All Posts By

Kelsey Dundon

Workspace | Erica Lam of The Style Spy

The Anthology’s Workspace column takes us inside the creative spaces of some very creative people.

If you follow style blogs in Canada you’re very familiar with The Style Spy. Founded by the lovely (seriously, she’s a doll) and talented Erica Lam, it chronicles fashion trends, features interviews with industry insiders and highlights “Girls of the Week” (one of whom you might recognize).

In her own words, Erica takes us through all the shoes and books and nail polishes that fill her workspace…

1. I recently moved to Montreal and this is my current set-up at the apartment I’m subletting. I must confess, I’m typically messier than this, but moving cross-country has forced me to streamline. It’s a good feeling not to have piles and piles of stuff sitting on your desk.

2. There’s usually a rotation of magazines – it’s either fashion magazines like the ones you see or business magazines like Fast Company or INC.

3. The book Creative, Inc. is a guide to running a freelance business. It was actually recommended to me by The Anthology’s Kelsey herself [Glad you like it! – Kelsey]. I left my advertising agency job as a social media strategist in Vancouver and am now working with clients on a freelance basis.

4. The Holstee Manifesto poster sits right above my desk. It’s a great daily reminder to really go after what you want in life.

5. Brands regularly send over products for me to try, the red suede booties are from Call It Spring’s fall collection and the nail polishes are from Essie’s winter line.

6. Don’t you love checking stuff off lists? I do. Hence the weekly things to do notepad from Chapters. I always have a Moleskine notebook next to me where I jot down all my ideas.

7. Attending events and networking are part of the job. The invitation on the desk is to Aldo Shoes’ 4oth anniversary, they’re hosting special pop-up exhibit at the Aldo Flagship store in Montreal.

P.S. Click your way to The Style Spy to see the fruits of Erica’s workspace.

P.P.S. Check out the first post in The Anthology’s Workspace column and find out how Niki Blasina of A Haute Mess smells when she blogs. Click through the second post to find out where Anya Georgijevic of I’m the It Girl started her footwear obsession. Find out how Kumiko Ide of Tribal DDB keeps her workspace fresh to death. Take a look at jewelry designer Justine Brooks’ works in progress and her favourite places to work very, very remotely. Take a look at Lisa Wong of Solo Lisa’s cat-decorated desk and Anna Cohen’s converted stable in Denmark. And Alicia Quan’s yellow suitcase desk storage is definitely an idea worth stealing.

October 12, 2012 by

Style | Heidi Merrick’s Endless Summer

When California-based designer Heidi Merrick stopped by Oliver & Lilly’s in Vancouver (where her line is available) I chatted with her about the 1980s, her surfing pedigree, and her first kiss.

From left to right: Heidi Merrick, Oliver and Lilly’s owner Leighann Boquist and yours truly.

You and your designs are pure California. What were you referencing in this collection?

I always say it’s high glam — like surf 80s glam — and my small town beach town, but truthfully it’s about this surfer Tom Curren, the best surfer in the world of all time. He was living at our house when I was young, he was my dad’s protégé [her dad is surf legend Al Merrick]. When he was going on world tour, he kissed me goodbye in the driveway. I think I was about 8 or 9 and it was my first kiss.

I was looking at a book on 1980s surfing and I saw a picture of Tom and it brought it all back and I thought I’m going to do something inspired by strong emotional feeling so I tried to make the colours super glamourous and the seersucker and the gauze and the scarves were kind of that little girl left in Carpinteria [where she grew up]– dressed down, beach town, bleached out.

I remember imagining him going on world tour – and I’m sure it’s the most miserable experience in the world to be a surfer on the world tour – but in my mind it was the most glamourous thing in the world so I tried to put it together: the little girl left in Carpinteria and the glamour of the surf world.

You’re now about as far north, in terms of big cities, as it gets on the west coast so how does your Southern California surf-inspired collection fit in in Vancouver?

I can’t believe how cool everyone is who’s walking in the door and how like-minded it feels. Maybe yeah, they’re here for an event for me, but I couldn’t imagine a better group of friends. Take the designer Dace, for example, we met in New York and we just had this immediate connection.

There’s a real California/Canadian vibe.

