porch like a stage, think of it in layers. Foreground, mid ground background. Wardrobe It’s important to dress the part, so pick out a cute outfit. Since it’s summer, you have to go with short shorts. Well I do at least. And pick up a great pride tee…I love that this Tee from Old Navy was a collab with gay artist Edward Granger and the funds go to charity. But you do you – go all out if you want… just make sure if you are buying pride focused merchandise that it goes to a good cause and that the brand supports 2SLGBTQ+ peoples year-round.    

[bc_video video_id="6260890908001" account_id="2226196965001" player_id="rkljM4WDEg"] This year, more than ever, planning a pride virtual event is very much about centering social issues in fabulous ways! Let’s take the opportunity that we are still social distancing to make this pride about the issues. Guests No live guests? No problem. Center your fur baby’s as your pride guests. Celebrating pride doesn't mean you have to have a huge group of people. Your pets can be the best guests around! Get your fur baby a cute pride outfit and you are ready for a celebration. Jamming out with your bestie, having a zoom call, or a party for one is all you need for a great experience. Put on your favourite pride hits and it will feel like you're at a live event anyways. Food Brunch is always a vibe when it comes to a virtual party or any occasion! Gather some sweets and savoury items to elevate your meal. To add a hint of colour you can choose to go for colourful favourites. For example, getting macarons that are every colour under the rainbow! Entertainment No pride event is complete without entertainment. Drag artists have been hard hit, and are offering virtual appearances and performances. Choose your fave and support the art. Enjoy the performance virtually! There are so many great organizations that support the community Source: MisterBandB

[bc_video video_id="6260463518001" account_id="2226196965001" player_id="rkljM4WDEg"] Why do an all pink reno?  Our clients asked us to ‘go crazy’ and do something totally unexpected, so we put our passion for pink to the test. They reluctantly agreed (over a bottle of wine), but were floored with the final result. These clients love neutral colours, and also pink so we conspired this very look- they were very happy with the results!   Before  In the before pictures you may notice a lot of different patterns and textures combined. The goal was to essentially "plain" things down for these clients, and create a more uniform colour story.  A lot of the furniture items below were given secondhand or they were bargains for the client, but a lot of classic pieces. The goal always when re-designing is to use as much as you can!   We started by making the pink feel familiar by retooling their old upstairs curtains into window blinds downstairs. You may be shocked to know that we used the same sofa, we gave it new life but reupholstering it in mallow pink with gold detailing to add substance. The combination of ballet-slipper pink and the gold really brings this sofa to life! The Hick's Hexagon wallpaper is a nod to the 80s, a decade that was important to our clients. Hick's style wallpaper really gives a sense of "mathematical glory" to the space. Balancing Pink    A pink kitchen can seem overwhelming, but we balanced it with stainless steel worktops and appliances, which makes it feel neutral and professional. Pink and steel- the perfect tough combination! Pink dining chairs and other pink accents in the kitchen complete the look. We also did a neutral wood tone floor throughout the whole area and placed the entirety of our transformation against white walls.  In the living space the white hutch and gold accents ground the room. If you're looking for a colour that's gentle, rewarding and relaxing, then it's time to get neutral and think pink!      

[bc_video video_id="6260434109001" account_id="2226196965001" player_id="rkljM4WDEg"] Have you been wondering why all the kids on Tik Tok are talking about ‘cottagecore’? There are over 6.5 Billion views on videos marked cottagecore, why is it so popular?  Designers Colin and Justin  explain this trend and why it’s so popular. What is cottagecore?  As a concept, cottagecore embraces a simpler, sustainable existence that is more harmonious with nature. Aesthetically, it’s a nod to the traditional English countryside style, romantic and nostalgic. Essentially, it celebrates an idealized rural life.   [caption id="attachment_241680" align="alignnone" width="200"] Image: The Good Trade[/caption] Even though it’s massive on Tik Tok I think most people would be surprised to know that it started on Tumblr in 2018. Perhaps it's blown up because since we’ve all been trapped indoors, we all crave the outdoors? Not everyone has access to the great outdoors, but as a ‘response’ to that, urbanite’s appetites for ‘rustic’ have gone into orbit. Farmyard, Little House on The Prairie, wood, simpler life and ‘shopping nature’  etc. Things like home baking are on the increase – we’ll have a batch of home made blueberry scones under a cloche, on beautiful rough wood platters. These are all things that are considered cottagecore. Image: The New York Times Is it still cottagecore at the cottage?  Something can be cottagecore at the cottage in the same way that not everything at the cottage is cottagecore. That shiny chrome table hauled from the basement in Oshawa is about as cottage core as an old sofa, discarded because it had outlived its city usefulness.  Have you seen the look favoured by many cottagers- filling their homes with all the junk of the day?! In days gone by, old furniture went to the basement, more recently it has started going to the cottage to retire and die. Image: For You Aesthetics  But slowly that 'sensibility' is changing as people everywhere become more style literate, and dreams of simpler times evolve. Times filled with prettier things, filled with farm yard and rustic kits that pertains to an uncomplicated life. Hence 'cottagecore'... Cottagecore vs Dated.  There is a technique to staying on trend and it does involve quite a bit of research. We’re wildly devoted to the idea of working in the country space, and, to this end, have just launched a lovely new magazine called ‘Here* with Colin and Justin’ – it’s directed at those who live remotely, and those who appreciate the land by which they’re surrounded. Image: For You Aesthetics  We think those key cottagecore items are found at, Mom and Pop shops and small businesses. We use the slogan is “It’s where YOU are…” We like to talk about people keeping chickens, fisher people, styling country rooms and so on and so forth. Our rustic predilections are very cottage core. Examples of cottagecore décor:  

• An antique wood chair with a hand applied wicker/raffia seat.
• A beautiful live edged serving platter, as if carved straight from the tree…
• Pottery, hand thrown, small and medium sized pieces. Horse hair pottery, etc.
• A Singer sewing table re-versioned into a cute side table (respect for the planet and re-using speaks to ‘cottage core’ beliefs…)
• Massive pitch fork (very farmyard chic!) as wall décor.
• Nature motifs – butterfly cushions (albeit given a modern twist, aesthetically speaking).
• Black ladder back chairs – a modern update on a classic farmyard style
• Pastoral scenes paintings (all junk shop finds) that pertain to the outdoors.
• Hand hewn blankets: we have a great HBC option…