behind the scenes with kaelen ohm

images courtesy of jessika hunter and caitlin power. for more images click here

let me be honest for one moment. i realize it has been a very long time. i have no excuse. i have been procrastinating making posts due to some of the usual life drama surrounding me as of late. i don't feel like this is at all a place to vent about my personal life and i don't think it should be either so i won't go into any more detail. the point is that i went from being uninspired to being inspired beyond anything i have ever experienced, to the point of turning my world upside down to being most insecure i have been in ages to being inspired for all the right reasons again. a complete cycle of what i think should lead to some kind of a miraculous self discovery. still looking for that one. i have stepped away from my usual activities, trying to focus on myself for a little bit and it's going quite well. i am not done blogging by any means. taking a vacation perhaps is the right term for what is happening. i would rather blog about things that excite me and make me happy rather than search for opportunities, only to find that they are very few and far between, fashion in calgary is becoming more and more questionable, and being its biggest supporter for the past few years it disappoints me to see the direction it has taken. i am ready to focus my energy on things outside of fashion a little bit i think, not entirely, but putting my hopes in the proverbial hands leading the industry right now is not something i am ready to do. having said all this, a burden off my chest, i also want to share some of the things i have been doing lately. before going to la we shot a video with kaelen ohm, wilkosz & way and their team, it was a creative, it involved a lot of liquid substances and beautiful clothes. it was a LONG day. these are some of the behind the scene shots, more of which you can see on facebook (follow the link above). stay tuned for more information on the upcoming PARK show, also very excited about that one, for now visit thier facebook event page here.

VOTE JENNIE LYLE!

here's the deal: in early january a local mall organized a style off for some of the city's better known stylists. the theme was 'the death of winter'. i was asked to participate in the project which i had to decline because of la. my friend jennie lyle stepped in and created a fun spring look worthy of her title. the rules dictated that each stylist incorporate a garden hose into their shot. in my personal opinion jennie's use of the prop was the most creative and the most un-disturbing of the original object. the look itself also showed a great use of spring colors and patterns, a job that i could have not done better no matter how hard i tried (hello! spring vs. the queen of black, white and grey... there is also always the possibility i would dress my model in head to toe zara).

the voting for the best look has begun, we have UNTIL JANUARY 25th to help jennie win. the winner get's their photo used for the mall's spring campaign billboards (not to mention the sheer and sweet satisfaction of winning itself).

so let's help jennie win this thing and help fashion justice be had! this is something i should have done during the holts muse contest with holt renfrew. i am instead now campaigning for my friend and so that we can really say and be proud of the taste level this city possesses. please please let's all help each other <3 i am more than passionate about this cause. jennie has been an amazing friend and an even better stylist ;) it's her hard work that goes into the majority of shoots that i post on my blog, it's her passion that helps me obsess over clothes and her style that inspires me on a daily basis. you could say we wouldn't be where we are without this fabulous girl.

the voting has ended, thank you all for your support <3

ps. i would really make this post flash and glitter and make a ton of noise if i only knew how

hello! yellow! has anybody seen images from the rodarte dinner at chateau marmont (click here) SO on trend! <3 love!

black on black

h&m leather vest, american apparel crop top, bdg jeans, zara boots

sifting through the proverbial stacks of photos. it's -30 degrees celsius in calgary this week. nothing makes me sadder than looking at these. i maxed out on funds the day before leaving la and was embarrassingly declined a pair of helmut lang pants on melrose right at closing time, as things have their way of working out, after an hour on the phone with the bank i stepped into beverly center h&m and found the last of these leather vests (in my size) hanging on the rack waiting for me. money saved is money spent wisely some place else... or something to that effect. it's probably the best find of my trip. together with a pair of erro slashed leggings i got at opening ceremony, but that's a different story... xoxo

tyler: sleigh bells

between christmas, new years, and the preparations of moving into a brand new condo, i have had an extremely busy month! but as things finally settle down I am able once again to share some great music with you lovely people. this track has been floating around for a couple weeks now but it’s just TOO good not to share. better late than never right? sleigh bells came around just over 3 years ago in kind of a funny way. as the story goes, derek miller (formerly of poison the well) was waiting tables at a local restaurant when he happened to meet alexis krauss and her mother. he had mentioned in passing that he was looking for a vocalist for a new project he was working on and it was krauss’ mother who volunteered her for the gig. just like that, we got sleigh bells. after a very hyped ep, the duo released ‘treats’ in 2010. it was well received by critics everywhere and songs from the album showed up in television, on commercials, and on numerous ‘best of the year’ lists while the band became big attractions on the festival circuit. after a short break post-coachella 2011, they started work on their follow-up album ‘reign of terror’. the thing i’ve always enjoyed about sleigh bells is that while alexis is in charge of vocals, derek creates every other sound heard on each song, and the duo stay true to that in their live show. the sophomore album is set for release on february 21st, so pay attention! and while you wait, here’s the first single (minus any sort of awe inspiring video, unfortunately).

