7 Ways to Love Valentine’s Day

Forget the red roses and champagne, Valentine’s Day is at its best when it’s all about colourful, candy-ful fun.

1. Skip the virtual Valentines and courier a heart-shaped cookie to your SO, BFF or DOG (that last one isn’t an acronym).

2. Eat red and pink meals all day — you could pick from this list or you could just chow down on handful after handful of red almond M&Ms (for protein, duh!).

3. Make a playlist for tonight called Songs to Make West Coast Whoopee to. Oh hey… I’ve done that for you!

4. Watch Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette, because love ain’t always pretty, but pastel dresses and macarons are.

5. Rock red and pink! And to make sure people know you’re not being trendy, but Valentines-y, you might want to paint your face with hearts too.

6. Put the ale in Valentine’s Day (now that’s a genius marketing campaign!) — ditch the dudes and go for a drink with your ladyfriends.

7. Challenge your inner Shakespeare to write a better love poem than last year’s. How you are going to top “Roses are red, violets are blue, if you were a nose, I’d totally pick you” I don’t know. But now’s the perfect time to start trying!

Happy Valentine’s Day, friends!

[Photo by Brandon Scott via Le Love.]

February 14, 2012 by

Style | JNBY Tunic, Vintage Sweater, Opening Ceremony Boots

I’m all for versatility.

That’s why I love a good tunic.

This one, from JNBY, works bundled under a giant vintage, formerly shoulder-padded sweater.

So I’m cozy enough to sit on the patio and drink tea on a sunny February afternoon.

Or wrestle with a couple of beasts in the backyard.

Its length means it’s also easy to tuck into a skirt so that it looks like a blouse, which is how I wore it when I interviewed Bruce Lee’s daughter Shannon about the new documentary I Am Bruce Lee. And no, I didn’t wrestle with her.

[JNBY tunic, vintage sweater and skirt, Opening Ceremony boots, Rock and Republic jeans.]

P.S. JNBY Canada is holding a $100 Giveaway. Here’s how to enter:

-Stop by a JNBY Canada location, check in on Facebook or FourSquare, notify one of their associates that you’ve done so and you’ll receive a free gift.

-Try on JNBY Canada’s new spring line, take a picture in your favourite outfit then post the picture on JNBY Canada’s Facebook page. The picture with the most likes by February 29, 2012 will win a $100 voucher from JNBY Canada.

February 10, 2012 by

You’re invited! The Social Feed x The Anthology

Ooooooooh boy, this is going to be fun!

Have you heard of The Social Feed? They throw giant dinner parties at independent restaurants around Vancouver and Toronto. And they’re all sorts of fun. Which is why I’m especially thrilled that The Social Feed and The Anthology have partnered up for a Fashion and Design Feed.

Come! Join fellow creative types for a night of networking and collaborating over a meal and a drink at the Irish Heather on Thursday, March 1st. Tickets are just $28 and include dinner, a drink, tax, tip and a donation to Dress for Success Vancouver.

Tell your friends! And get your tickets before they sell out. This is going to be the best dinner party we’ll have all year.

[Images courtesy The Social Feed.]

February 8, 2012 by

Diary | Charmin’ Charlie Winston

Charlie Winston finished off his Canadian tour in Vancouver this weekend. While he drank tea (he’s English) and ate breakfast at 3:00 in the afternoon (he’s a rockstar), I bombarded him with questions about Beethoven, the Great White North and his perpetually half-undone tie.

Take a peek at my interview here.

February 6, 2012 by

Style | Amethyst Accessories

Accessories. They might just be the most fun part of an outfit. I love them big, bold and colourful. This ring was a gift from my sister, a gift she found when she went to Buenos Aires. Without me. Amethyst also happens to be my birthstone, February baby that I am. Does that make up for the fact that she went to the colourful capital without me? Mmmm…nope.

February 5, 2012 by

Bookmark | Cabin Porn

In The Anthology’s Bookmark column we explore some of the most inspiring places on the wild, wild web. 

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Cabin Porn, a site filled with inspiration for your quaint, quite place. It’s photo after photo of — what else — cabins.

The chic.

The charming.

The out-of-this-world.

And those that are in the middle of nowhere. Or, more specifically, British Columbia’s Purcell Mountain Range, not far from where these photos were taken.

So bookmark Cabin Porn already. And bookmark The Anthology while you’re at it.

Thanks, Bryce!

February 5, 2012 by

Behind the Scenes | Sterling Shoes SS/12

You know what I love? Photo shoots. We held this one for Sterling Shoes SS/12 campaign at Vancouver’s tiki-tastic Waldorf Hotel.

And it was one heckuva way to spend a day.

While my role at Northill primarily involves writing and creative concepting, it also involves holding open the hotel’s lobby door, a very important job on a hot, sunny day.

The campaign was photographed by the delightful Evaan Kheraj.

Hair and makeup artist Melanie Neufeld did shiny coral lips and loose curls (created by wrapping the hair around a big-barrelled curling iron).

Then again, it doesn’t take much to make models Christie B. and Donna look good.

Stylist Luisa Rino used prints and pastels galore.

And the final pieces will be transformed by designer/illustrator Jenny Kim.

Can’t wait to show you the finished pics! And no, this isn’t one of them.

P.S. I tweet from behind the scenes so follow @TheAnthology.

February 1, 2012 by

Before | The Striped Jacket

Gotta love these before and afters. They never disappoint, do they? This “before” shot is especially mugshot (fugshot?) esque. I can’t even imagine who would have originally owned this vintage grey-and-white striped jacket before me — an escapee from Alcatraz?

I would call its style “Jailbird chic” except there’s nothing really chic about it. It’s boxy, its sleeves hit at an awkward spot and the shoulders are just too bold for me to take myself seriously in it. But with a few tweaks, my friends, I’m predicting it’ll be a spring staple. Watch this space for the “after” shot.

P.S. Like The Anthology on Facebook and you’ll be the first to see it.

January 31, 2012 by