From Heidi Merrick F/W12: Savile skirt, Jeffrey’s coat, and Savvy dress.

For your fall collection you’ve gone in a slightly more polished direction. What’s the story behind it?

For that I was trying to do a gentleman surfer. Spring in retrospect is more bohemian than I need in my closet and so I wanted to dress it up a little bit. I modelled it after this one photograph of this dude I know surfing in a toque in a yellow top and turquoise shorts and the entire colour palette is taken from that one photograph.

[Second image found here.]

P.S. You’ll find all The Anthology’s interviews with the likes of designer Rachel Roy, J.Crew’s design directors Tom Mora and Frank Muytjens, and New York-based artist Jason Young right here.

October 10, 2012 by

Style | A Few of my Favourite Shots from Freedman Shoes’ F/W 2012 Campaign Shoot

After the concept creation and the location scouting and the wardrobe direction and the posing and the smizing and the shooting, the work really begins. How, for example, do you choose which of the above photos of blue suede shoes you love more? (No really — guess which one we picked.)

You saw the behind-the-scenes pics from Freedman Shoes‘ fall/winter 2012 campaign shoot photographed by David Fierro, styled by Luisa Rino, designed by Dawn Newton, and directed by yours truly.

Now these are a few of my favourite shots and outtakes. Especially the one on the left which features one of the industry’s freshest faces, my girlfriend Kylie’s toddler Mya.

And these two featuring my dog-in-law Lola, whose tongue really is that long. They didn’t all make the cut, but they all have a special place in my heart. Like my favourite shot from Freedman’s spring 2012 campaign, which I now have hanging on my office wall.

Thanks again, team Freedman! That was fun!

[Photos by David Fierro.]

P.S. Kick up your heels and follow The Anthology on Facebook and Twitter!

October 9, 2012 by

Playlist | Ben Howard at the Commodore Ballroom

Until Ben Howard played Vancouver’s Commodore Ballroom last week, music photographer Braden Paul had “Never seen a ‘small’ venue go that crazy.”

The folksy London-based singer-songwriter just won a Mercury Prize, which honours the UK’s best albums of the year, for Every Kingdom.

Still, he remains as low-key as ever. “Real nice guy,” says Braden, who met him before the show when the artist was cruising around on his skateboard outside the venue. Not quite surfing, which he’s reluctantly known for, but it’s one way to work off pre-show energy.

So add Ben Howard to your playlist already, and include this remix of The Wolves by Little Dragon. It’s a pretty one.

[Photos by Braden Paul]

P.S. You’ll find all the concerts and festivals Braden has photographed for The Anthology riiiiiiiiiiight here.

October 9, 2012 by

Giveaway | Tickets to the Vancouver Home and Design Show

These ugly stools are about to get a whole lot less ugly. I hope.

I’m going to DIY my little heart out and rework these babies as part of the Vancouver Home and Design Show’s Upcycle Challenge in support of Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore. Want to see my finished pieces (and Jillian Harris and HGTV’s Bryan Baeumler) in person? The Anthology has teamed up with the show to give away three sets of two tickets to the show, which takes place October 11-14 at BC Place.

The first three people to email me at KDundon@TheAnthology.ca with the subject Vancouver Home and Design Show win!

UPDATE: Congratulations Heather, Stephanie and Dilara — you’re going to the Vancouver Home and Design Show!

P.S. Speaking of giveaways, you could win a MINI Adventure from MINI Richmond! Enter here.

October 3, 2012 by

A-List | Fiction to curl up with

Amanda writes:

I’m such a big fan of your blog! You have amazing style and I look to you for a lot of my own outfit inspiration. I especially love reading about your travels, from your vineyard trips to outings with your adorable doggy. From a recent book post, I decided to take Glamorama and The Beautiful and Damned on my last trip. Thanks for the great suggestions!

Thanks, Amanda! Hope you’re going on another trip soon because Katie Burnett has compiled another reading list, perfect for fall…

Fall is upon us, and that means it’s back to school and work, drudging through the books and other documents that are forced upon us. Since the weather is turning, and the movies won’t be interesting till Oscar season [except for Looper. It’s amazing! — Kelsey], relaxing with some fiction will be just what you need. Here are four great fiction novels to bury your head in.