la la land

still trying to figure out the whole gif business. on my way though. thought i'd post something fun as a prelude of things to come. stay tuned for more photos from la. xoxo

uptown 17 fashion & food

these are so so sooooo overdue. december was madness and i had absolutely zero time to allow me to post anything of substance. i know how it sounds and i feel i shouldn't even admit it. i did have plenty of time to shop and might have even outdone myself. it was a crazy month. it's a new year now and time for fresh beginnings, a LOT of changes are on my mind. i have been thinking of moving away and been playing around with a couple of places, i have been emotionally drained and inspired, i have gone through ups and downs like i have never experienced in my life before. maybe that's what i've been missing out on through all this time trying to be 'responsible', life is to be had after all. despite all this i managed to have the most amazing past couple of months, meeting new people, nurturing the already solid relationships, being present and available for anything and everything and most importantly saying no to nothing. it's worked out quite well so far, since school has been over i have not had any concrete goals, i have just been focusing on what i like to do but i think it's time, as my new years resolution to make some plans and make life happen the way it is supposed to. 

these images are from the november uptown 17th shows put on by local restaurants and boutiques (remember primitive and borgo here), the last of the bunch was leo boutique, carrying lines like acne, complex geometries and most recently opening ceremony it lends itself to be one of the more high ends boutiques in the city, it's track record is amazing and it's been around ever since i can remember. many thanks to leah van loon for inviting us bloggers to the events week after week and providing us with perfect conditions to take beautiful pictures, my favourite has been this last set up with a very vintage modern background of the restaurant foyer.  all makeup for the show was done by my dear jordan reimer, make SURE you check out his blog youwantcrazy.blogspot.com, the things these boys come up with are amazingly entertaining to read and inspirational. sadly he is leaving us for montreal at the end of this week, making it harder to deal with being in this city than ever. we will all miss him and garrett so so much, but be sure to stick around till at least may when all the havock is about to be unleashed with a group visit to montreal. 

you can see more photos from the leo show on my   page and vincent's blog as well as his tribute to the two greatest gays calgary has ever seen <3 xoxo

new wes anderson! YES!!

the great american landscape

here are some of my favourite photos taken on this past usa trip. surprisingly they have nothing to do with fashion, they are just plan landscapes. i wish to have spent a week in vegas alone walking though the streets taking photos of the sadness that has become of that city. not to mention the creepy small american towns worthy of horror films, mid century modern and of course my favourite sight of all, the palm tree <3

quick update

if it seemed like i was m.i.a for the last couple of days it's because jason and i have been taking a cross american tour of our favourite places. the road trip started in vegas and continued until somewhere on the coast of california. it was a much needed vacation and time for self reflection. if you don't follow me on instagram, here are a couple of my favourite pictures, thanks to the iphone i have barely used my digital camera, i took a break from everything. over the next few days i will be posting some actual photos we took around la and the desert, hope this will suffice for now. xoxo

01.07.12

random inspirational images that have been sitting on my desktop for longer than any others. some undeniable common themes, perfect for when i am away in california. xoxo

trevor

vintage u.s. army m1951 fishtail parka, ben sherman button down shirt, levi's 510 denim, italian leather chelsea boots

brooks brothers harrington jacket, penguin button down shirt, levi's 510 denim, delicious junction desert boots

vintage sharkskin jacket, brooks brothers button down shirt, italian leather chelsea boots 

brooks brothers sweater, ben sherman button down shirt, levi's 510 denim

by complete accident (or run-in) i met trevor, who came dancing dressed in a skinny suit <3. i took a photo of him and posted it on instagram (@aniab), then i asked him to participate in this experiment. he agreed. it's been a while since i had this much fun shooting someone, for a non-model he sure isn't scared to model (just saying trevor). so i now bring you these images for my first post of 2012, which fittingly look a million times better in black and white. the throw-back to the beatles is uncanny. i am posting more photos on my facebook, as usual, this time, though there is actually lots more to look at, so make sure to check it out. make sure also to check out trevor's band, the ballantynes, out of vancouver. you learn something new everyday. also how small the world really is. 

image source: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Ballantynes/224328964281376?ref=pb