just a kid from canada

Irina Lazareanu in Another Magazine.

Just a kid from Canada... with really good hair.

Perhaps it's time for a (much needed) chop.

nouvelle vague

New Chanel 'it' colour. Beyonce approved. Gimme Gimme Gimme.

the f word

It isn't a ground-breaking observation, but hot damn, Beyoncé is FIERCE.

once upon a manicure

The Shrek Forever After Collection
Who the Shrek Are You, Whats With the Cattitude, Rumple's Wiggin, Ogre-the-Top Blue, Funkey Donkey and Fiercly Fiona.

Today, in bizarre collaborations I never could have imagined: the folks at OPI thought that a film about an ogre and his motley band of furry friends would make great inspiration for a new range of cartoon coloured polishes just in time for summer. Strangely enough, I kind of agree. A bright palate of blues, purples, and, yes of course, ogre greens make up the soon to be released Shrek Forever After collection. Coinciding with the launch of the fourth and final (you promise!) installment of the franchise, these shades are as bold and offbeat as their namesake - not a pink or red in sight! Personally I'm loving the pastel blue What's With the Cattitude but true Shrek fans will fall for the swampy green Who the Shrek Are You.

what next?

I just watched The Graduate - I want to wear majorly winged eyeliner, grow my hair to be Elaine-length / I need Mrs. Robinson's cheetah coat.

For Spring i'd love...

To tie one on from Tiffany

A sorbet coloured trench (or anything from Burberry Prorsum Spring 2010 really)

Floral headdresses - local Toronto designer Lara Vincent has some lovely fairy like hair pieces

Chanel nails (particuliere is the new jade)

cleaned up

photos by Benny Horne for Exit Magazine

I like: all buttoned up, messy side plaits, a fresh face.

i'm talkin' pedicures on our toes

I know it seems like an exceedingly high percentage of my posts are about nail polish. I can't really explain it other than to say that...well, exciting things happen in the world of lacquer. Anyways, today I read that hipster haven American Apparel will soon be launching an in house line of nail polish. Like their now ubiquitous clothing the eighteen polishes will span the gamut of the entire rainbow and then some. Personally I'm looking to get my (currently un-manicured) hands on the minty green "Office" - and yes I expect all the colours to have names that don't really make sense and lack the pun-intended hilarity of OPI but at $6 a pop you don't really have to feel so bad.

ps: do any Toronto dwellers feel like the model in the above photo just might be one of the Lycra clad employees from the Yonge St. location?

freebie

While being an unpaid intern is rarely glamorous there are some perks in working in the wonderful world of magazine publishing. This morning a spanking new lipstick in a vampire just bit my lip shade of red landed on my desk courtesy of my editor in chief (by way of Chanel). I have been meaning to pick up a fire-hydrant shade of lipwear for a while now but I always seem to make a last minute decision that pinkish beige is a much more appropriate choice. This little treat has brightened my day and will be brightening my mouth all weekend long (assuming I can pull it off that is).

technicolour talons

As if I wasn't feeling bad enough about my severely chipped manicure this afternoon, these photos from yesterday's Tokyo Nail Expo are really putting me to shame. Katie - promise me that if you take a weekend getaway to Tokyo you'll make time to indulge in some out of this world multicoloured 3-D nail art.

lion hair

During undergrad I went through a phase where I would like to sit and, as my friends and I put it, "curl my hair into oblivion". However, no matter how much I curled, my locks never ended up looking as wild as these two Chloe models (in order to achieve this, I think I would have had to go for the all out perm). I've been wearing a straighter style lately, but I still love big lion hair and lots of out of control curls - I think it's time to reinvest in a curling iron.

Girl Crush: Georgia May Jagger

Just in case you didn't already have a major girl crush on Georgia May Jagger I'm here to enlighten you. At just seventeen years old (she was born in the 90s!) this it-girl in training has coolness pumping through her veins. Her dad is rock and roll icon Mick Jagger and her mother is blond model bombshell Jerry Hall - so, she's pretty much won the genetic lottery. Rock royalty status aside, her edgy style and trade mark pucker are helping this Bridget Bardot look-a-like conquer the modeling world. She's already graced the cover of Vogue and now shes the new face for cosmetic giant Rimmel London (see ya Kate Moss). All I wanna do is smear on black eyeliner, slather my lips in ruby red and not wash my hair for days.

da kink in my hair

"the 'do in question showcases unruly, voluminous, semi-kinked locks, and it's currently being worn by everyone"
Who What Wear

Ever since I permanently burned three small dots into my arm during a tri-barreled crimping iron mishap on New Years Eve '06 (I believe) I have had a very strong aversion to the idea of rocking this electric shock hairstyle...and obviously have since never attempted to wield a heated hair tool of any kind while drinking a glass (or four) or wine. However...I'm thinking it's time to get back in the crimped hair game and test out a kinky 'do...perhaps tonight even. Although (in order to avoid more permanent body scar situations) I'll try and do it the au-natural way ... if I can find anyone willing to braid my locks for the next hour and a half.

so fresh and so clean

What did I like most about the Chloé Spring 2010 RTW show (next, of course, to the ponchos and that denim on denim number)? The hair and makeup (or lack thereof). Hannah MacGibbon sent her models down the runway sporting a refreshingly natural look (which is not to say that I don't appreciate a good set of bunny ears or a giant fro - I do). I've just always been a fan of the fresh face and the i-just-rolled-out-of bed-and-i-couldn't-care-less mane, and it's nice to see the combo getting some play on the runway amidst all the usual high fashioned craziness.

(photos from style.com)

she bangs

Bye bye middle part - hello bangs!

katie likes

1. Tinted Sugar! I'm so happy.

2. Slouchy hats and coats

3. Jade nails for fall (thanks, WWWD!)

4. I normally don't love fiction, but these short stories had me laughing, crying, and wishing Neil Smith would hurry up with another book.

5. Kate Spade and an approaching birthday

bat for lashes

I love, love, love a fresh face and dramatic lashes, a la Twiggy. Simple, classic, and amazing. My favourites: this one (for when my wallet's looking empty) and this one (for when I feel like a splurge).

Made for Suede

Somehow the weather in TO is still (miraculously) hovering in the twenties but I'm desperate to get involved in some fall fashion trends. So while the continuous sunshine is debunking my efforts to try out faux fur accents and thigh high boots, I've decided that it's definitely time for my finger tips to make the transition from summer brights to darker fall/winter shades. This weekend my friend Jill, a fellow nail polish junkie, informed me that OPI recently introduced a new re-release collection entitled OPI Suede. And if the word 'suede' makes you think soft and fuzzy, think again. This new collection reworks OPI's popular colours of the past and gives them a new iridescent quality. The polishes can be worn alone for a matte-like shimmer or with a glossy topcoat that'll really make the glitter shine.

Colours from top left: You Don’t Know Jacques, Russian Navy, Lincoln Park After Dark, OPI Ink,
We’ll Always Have Paris, and Suzi Skies In The Pyrenees

Similar to this summer's matte collection these six polishes make us see our old favourites in an entirely new (and in this case, extremely sparkly) light. The suede polish offers a unique look and texture, but be warned - like the matte this polish will chip easily so be prepared to touch up when necessary.

The suede collection is proof that sequins are back and its not just our clothes that are getting in on the sparkly fun. And while nails that glitter like a disco ball are a fun trend for fall, they are definitely more of a nighttime look. Although I know that the shimmer and shine wont stop some of us from sporting these Vegas-like nails 9-5 all season long.