Ever accidentally break a beloved trinket, only to have the day saved with the creative and deceptive use of sticky putty? Receive a hand-me-down garment from your great-great-grandmother with patches in all the right places? Have a friend tell you, “I think the super-glued cracks adds character to your fine China!”?

WORN is very excited to be teaming up with Toronto Craft Alert and City of Craft to present For Keeps: a Mending Show.

Filled with mended works – originals and photographic portraits by photographer Danijela Pruginic – For Keeps is a celebration of everyday beauty and the intricate stories behind things we care enough about to fix when broken.

You may be harbouring a piece of art in your home without even knowing it. If you have a garment, textile, or household object with visible repairs and a story to tell, we’d love to see a photo and learn about its history. Objects that can be mounted on a wall are preferred.

You can submit your piece here, but act quick: the deadline for submissions is on Wednesday, September 15, 2010.

WORN will be hosting the opening reception (date to be confirmed, but you can still start getting excited), and the show will run from December 9th to 18th 2010, at the Great Hall’s Cream Tangerine Café Gallery during the annual City of Craft fair.

Above: Slipper Darning (2010). Work and photograph by Becky Johnson.

…it’s a bunch of Wornettes in the sky.

Staff meetings, no matter how many cheezies and beer might be consumed during, always have a tendency to be more business than pleasure. However, when Anisha said she could give us access to her apartment’s roof (and, ahem, indoor pool) for the evening, we were up there faster than a teen getting pregnant at Degrassi High. I think every meeting could be made more productive when you are eye-level with the CN Tower.

photography by Hillary Predko and G. Stegelmann

A couple of weeks ago I had a conversation with WORN’s Editor-in-Pants, Serah-Marie (whose living room doubles as the WORN offices), that went something like this:*

Me: I am coming to Toronto for a week.
Her: Sounds good!
Me: I might need to crash on your couch while I’m in town.
Her: Can’t wait!
Me: I’ll also probably raid your fridge and watch all your Gilmore Girls DVDs.
Her: We’re ready for you!
Me: Also, my blogger friends Tavi and Isabel are in town, and I might bring them around for a tour.
Her: …Dang, now I’ll need to tidy the place up.

As general fans of anybody with intelligent things to say about fashion, it was a delight and a half to have these ladies come around. Being a typical work day, the office was filled with Wornettes.

Left to right: Deua, yours truly, Stephanie, Tavi, Isabel and Hillary

Our guests spend a minute or two examining our fashion library, followed by two hours (give or take) of ogling a Star Wars Pez collection.

Tavi is fascinated by the inside of a barrel of monkeys. We’ve all been there.

Gathering around to look at proofs from a recent photoshoot for issue 11 (out this fall). Excited? We know it’s a long wait, but we’ve got the recent release of issue 10 to tide you over.

Stephanie Wornette is so hard at work that it cannot even be accurately captured on camera.

To the left, Tavi continues to earn her title of “Wornette” by making pins to go out with recent subscriptions. To the right, she poses with an equally purple Serah-Marie.

After a hard day’s work (okay, more like 20 minutes), Isabel, Tavi and I departed the WORN offices to explore downtown Toronto. Not captured on our cameras (but Isabel’s got some good shots): Kensington Market, Honest Ed’s, and Tavi’s first Tim Hortons experience.

- Anna Fitz

* I am paraphrasing for dramatic effect. To my knowledge, Serah-Marie has never used the word ‘dang’ in casual conversation.

What do you get when you combine a bike shop, 500 artist-designed pins, 100+ stylish guests, cheap beer and a brand new issue of WORN?

It’s too early to do the math, so we’ll just let the pictures speak for themselves.

The first picture of issue 10 on the blog (it does exist)!

For those of you waiting with baited breath to receive a copy, subscriptions will be sent out on June 15, and the issue will go on sale in the webstore on June 16. Mark your calendars!

If you are lucky enough to find yourself in New York City next weekend, come find us at Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn on June 5th and 6th.

If you still can’t wait (and we don’t blame you), we’ve got lots more pictures from last weekend to tide you over.

As always, there are more on our flickr account.