Drake’s Better World Fragrance House touched down in Shoppers Drug Mart
Photography courtesy of Better World Fragrance House
Scent is deeply valued by Drake. So much so that it’s used while he’s travelling the world to provide a sense of familiarity and comfort. Now, you can choose from the five scents of Better World Fragrance House, Drake’s own brand of aromatic candles that are based on his personal memories. The home goods — from woody and floral to musky and gourmand — are currently available at 200 Shoppers Drugs Marts across the country for a limited time. What’s more, they all come with a gold marker to customize a sweet message.
After already selling out twice in Canada, Queen Rih’s Fenty Eau de Parfum is being restocked. Featuring notes of magnolia, musk, tangerine and blueberry, with hints of Bulgarian rose, geranium and patchouli, the popular perfume is a thoughtful representation of the multi-hyphenate’s essence, memories and experiences. She even personally selected each ingredient and designed the one-of-a-kind scent alongside world-renowned LVMH Master Perfumer Jacques Cavallier. Pre-sale started on April 27 at FentyBeauty.com, and opens to the general public next week.
The Dove Self-Esteem Project launches the #DetoxYourFeed campaign
New research by the Dove Self-Esteem Project proves that half of Canadian teen girls are spending more time online than they are in person with their friends. And with social media feeds filled with beauty advice, one in two girls say that the toxicity of it all causes low self-esteem.
After years of championing wider definitions of beauty and trying to make social media a safer space, the Dove project has launched a new campaign: #DetoxYourFeed. It went live this week with the goal of empowering teens to define their own beauty standards and choose their own influences. Through thoughtful films and educational packages for parents, the campaign highlights how conversations between parents, caregivers and teens (about the dangers of toxic beauty advice) are so important in navigating these challenges.
Pat McGrath Labs’ first foray into the skincare category comes in the form of a milky liquid dubbed Divine Skin: Rose 001 The Essence. It’s the ultimate product that will give you MUA Dame Pat McGrath’s signature glow, the one she’s been creating backstage, at red carpets and on sets for the last three decades. Maximizing the effectiveness of your existing skincare routine, The Essence works to clinically boost moisture while supporting the skin’s protective matrix. Plus, it’s 97 per cent natural!
Canada’s Fuzz Wax Bar is officially a bi-coastal business
Photography courtesy of Fuzz Wax Bar
Fuzz Wax Bar, the leading gender-free waxing salon in Canada, has just touched down in Vancouver. This is the brand’s first shop opening in BC, meaning that all Canadians coast-to-coast now have access to an innovative and inclusive hair removal experience. With its commitment to going green and bookings that don’t categorize gender, the Toronto-born brand is spreading across the nation with a forward-thinking take on beauty.
Get a sneak-peek into Fendi and Versace’s Fendace Collection
Photography courtesy of Fendi
Mark your calendars because as of May 12, you’ll finally be able to shop Fendi and Versace’s epic Fendace collection. Causing a viral sensation back in September, this collaboration is a first of its kind for two designer brands owned by different conglomerates. To tide us over until the release date, check out the Fendace collection campaign images released earlier this week, which were shot by the legendary Steven Meisel.
The Bay launches a new line of elevated basics
Photography provided by The Hudson’s Bay
It’s a truth universally acknowledged that you can never have too many basics, especially if they’re elevated and well-made. Enter Hudson North, a new ready-to-wear line from The Bay with the ethos of effortless elegance. Expect a neutral palette with pops of colour and refreshed silhouettes in both men’s and women’s styles that are sure to become mainstays in your wardrobe.
Michael Kors x ellesse is the pairing you never knew you needed
Photography courtesy of Michael Kors
You don’t have to be an Olympic-level athlete to enjoy this new assortment of sportswear, courtesy of Michael Kors and ellesse. The iconic American brand and the luxe Italian label are teaming up this spring on a 70’s inspired collection of track jackets, swimsuits, sneakers, slides, bucket hats and bags that all fit into a $75 to $525 price range. Available to purchase on May 9, be sure to check out the collaboration online and in-store at Yorkdale Mall, West Edmonton Mall and Sainte-Catherine St West.
Fine & Dandy Co. expands into accessories
Photography courtesy of Fine & Dandy Co.
There are few things as transformative as wallpaper, but a scarf might be one of them. It makes perfect sense, then, that Fine & Dandy Co.’s first foray into accessories is a scarf collection that features some of the Canadian brand’s most vivid prints. Made of 100% silk, each scarf is available in four different patterns and would make a perfect gift for Mother’s Day.
Dr. Liza’s new shoes are here to save your feet
Photography courtesy of Dr. Liza Shoes
After two years of slippers, many people are (understandably) hesitant to get back into heels. Luckily, Canadian shoe designer Dr. Liza is here to give you the best of both worlds with her spring offering. Inspired by the women in her family, the ‘Generations’ collection includes pumps, sandals, and flat and heeled loafers that feature the therapeutic soles that Dr.Liza has become known for.
