Fashion Column #1: Fashion Flashback

Headline: Fashion Philosophy: Keep it Real

Byline: Claire Miglionico - Fashion Columnist

Fashion is an extremely personal matter. Since grade school, I remember having an odd style. It wasn’t necessarily fashion forward, it was just different. I wasn’t anti-trend; I just wore clothes that I liked and that was all. One day at school, I decided on wearing two headbands instead of one. Frankly, it wasn’t to hold a fashion statement but mainly to hold my growing bangs in place.

In band class that very same day, a classmate of mine called me on it.

“Why are you wearing two headbands?” she asked looking really disgusted. “You’re weird,” she added two seconds later.

It was the early 2000’s and we were in grade 8. Junior high wasn’t the best time for individuality: back then, conformity was your best bet, especially if you wanted to belong. I never liked the idea of looking like everyone else and to this day, I am a firm believer in individualistic attitudes towards fashion and towards life in general. My style philosophy is to stick to what I like and not focus on what is supposedly “in”, wear clothes that are comfortable and that will not break the bank. Choose what works for you and make it your own.

Now, at age 22, I am a full-time MRU student finishing up my journalism degree. Over the five years I’ve been at MRU, I have noticed our student body is quite awesome when it comes to maintaining a unique style. I’ve crossed male students in full linen suits (that weren’t aviation students I may add), and female students in quirky outfits.

I’m sure ACAD students rock the style grid but I take pride in thinking MRU students know how to dress with personality.

I like to think I can dress well but I also know there are days I can look like I put little effort in what I wear. Although I am a fashion enthusiast, I don’t take fashion too seriously and will rarely be caught in something that looks uncomfortable (i.e, stilletos, super tight mini-dresses, plastic shirts etc). There are times where I will show up to school in a tuque and no makeup and other times where I feel like dressing up a bit more. Like most students, I have little spending money and, as of now, I try to think of unique ways I can combine the clothes I already have without having to wear the same outfit everyday. I love quirky personalities like Zooey Deschanel’s and appreciate her unique sense of style best. I have a thing for the “boy look” – the bow-tie, the suspenders, the blazer, the Oxfords – that singer Janelle Monae or actress Diane Kruger pull off and live for independent sounds offered by artists like Toro Y Moi.

On the side, I work part-time at our beloved campus pub The Hub and hold the position of editor at Calgary Fashion, a local fashion blog. Calgary Fashion has been an opportunity of a lifetime for me. As Calgary Fashion’s editor, I write stories, take photos and update our Tumblr on top of updating our main website on a weekly basis. This past spring/summer, I started at Calgary Fashion as an editorial intern. What was meant to be a four-month internship turned into a long term love affair. It’s a real treat to work with a unique group of fashion enthusiasts that holds a similar easy-going attitude towards life, style and fashion and to have the opportunity to attend fashion shows and events throughout the city. A highlight of mine was sitting front row at Parkluxe, a fashion show that showcased four local designers organized by the non-profit organization PARK.

In mid-October, Calgary Fashion will be heading to Toronto for LG Fashion Week. I’d like to dedicate my next column to my first experience at a high-caliber fashion runway event. I’d also love to explore the comeback in men fashion and touch upon the historic beginnings and ends of certain articles of clothing while keeping a personal perspective on fashion and making the column student-friendly. Cheers.

E-mail your fashion questions/topic suggestions at claire@calgaryfashion.ca or Tweet me @ClaireMig.

Top Photo: This photo is of friends and I in grade 7. It’s easy to find me: I’m sporting an awful combination of light-weight orange pants and a 60’s inspired bright blue and red “college” sweater while everyone else is wearing the ultimate fashion staple at the time : “Roxy” shirts. Although I looked odd, I was always comfortable with what I wore.

Bottom Photo: My style now is a little more polished but I definitely stick to what I like. I’m still not much into looking completely dolled up. I usually keep something unchanged. It’s usually my unruly hair that I don’t bother about. I actually tie it up with a vegetable elastic band because it holds better, no joke.

Photo by Eymeric Widling

Braids Review is here!

Braids gets tangled in their tunes

by Claire Miglionico
The Reflector

Braids has come a long way since its earlier days as The Neighbourhood Council – the original band the members formed in their last year of high school. In the beginning, they played Broken City frequently, eventually made the move to Montreal, and came back to their hometown of Calgary as bold and strong as ever, playing the show local fans have been waiting on for some time.

Photo by Claire Miglionico. Hometown favourites, Braids, returned to town and delivered the goods despite being somewhat infirm. Check out Braids at Sled Island running June 22-25 - show date TBA.

Braids is composed of four 20-something multi-talented musicians: Raphaelle Standell-Preston, Katie Lee, Austin Tufts and Taylor Smith. All are vocalists and use their harmonious voices to back up lead vocalist/guitarist Standell-Preston while playing their instruments of choice: the keyboards for Lee, the guitar, bass and drums for Smith and the drums for Tufts. Standell-Preston’s voice has been dubbed “angelic” by many music critics and her performance at The Grand theatre March 30 revealed it as such.

Kris Ellestad and Memory Screen opened up the show to a half-empty theatre, but a flock of people invaded the Grand just in time to catch Braids. The all-ages, sold-out show lived up to its status when the empty seats at the very top of the theatre filled in a matter of seconds. For their part, the members of Braids were sitting in the audience attentively listening to the openers.

The crowd was not a foreign one. It was filled with the band’s old friends from Western Canada High School – where all four members of Braids attended – and profoundly happy and proud family members cheering for their children, siblings, granddaughters or grandsons.

Braids took the stage around 10 p.m. and Standell-Preston announced in a hoarse, timid voice she had caught a seemingly severe case of bronchitis just the day before. The crowd was saddened by the news but was not let down by the vocal performance she pulled off despite the sickness. The positive attitude and good-hearted humour she kept throughout the night were inspiring.

Braids played a set that closely mimicked the order of their debut album Native Speaker. They started off with their free-flowing signature track “Lemonade,” which slowly faded into “Plath Heart.” Their style of music is out there and definitely of experimental nature with frequent synthesizers, fast-spaced guitar staccatos, and dream-state vocals. They bring various musical influences to the table and have been compared to Animal Collective, Bjork and the Cocteau Twins.

Their friendship comes to life onstage through their fantastic musical connection. Deep glances, and full-toothed grins were exchanged on numerous occasions between all four members.

Braids pulled off a great show but it would be a lie to say that it was fully entrancing. At times the band came short of captivating the audience by being lost in their own little musical worlds for too long. The band also seemed exhausted, quite frankly. Bronchitis could have definitely been at fault for this one. Perhaps this show was not one of the better ones for Braids. However, musical virtue is fully present within the band, which is only setting them up for many more successful performances to come.