1. Play it as it Lays by Joan Didion

Joan Didion is a famed essayist, novelist, playwright, screenwriter and altogether legend. Her books of essays never cease to dazzle and engage me, and her novel “Play It As It Lays” is a disturbingly good look at Hollywood in the 1970’s. A best-seller when it came out, it follows the troubled actress Mariah as she recovers from a breakdown. Slowly but surely we learn about her life in Beverly Hills with her husband, a director, and how a life of glamour and glitz isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be.

Further reading: Try Didion’s essays like the collection “The White Album” about life in California in the 1970’s, or what is perhaps her most famous work, “The Year of Magical Thinking”, a harrowing and eloquent book about loss.

2. No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy

This is both a formidable film and novel, and I can assure you even if you’ve seen the film, it’s worth reading the book. From the first page it will possess you and I can assure you, you won’t want to put it down! Part of Cormac McCarthy’s “Border Trilogy” novels, this one takes place along the US-Mexico border and follows three very different men – a sociopathic killer, a sheriff, and a war vet – as their lives intersect after a drug deal has gone awry. It is an engrossing and brilliant novel that is so beautifully written, it’s no wonder the author has won a Pulitzer Prize!

Javier Bardem is still hot as a psycho in a funny wig: Even if you’ve seen the film before, it’s worth a watch after reading the novel – the Cohen brothers, in top form as always, did a phenomenal job of capturing the mood and brilliance of the novel.

3. The Emperor’s Children by Claire Messud

Set in New York City, “The Emperor’s Children” is a dazzling novel and social satire focused around a group of friends who haven’t quite achieved all they’ve wanted to by 30, and a troubled college dropout who goes to stay with his uncle in the Big Apple. Naturally, trouble ensues as everyone’s lives intersect, and it’s an incredibly multilayered story that is as captivating as it is troubling.

Fun to note: Noah Baumbach has long been attached to direct a film version of the book!

4. Savages by Don Winslow

You may have seen the Oliver Stone-directed film “Savages” this summer, based on Don Winslow’s book, which had its moments, but the book is phenomenal. Completely engaging, the story follows two best friends in California who grow and sell weed, while also sharing a girlfriend. When the Mexican cartels want a piece of them and they decline, their girlfriend is kidnapped, and they have to go rescue her. The book is written in a prose that is super unique and you won’t be able to put this down. In fact, I picked it up at a bookstore and was so into it, I had to sit and read it all in one go. It’s a fun, fast and entertaining read, and even if you’ve seen the film, I promise you’ll want to read the book for more details and twists, and a very different ending.

After you’re done: Don Winslow has recently released a prequel, “The Kings of Cool.”

P.S. Catch up on Katie Burnett’s earlier dispatches, like her recent recommended reads and add to your “When I’m in London” list: Sundays on Brick Lane, Saturdays in Camden Town, Friday nights at the theatre, and East Coast nostalgia.

October 1, 2012 by

Workspace | Alicia Quan of Alicia Fashionista

The Anthology’s Workspace column takes us inside the creative spaces of some very creative people.

Her last name isn’t actually Fashionista, but if you follow Alicia’s blog Alicia Fashionista, that’s probably how you know her. And it’s no wonder — with her love of all things sartorial, and a site that chronicles that love affair, she’s known for her personal style.

In her own words Alicia Quan takes us through her workspace — suitcases, third wheels and all…

1. I work from home, but was forced to improvise an office setting in our one bedroom apartment.  I turned an antique vanity into a desk in our living room and spruced it up with a printed place mat.

2. Since my work could technically be 24/7, I’m always glued to a computer screen!  I’d say my time is split between my giant Acer PC and my trusty iPad.  It’s a running joke in this apartment that my iPad is the third member in our relationship, as it often gets all my attention.

3. Call me old fashioned, but I still write my to-do lists and scribbles in a lined notebook.  I simply love writing out notes and then crossing off completed tasks!


4. My favourite Anthropologie mug.  There is always a cup of coffee near my workspace.

5. I get all my business cards printed at Moo.com, and always have some handy at events.  I also hold onto all the cards I collect while networking, all kept in this simple card holder.


