Just to show you all how incredibly fickle I can be when it comes to my sources of inspiration, I will transition from the senior-citizen-inspired post I wrote last month to something considerably more childish… Charlie Brown.

Peanuts has been my favourite comic strip and cartoon for as long as I can remember. I think there is something about the sarcastic, sad, and sort of morbid way that Charlie Brown talks that always just made me feel like I could relate to him a little. Whatever the reason, Mr. Schulz is responsible for some of my very favourite holiday specials, from Halloween to Christmas and Thanksgiving, too. It wasn’t until this year when I was desperate for some form of inspiration in the middle of dreary, uninspired January that I actually saw myself looking to Lucy’s and Charlie’s little sisters’, even to Peppermint Patty’s, wardrobes, and noticing a characteristic style I could latch on to.

Now I’m sure that I’m beginning to appear a little desperate, looking to cartoons for wardrobe inspiration, and maybe that’s true to a certain extent. Every January I wind up suffering from a serious case of “closet full of clothes but nothing to wear,” and this January was far from the exception. The excitement of layering wore off after Christmas and all the wonderful spring collections are starting to rub their pretty floral prints and sweet flouncy pastel dresses in my face, but I know there are still several months of boots and tripled tights and scarves and hats before I can bust out my dainty little oxfords and prance around without worrying about falling down and breaking my hip on the icy sidewalk! So I guess seeing the young ladies in C. Brown walking around in cute little saddle shoes and easy-to-slip-on long-sleeved frocks with their hair all done up made me at least a little bit excited to get dressed in the morning again!

Now I’ve got my eyes peeled for the perfect pair of black and white saddle shoes and have been caught by my boyfriend on several occasions making my little dog dance like Snoopy to the signature Charlie Brown theme song music. And I’ve got lots of ideas for a perfect couples costume for Mike and I to put together for next Halloween! Although my mind will have changed 100 times by then I’m sure….
- Meaghan Kelly

There is something about going gray that can give ladies a certain “carte blanche” to do whatever the heck they want. I’ve always had a serious soft spot for batty old women with too many cats and creepy mink stoles that still have their original heads and feet…I’ve already informed my boyfriend that he is required to die before me so I can lose my marbles living in my one bedroom apartment alone with my dachshund (yes my dog will live to be as old as me….) and dye my hair pink to match my collection of homemade feather boas….

Every winter my obsession with stylish old ladies and the air they carry themselves with, comes back stronger than the year before. Maybe a part of me feels like I’m already there with those nutty silver haired gals, especially since my favourite thing to do on a Saturday night is knit with my dog by my side and listen to creepy old elevator music from the 20s and 30s….Or perhaps I’m just inspired by their effortless but charming winter looks. Either way, most of my coats these days are frumpy wool ones with fur trims that are too big for me and smell permanently like moth balls. When I wear them with a floppy hat and some fur trimmed boots (instead of feeling like an abominable snow-beast) I feel graceful and a little bit wiser.

I think this admiration for older ladies is heightened in winter because of how angry I used to get at fashion magazines that would feature winter editorials with summer outfits. Girls in pretty little open coats and shoes with tights pranced around — meanwhile I was stuck with chunky boots and triple layered wool stockings on my legs! It only felt natural to turn to the generation focused on cozy comfort for more relevant cold weather inspiration!

The inspiration has definitely turned into an infatuation, and I think it’s safe to say I have absolutely no fear of getting older. The marble-losing process has already begun and my different collections are starting to grow out of control… soon I’ll be singing the alphabet backwards to my friends at the bingo hall and inviting my friends over for shortbread and sherry….

Images courtesy of the amazing Advanced Street Style Blog

- Meaghan Kelly

Similar to each print edition of WORN, our blog requires the hard work of several dedicated worker bees. I was going to say ladies, but maybe that’s a bit too old fashioned, perhaps even a little sexist and really, posts written with some testosterone backing them would be just as appreciated — but I digress. What I wanted to share with you, in what will soon be a regular installment on this here blog, is a brief but interesting look at some of our contributing writers.

I’m excited to get the ball rolling on this little project, and I couldn’t be happier to kick start things by introducing Meaghan Kelly. She keeps her own blog called Left Hand Endeavour, which I may or may not follow religiously. Though her first name involves the most complicated spelling of Megan/Meghan/Meagan/Meaghan I’ve ever come across, she’s endearing as all get out so I let it slide. Meaghan, meet our WORN readers, WORN readers, meet Meaghan.

1. How did you dress in high school?
I don’t know if I could pin point my style because it changed every month or so, but the two I remember the most distinctly were my grungy-ripped-jeans-army-bags-and-granny-sweaters-from-Value-Village phase, and my Lorena McKennitt inspired Wiccan phase (which involved lots of black-flowy-sleeves and dark purples). I think I would have given my left foot to own a pair of Doc Martens at the time, but my Dad thought they were for neo-Nazis and refused to let me own a pair, and my babysitting money just didn’t allow for me to buy them for myself….I was never all that girly, which is strange since I literally cringe at the idea of wearing pants nowadays…

2. Who would you rather be trapped in an elevator with - Karl Lagerfeld, Tyra Banks, or Lady Gaga?
I think probably Tyra Banks? So I could see her get those crazy eyes in person! And provoke her with controversial topics until she has a stroke!

3. If you could dress like your favorite food what would it be?
Mmmm. I think I’d dress up like the spread at a Southern picnic….including (though not limited to) potato salad, coleslaw, corn on the cob, strawberries and of course there’d be some mandatory gingham print in there! Not sure how that outfit would go…but it sounds delicious!

