Got my daily dose

Of Vitamin V, Canada’s online magazine that delivers daily tips about the happenings in your city (V for Vancouver, M for Montreal, T for Toronto and so on).

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To celebrate their best year yet, they threw a Back to School Bash at the Fairmont Pacific Rim‘s gorgeous Willowstream Spa.

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There, we were manicured, massaged and martini-ed to our hearts content. (If you want to spoil yourself, I mean really, really spoil yourself, this is the place to do it.)

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Wore my short-sleeved navy blue blazer over my long-sleeved electric blue blouse.

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Which fulfilled my daily requirement of Vitamin V (this time the V stands for vintage).

P.S. You need some Vitamin TAF (The Anthology on Facebook) in your diet.

September 17, 2010 by

I must have been a pirate in another life

Because I love the sea. And everything to do with it — the salt, the surf, even the seaweed.

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And when I can’t spend every day at the beach, I find little things of sea-themed beauty to help, um, tide me over. Like these handmade silver pendants from Vancouver’s Filou Designs. I met designer Fiona Louie at the One of a Kind Show media sneak peek (she’ll be showcasing her handiwork at the show in December).

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And I could not take my eyes off her nautical-themed charm bracelet. It would look perfect with, oh I don’t know, something like this:

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Not exactly pirate wear, but close enough.

Mark your calendars for December 9-12. Judging by the preview I attended, the One of a Kind Show is going to be, um, a one of a kind event.

First photo found here.

P.S. Sea you on Twitter (worst pun ever, I know).

September 14, 2010 by

OMG, it’s FNO!

The night that launched a thousand parties is upon us.

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The brainchild of Anna Wintour, Fashion’s Night Out is taking over major cities throughout the States. So how can those of us north of the border join in the fashionable fun? Flare’s got the details.

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And if you’re looking to purchase an FNO shirt, you can find a list of stores that carry it here. Proceeds benefit the New York City AIDS Fund.

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So go! Shop! Have fun! Just don’t tell Anna Wintour these shorts used to look like this.

P.S. Add the Anthology on Facebook — it’s the next best thing to attending Fashion’s Night Out.

September 10, 2010 by

Sponsored posts and advertising

Everything featured on The Anthology is chosen, coveted and loved by editor Kelsey Dundon and/or the site’s contributors.

From time to time we will write a sponsored post, which will always be labelled as such.

And even sponsored posts will be a good fit for Anthology readers because we like it that way. So if it says it’s a sponsored post, it is. And if it doesn’t, it isn’t. Plain and simple.

Questions? Comments? Curious about how you can advertise? Send a note to kdundon@theanthology.ca.

September 5, 2010 by

Getting down to fashion business

“I used to think Vancouver fashion was an oxymoron,” said Imran Amed, editor of Business of Fashion, at this week’s Digital Revolution event. (To which I say: What, fleece jackets and yoga pants aren’t fashion?)

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But Amed’s emphasis was on the “used to” because Vancouver fashion is oh so real. And this event, hosted by Alexandra Suhner Isenberg of Searching For Style, is proof that this city’s fashion community is a strong one.

Presented in the form of an on-stage interview (think Oprah, but without the cameras) the Harvard-educated Amed shared his insights on how the digital revolution affects fashion.

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So what did we learn? Smart brands use digital marketing, well, smartly. Take Burberry, for example. Brilliant new media strategies helped turn the house from the “chav” brand it was in the late 90s to the coveted one it is today (you’ve seen how cool The Art of the Trench is, haven’t you? It’s all about real people with real style).

Amed also pointed to Arcade Fire’s new interactive film The Wilderness Downtown as a nifty example of personalizing a consumer’s experience (just watch the film, you’ll see what he means). It’s not fashion, but its rapid spread through the worldwide web makes an interesting case study.

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Oh, and Amed believes bloggers are here to stay. To which I say: Woot! Woot!

P.S. Make like a bird and tweet with me.

September 3, 2010 by

The scent of a man

…isn’t always pleasant (hello gym socks!). But this scent for a man is downright delightful. To celebrate the Canadian launch of Marc Jacobs BANG, I asked some of my favourite gentlemen to weigh in and tell us what this feisty, spicy, soon-to-be-released-in-Canada scent reminds them of.

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And their thoughts, well, they speak for themselves:

“It smells like a horse saddle after a man made of cedar and peppers rode it, but in a really good way,” says Justin.

“I smell hints of thyme and rosemary. Add a pat of butter, and you could smell like dinner,” says Tre, of Noshwell, as only a food critic could.

Graeme from One More Gadget says “It smells like the interior of my ‘82 Trans Am after the rain. And ladies, moisture is the essence of wetness, and wetness is the essence of beauty. But seriously, it’s kinda addicting. I keep smelling myself. I think people in the office are starting to think I’m on crack.”

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But what does a lady think? My friend Sonja, came out of left field with this observation; “It smells like butterflies. If butterflies smelled.”

You’re dying of curiosity, aren’t you? You know what they say — smelling is believing. So stay tuned for a Marc Jacobs BANG giveaway, friends!

P.S. Get a leg up on the competition and add The Anthology on Facebook.

August 30, 2010 by

It takes one heck of a bride

To put you in a bridesmaid’s dress like this.

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A bridesmaid’s dress that you’d actually wear again.

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This is that bride. (Love you, Bri!)

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Each one of our dresses was custom made of a slightly different tone of raw silk.

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How gorgeous do they all look together? (And how adorable is that little girl? She had absolutely nothing to do with the wedding — she was just the cutest bubble-blowing bystander you’ve ever seen in your life.)

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Earrings? They’re H&M.

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Man, I love weddings. Take a look at another beautiful one here.

P.S. Love Twitter so much you want to marry it? Me too!

August 23, 2010 by

You’ve heard of the 100-mile diet, right?

Where you’re challenged to eat nothing but food grown within, you guessed it, 100 miles of your digs. Well, I applaud you if you could actually stick to it (I could never give up pineapples).

But you know what I could stick to? The 100-mile music diet.

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Because Vancouver’s music scene is on a (rock and) roll. And not just because Justin Bieber is coming to town. Herewith, five favourites:

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1. Japandroids, the duo who sing and swear about our city with reckless abandon. All together now: “It’s raining in Vancouver. But I don’t give a fu*k cause I’m in love with you tonight.” (Pardon the language, Mom.) They’ll be playing the Rickshaw on Oct. 9 (get tix here). Photo: Chad Batka.

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2. Dan Mangan, who’s currently sitting pretty on the Polaris Music Prize short list and will be playing the Vogue Theatre on Nov. 13 (tickets go on sale Friday). Photo: Shea Pollard.

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3. Brasstronaut. I’ve raved about them before, but their poppy jazz and animated shows will make them your new favourite band (if they aren’t already).

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4. Listening Party, who came all the way from Shawnigan Lake on Vancouver Island (still within 100 miles, I checked) to play a show this past weekend. I missed it, but I’ve heard nothing but great things about their live performance so I won’t make the same mistake next time.

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5. The WIZERDZ. I’m entirely biased (they’re my brother’s band), but they’re by far my favourite fantasy-themed electronica dance rock band out there. And they’ll be playing our magical city this fall.

So tell me: who are your favourite hometown bands? Those of you who live in Paris (Phoenix!), Stockholm (Miike Snow!) and Montreal (Arcade Fire!) have it so easy.

P.S. Go on the 100-mile Facebook diet and add the Anthology.

August 19, 2010 by