LINE F/W 2010: Neat-wear!

At the Line Knitwear F/W 2010 Show @ the Oasi: Marco Jacob, Jennifer Parsons, Elyse (Ford agency), Miguel Jacob

Last Thursday, we attended the LINE Knitwear f/w 2010 fashion show, and it was a great night! The collection was stunning, and really inspirational. Bravo to designers Jennifer Wells and John Muscat!

“Toronto based brand LINE gave the city’s fashion elite a new definition for knitwear, with the showcase of their Fall Winter 2010 runway collection 'Pretty Dark'. Designers Jennifer Wells and John Muscat put together a truly innovative show for Canadian Fashion and for knitwear as a fashion medium. Up and coming supermodel Alana Zimmer, opened and closed the show which featured forty looks of chic and sexy knitwear from head to toe. The winter fantasy feel of the clothing itself gave the eye a visual feast of various textures ranging from rows of luxurious cashmere ruffles and petals layered with silk chiffon, along with sumptuous hand knit patterns that were both lush and deconstructed. The ethereal and artful creations had the room inspired by the groundbreaking design and surely will have many redefining their sweater choices for this coming fall. The show ended after 15 minutes to an unanimous standing ovation and was an extremely proud moment for Canadian fashion.” Dennis Green from LINE

Photos taken from FASHION magazine online.

'Bon cinéma' this week!

Cinéfranco 2010 is starting very soon....

March 26 - April 3

@ Cinéma AMC Dundas 24, 10 Dundas st. E
Don't miss this year's season!

For more info: www.cinefranco.com

Greta and Ezra Constantine Shows: Beauty and the Edgy!

Remember David Graham from the Toronto Star, the one who wrote an article on our wedding? Well, he too attended the show. For more information, read his article and watch the video of the show as published in today's Toronto Star.

Kirk Pickersgill and Stephen Wong after the show. Photo by C R-Jacob

Who is who?

Julie Morel, French actress, and her American idol, the great Joan Crawford.
Found on Cédric Roulliat's wall...

Spring has sprung...and in style, s'il vous plaît!

It's high time to put away our snowy boots or Loden coats and favour a lighter gear to greet the warmer days of sunny spring. Get ready for the season! Spring is back with its myriad of festivals and gives us good reasons to share in the celebration of Nature's rebirth. Que la fête commence!...

Take for example, La Semaine de la francophonie starts this week in Toronto. The francophone cultural organisations have prepared a palette of colourful events (all in French). I highly recommend the Breton party at the Alliance française de Toronto on Friday, March 19!

Que la fête commence... and in style, s'il vous plaît!
Toronto's Fashion week F/W 2010, or the Power of Style, will start in 2 weeks (March 28th-April 1st), but this week already offers a couple of pre-shows, like Nada's 3D film launch at the Scotiabank Theatre, and Greta and Ezra Constantine's show at the Audi Building. I will keep you posted.

Spring has just sprung; and yet, it is already time to go through the designers' fall-winter collections... One could easily lose track with the seasons with such anticipation, but I know that watching the models, all wrapped-up in warm clothes, strut on the runway will actually enhance my gratitude to now be on spring mode! She said with a long sigh of relief.

Vive le Printemps!
Let's celebrate with Coco Chanel and her spring/summer 1970 collection !
Note the very formal and factual tone of the commentator during the show - a sign of the times ;o)

PS: I was born that spring. Eh oui.

Life is a Cabaret, meine Freunde!

Cabaret singer and band leader Max Raabe and the Palast Orchester of Germany played at the Koerner Hall. (Royal Conservatory, Toronto)

Last Tuesday March 9th, we attended the long-awaited concert of Max Raabe & the Palast Orchester at Koerner Hall, Toronto. Raabe transported us back to the 1920s-30s with period music and droll sophistication. The performance was sheer delight from beginning to end. A spectacular and truculent feast.
My advice: If they play in a town near you, don't hesitate, buy your tickets right now!

Yes, we were very close...We were third row, actually. It felt as if they were playing just for us! And with Koerner Hall's perfect acoustics, it simply was wunderbar!

After 3 encores, the band finally left the stage. Oh, but I would not have minded a 4th one...

After the concert, in the lobby of the Royal Conservatory. The girls (Cristy, myself, Mel, Tess and Jen) gathered around the piano for a silent performance...

The boys (Shayne, Daniel, and Miguel) too had their little impromptu trio!

FYI. From an interview with the National Post:

Q: Can you tell me a little about the Orchester and its music?

A: We’re playing the music of the 20s and 30s. We are 13 people on-stage. We have four saxophones, two trumpets, a trombone, a rhythm section and a wonderful violin player - she’s the only woman on-stage, so (she’s) the princess in the orchestra. We’re playing the music of the Weimar Republic, that wild and furious and interesting time between 1920 and 1933. That was the music of the varieties, and big revues, from early talking pictures. We play that music from the original arrangements. (Read more)

In the Toronto Life:

"It is possible to take a jaunt back to old Berlin, thanks to this German singer and bandleader. Raabe and his tuxedoed players excel at period renditions of the acerbic, rollicking music of such Weimar Republic–era composers as Kurt Weill—though, judging by Raabe and his Orchester’s nutty versions of “Mambo No. 5” and “Oops… I Did It Again,” historical authenticity isn’t their only objective."—Jason Anderson

Max Raabe at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto!

Max Raabe "stands as still and stylized as an Oscar statuette while delivering ironic lyrics with the occasional arch of an eyebrow or twist of the lips for dramatic effect"...
(John Terauds, reporter for the Toronto Star)

If you don't know Berliner Max Raabe's retro-chic music yet and live in Toronto, don't miss him tomorrow night! Max Raabe and the Palast Orchester will be playing at 8 p.m. at Koerner Hall on Tuesday, March 9th, that is...tomorrow. I can't wait!

Saturday Night...

Right on!

"Je me souviens"...

Miscellanies from our long weekend in Montréal.

Music-wise: Amazing vibes from the 1960s-70s, found at Primitive. Drop by when in Montreal!

Cinematic Candies: French films that we saw at the theatre. I recommend the Cinéma du Parc's selection! Both were breathtaking.

Scrumptious brunch at Olive + Gourmando, miam-miam!

Saturday Night Fever: Nuit Blanche...

We spent most of it @ the CCA (Centre Canadien d'Architecture): A great Art Party was on there!

Photos by Christine Rochet-Jacob

Reading time...For the trip back home to Toronto. Found at the Gallimard Store on Saint-Laurent.

Et voilà!