FASHION Magazine

I am the queen of the home haircut disaster. To save a few dollars here and there I have, over the years, attempted to cut, perm and dye my own hair. (Please note that it has never once been worth it.) My most embarrassing memory involves a self-bang trim, dull scissors and lousy so-called organic dye that turned my hair a lovely shade of clown purple. So a few weeks ago, when my premature grays began poking through the years of layered dye jobs, my hipper, cooler friends subtly suggested that I splurge and get a cut and dye at Charlottetown’s most fun hair salon: Shear Talent.

I have a secret. My hatred of the months of February and March sometimes results in irrational, denial-fuelled shopping trips. In a feeble attempt to will winter to end, I find myself purchasing summer dresses, floral and even (I hesitate to write this next word, because I can practically hear the sharp intake of breath that usually precedes my mother’s hearty disapproval) flip-flops.

Lately, fashion spreads in magazines have been boring me half to death (except this one!). While I’ll always love the originality that old favorites like Bob Richardson still display, I’m getting tired of photographers who produce slick images that focus on only a single aspect of a subject. I just want fashion photography to tell me a story, not sell me some pants. That’s why I’m half obsessed and completely amazed by the fairy-tales and myths that my favourite up-and-coming Island photographer is able to create and portray in a single image.

Imagine if Jules Verne designed jewellery. Picture it and you’ll get the idea behind the beautiful, yet distinctly utilitarian necklaces, cufflinks, pendants, rings and ties clips created by Islander Matt Bowness.

It might come as a surprise to some that Charlottetown has a killer local music scene. The Danks, Smothered in Hugs, The Robots and Two Hours Traffic (whose music has been featured on The O.C., and who were recently nominated for a couple of Verge music awards) are just a few of the local bands that are beginning to make serious waves on a national scale.

Recessionista (noun): Person who looks wicked awesome even during times of economic crisis.

I usually have trouble getting behind blend words. (I have one friend who always chirping about the latest bromance or tramedy she saw at the theatre, and I find it to be one hundred per cent cringe-worthy.) But recessionista is slang I can get behind, because it perfectly describes the money saving way I do Christmas. Read on for my favourite thrifts and crafty tips.

My friends always argue about which of these dresses, wolf vs. bird, is the most fantastic, and while a verdict is rarely reached, everyone seems to agree that these two dresses are the Lennon and McCartney of the local fashion scene.

It’s hard to describe the way I feel about certain local clothing companies. Phrases like ridiculously-enthusiastic-bordering-on-crazed-fandom, and completely-obsessed don’t even begin to cover the way I talk about and covet the pieces that a few of my most favourite Maritime designers produce. One of the most exciting of these small businesses is Rosebud Beads (rosebudbeads@gmail.com or join their Facebook group).

Ampersand is a multifaceted mecca of cool. More specifically and in plainer English, Ampersand (98 Water St., 902-892-9811, or via Facebook) is a new shop on the Charlotettown waterfront that manages to be a venue for indie bands, a café hangout for students, writers and artists, an art gallery and, in the summer, a shop that carries locally made T-shirts, jewellery and dresses.

I heart bikes. There is nothing cuter than a skinny boy on a brightly-coloured vintage framed bike with a basket. Lucky for me I live in flat, beautiful Prince Edward Island where hipsters in Ray-Bans practically live on their arty two wheelers year-round.

Female vocalists like Emily Haines, Jenny Lewis and Deborah Harry are always tops on the best dressed lists I keep in my head. So maybe it’s not surprising that the girls I would crown most fashionable on Prince Edward Island are also rising stars in the Maritime indie music scene.

If I was an 18-year-old designer bursting at the seams (no pun intended) with talent, I can’t promise I would be anywhere near as modest as the three  girls who make up the design team of Sunsets on the Eastside. Katryna Crabbe, Kirsten Sweet and Jackie Skinner of Queens County, Prince Edward Island debuted their clothing line at P.E.I. Fashion Week in 2006 when they were barely 16 years old. Two years later, the girls have formed a small company and sell their cute wares both on Facebook and at the local vintage hipster haven, The Green Man Vintage and Vinyl (48 University Ave., 902-566-1361) .