4. Last fashion related book or article you read. Was it good or bad?
I actually just got done with Issue 9 of WORN and loved every second of it. The Nancy Drew editorial was by far my favorite part. I also just got finished with the Great Gatsby for about the hundredth time and while it isn’t really a fashion related book, it’s always sort of been one of my main sources of literary fashion inspiration.

5. What fashion blog do you think is underrated?
Hands down the Advanced style street-style blog. All those fashionable older ladies and gents make me nuts. I just can’t wait to have earned my wings and feel justified in my insanity! Purplish-Grayish hair here I come.

6. What fictional character has the best style?
Like everything else, my answer to this question will change in about an hour, but as I’m writing this I’m thinking Rosemary Woodhouse. I want to buy myself a sewing machine and make holiday versions of each of her dresses and then find lots and lots of Christmas parties to attend so I can debut each and every one of them publically.

7. What do you think about the relationship between fashion and conspicuous consumption?
I think just about everything is related to conspicuous consumption. But I sort of feel like the most fashionable people I know manage to create their own looks, either by thrifting their clothes or by making it themselves. Conspicuous consumption is the easy way to be fashionable, like if you have no idea how to dress yourself, then there are always people out there who will put it all together for you if you’re willing to pay for it. But people who are really, honestly fashionable know how to make their visions happen without turning to consumerism.

8. What movie’s costumes/clothes were better than their plot?
I’m gonna have to go with Atonement. I think every time Kiera Knightley puts out one of her signature period pieces I like the wardrobe better than the movie. The Edge of Love and Pride and Prejudice had the same effect, but really Atonement was awful.

9. What are your thoughts about this quote? “On matters of style, swim with the current, on matters of principle, stand like a rock.” – Thomas Jefferson
On matters of style I tend to swim a little more with the past, so while I agree whole heartedly with the second half, I’m definitely someone who looks back as far as personal style is concerned.

10. Finish this sentence: There are two kinds of people in this world….
There are people who sit at the Grown-up table at Christmas, and people who sit at the Kids table. I am definitely of the Kids table variety. Me and my sister and our boyfriends like to be really anti-social and make inside jokes and spike our eggnog in the corner while everyone else talks about grown-up adult things.

When that little angel of a Wornette, Carmen, e-mailed me about attending the Fashion Pop Montreal event as a WORN correspondent, my level of giddiness was too high to even try to contain. I gave up all hope of pretending to be accustomed to the idea of having my name on a seat at the front row of a fashion show and gave into the dorky side of me who never leaves the house. I really couldn’t believe I was being offered the chance to write for the WORN blog again.

Showing up at the event was totally intimidating at first. Being someone who has lived in Montreal my entire life and still doesn’t know anyone makes events like these sort of scary, but once I got to my seat and snuck – really, I was so sneaky about it – a bad picture of my reserved seat, I sat down ready to take in all the glorious designs.

Normally when I see collections I sort of end up skipping over the pieces that I couldn’t see myself wearing. Anything that feels modern or less feminine than I prefer often gets overlooked while I ooh and aah over the pieces with bows, gingham, or peter pan collars. But this time I wasn’t looking for pieces I would wear – though that isn’t to say I didn’t see several I wanted to run home with – I was looking in awe at the talent all of these girls have! I’ve been so obsessed lately with the idea of creative lifestyles, and the fact that all six of these local designers are making a living doing what they love to do made this show all the more inspiring to me.

The winner of the evening was Angie Johnson of Norwegian Wood, a designer I fully admit to internet-stalking all the time. I was all over her tweets about how stressed she was to have to finish her dresses in time for the show last week, and I’ve had my eye on her designs ever since my first visit to her Etsy shop a while back. It seems like everywhere I look there’s some buzz going on about her, and I’ll be the first to say that the hype is more than well deserved.

Her designs weren’t the only ones to sparkle and shine that night, though; several other items – and entire collections - definitely made my heart skip a beat.
Flavie Lechat’s items conjured images of birthday parties and cupcakes in my head. Her perfect red, white, and blue top as well as that beyond amazing chambray (was it chambray? It looked like chambray from where I was sitting) skirt were enough to make any girly girl swoon. And anyone who adds white tights to an outfit has my vote.

Rachel Chan’s collection, Contradict, sort of felt to me like it was David Bowie inspired in the best possible way (as if there is a bad way to be David Bowie inspired). I couldn’t help but picture his beautiful face as the girls walked barefoot down the runway in their awesome space age body suits and angular shoulder pads.

The outfit sported by WORN’s own Tessa from Emilie Brunet’s collection, La Fête, was on my mind all night after the show. I could just imagine myself tap dancing around my apartment to some silly silent film music on a Saturday night. The whole collection was black and white and made use of lots of different fabrics and inspiration to keep things all kinds of interesting.

Marie-Eve Emond nearly killed me when she opened her collection – Betina Lou - with a perfect white peter pan collar blouse. I would have been sold on her designs on the basis of that piece alone, but then the dresses and skirts and blouses just kept getting better and better. When she finally came out to humbly accept her applause, I realized she is as wonderful as the clothing she makes -perfectly Audrey Hepburn-esque with her cropped hair and classic style.

And Charlotte Eedson must have been sent here from my own personal fashion heaven, because that pink silk blouse and pants number she pulled out of her sleeve was pure magic. The rest of her collection was nothing short of perfect as well. And really, it isn’t fair that some girls have hair as good as hers!
Really though, the whole night was such a dream and the people who put it together are far too good to be true! I fell half in love with everyone I met and as I left my little seat (the one with my name on it) I couldn’t help but write mental lists of all the craft projects I want to start in the next few weeks.

These six designers deserve all the buzz, credit, and praise they get just for having the guts to put themselves out there and do something so awesome with the little creative gnomes that live in their heads.

- Meaghan Kelly