6. Another favourite antique find was this mustard yellow suitcase.  I’ve turned it into a mini display of things that make me smile, and a spot for current documents and/or product samples.

P.S. Click your way to Alicia Fashionista to see the fruits of her workspace.

P.P.S. Check out the first post in the Workspace column and find out how Niki Blasina of A Haute Mess smells when she blogs. Click through the second post to find out where Anya Georgijevic of I’m the It Girl started her footwear obsession. Find out how Kumiko Ide of Tribal DDB keeps her workspace fresh to death. Take a look at jewelry designer Justine Brooks’ works in progress and her favourite places to work very, very remotely. Take a look at Lisa Wong of Solo Lisa’s cat-decorated desk and Anna Cohen’s converted stable in Denmark.

September 28, 2012 by

Pinstagram | Bright Lights and Big Skies

The Anthology’s Pinstagram column marries the dream (Pinterest) and the reality (Instagram).

Pretty in… The RACHEL Rachel Roy dress I wore to interview the designer + a pink bow I’d wear everywhere.

Red squared. A model getting made up before the LOULOU Magazine event at Metropolis at Metrotown + a pair of red shoes that almost perfectly match her hair colour.

Natural beauty. An arrangement from a wedding (congratulations Matt and Megs!) + a place I’d fall in love with.

Graceful greys. Joe Fresh’s moody fall palette + a moody evening sky.

Bright lights. Martha Sturdy’s illuminated orb sculptures (available at Provide) + an illuminated model.

Sunny side up. Sunflowers for a September baby (happy birthday, Elisa!) + a not-so-sunny cat.

Crown jewels. A vintage varsity sweater that would be a gem if it weren’t from a rival high school + some paper gems.

Big sky. Life under the open sky in my MINI Roadster convertible (which you can win, by the way!) + life in the even more open sky.

P.S. Follow Kelsey Dundon on Pinterest and Instagram, or if you prefer a more traditional route, add The Anthology on Facebook and Twitter.

September 27, 2012 by

Style | The Name is Rachel. Rachel Roy.

If you had 15 minutes to ask Rachel Roy anything you wanted, what would you ask? When I sat down with the New York-based designer before her appearance at The Bay in honour of her fall collection, I asked her about Oprah, interning and time travel…

You have described RACHEL Rachel Roy as the younger sister of your designer line. What do you love most about designing it?

Because I was that girl growing up, I have a very kindred spirit to her. I really respect her. I understand that just because she might not be able to pay $500 for a dress she wants fashion and she wants what she sees in Vogue or the magazines that she reads. She wants better options so it’s really important to me to respect that and give the options that I am able to give within a certain price point.

What if you could speak to yourself when you were “That girl?” If you could travel back in time to give yourself a piece of advice when you began your career as an intern at Rocawear, what would you say?

I would say, “Good choice. I’m proud of you. You’re confident enough, thankful enough and capable enough to work for free simply to be in an industry that you’ve been dying to be in.”

Advice I would give to myself would be to have a point of view and stick to it. I definitely do that now and I think I’ve done that since my 30s but sometimes in your 20s you learn it if you’re not taught it right away. Having a point of view that you truly believe in – and sticking to it no matter who’s doing what in your personal life or your professional life – the world at large will have more respect for you if you actually have a story that you live.

In addition to your success as a designer, you’ve become a staple in pop culture with appearances on Oprah and Project Runway and celebrity clients like the first lady. What is it that most amazes you about what you’ve accomplished?

I’m just doing what I’m good at. I’m not good at a lot of things, but I think that everyone is good at something. When you’re good in the arts, it’s not something that – when you go through the public school system in the United States at least — it’s not something that you’re taught. So you can think “What the hell am I good at? What’s my gift?” And a lot of times you don’t learn that until you’re much older.

For me, that was knowing my gift was being able to take my surroundings and make them, to the best of my ability, visually as stimulating or comforting or pleasing as possible. That would be even with homes – I would go into friends’ places and help them shift stuff. In college I would be the girl that my friends would ask to come clean out their closets. And I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I say that to say we’re all good at something and when you can figure that out great, and it really doesn’t matter what you’re getting paid because your soul is happy.

[My dress c/o RACHEL Rachel Roy, my purse and necklace are both vintage.]

September 25, 2012 by