Eliza Faulkner wants to dress your kids
Photography courtesy of Eliza Faulkner
Eliza Faulkner wants you to twin with your toddler! Just in time for the summer, the Quebec-based brand has released The Baby Angelica dress, which is an exact replica of one of their most popular women’s styles. Made from 100 per cent Oeko-Tex certified linen, the tiny tot collection comes in three colours (mirroring the adult assortment) and is sure to inspire some mommy-and-me outfits.
Myel’s new men’s jewellery collection is all about pearls
Photography courtesy of Myel
Thanks to the likes of Harry Styles and other fashionable celebs, jewellery for men has (finally) become more mainstream. So if you’re looking to try the trend for yourself, Canadian brand Myel has got you covered. The newest addition to its men’s lineup is a collection of freshwater pearl pieces that are easy to wear and even easier to style.
Spring has sprung at Brunette the Label
Photography courtesy of Brunette the Label
If you’re looking to mix comfort and style, look no further than Canadian cult brand Brunette the Label‘s new spring and summer collection. Expect all the loungewear you know and love from the brand (read: cheeky crewnecks and fun sweats) with the new addition of matching striped sets. Whether you’re off to the beach or just running errands, this is the epitome of cool for the summer.
Oddly enough, the two most formative films of my youth were Interview With the Vampire and Bring It On. In the shadows of my teenage bedroom, I gorged on ghost stories, but in the daylight, my cheerleading uniform and study-time sweats cloaked my macabre interests. While I secretly lusted over mesh tops, Tripp NYC pants and lace chokers in my dark sanctuary, I was always too afraid to put down my pom-poms. Not because I didn’t care about clothes (far from it) but because I thought the styles I loved were off limits to Black girls — especially the ones who led school pep rallies.
In the mid-to-late-2000s, goth was largely considered a “white” thing. While I’m sure there were kids of colour lurking around with eyebrow piercings and velvet corsets, I never saw them in the light of day. In fact, the only goths I did see fit a very specific stereotype: pale skin, straight hair and all-black attire à la Morticia Addams. As a preppy Jamaican girl, I wasn’t included in that aesthetic, so I buried it instead.
A decade (and a Y2K revival) later, my desire to gothify myself has come back from the dead, thanks (in part) to the Spring 2022 runways. Balenciaga presented bountiful black styles, bringing the gothic drama in cloaklike gowns and oversized outerwear. LaQuan Smith’s sexy meshy silhouettes seemed to celebrate goth’s fetishistic and formerly taboo nature. And Marc Jacobs incorporated shredded fringe and dark designs into his spring collection.
However, the real goth-aissance is happening on TikTok. Tags like #goth, #gothic and #gothcore currently boast 10 billion, 1.9 billion and 15 million views respectively. Content creators like Xowie Jones, Baby Succubuz, Nerdy Winter and Vocally Shook have gone viral for their descent into darkness. And with social media brushing off the proverbial cobwebs, goth has evolved from a maverick lifestyle into a mainstream movement. But don’t be fooled — this isn’t the whitewashed goth from my adolescence. This time around, goth is available to everyone
Xowie Jones. Photography by BY LINDSEY RUTH
When asked for her definition of goth, Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York, describes it as more of a sensibility than a style. “Goth is a strange beauty,” says Steele, who curated FIT’s 2008–2009 exhibition Gothic: Dark Glamour and wrote the accompanying book. “It’s a dark romanticism.”
The subculture started in the late 1970s to early ’80s in the United Kingdom, when English goth rock, a subset of the more volatile punk rock, rose in popularity. While both movements originated as a rejection of the conservatism, materialism and elitism that U.K. prime minister Margaret Thatcher and U.S. president Ronald Reagan had come to embody, goths were ultimately more moody and poetic than angry and violent. British band Bauhaus’s anthem “Bela Lugosi’s Dead,” released in 1979, is often cited as the true beginning of the trend, with glam rock icons Siouxsie Sioux and American Patricia Morrison pioneering the ashen skin, long dark hair, fishnets and Victorian corsets that came to define the style.
Although many shied away from the campiness of goth, post-punk designers like Vivienne Westwood leaned into the uncanny glamour of it all. By the early ’90s, designers like Yohji Yamamoto, Rick Owens and Alexander McQueen were following in her fetish-y footsteps.
Goth challenged the order, trendiness and propriety of traditional beauty. The subculture intended to build safe spaces for society’s outsiders, but its rigid fashion and beauty “rules” were, by default, often exclusionary. The gothic preoccupation with corpselike complexions, for example, is a beauty standard quite literally rooted in whiteness. It rejects the mainstream preference for a healthy flush beneath tanned skin by propping up an aesthetic that dark-skinned people could never achieve. Goths reject the norm, but Black beauty wasn’t the norm to begin with.
In 2022, Gen Z goth enthusiasts face fewer obstacles than I did, and Steele believes that COVID and lockdowns might have played a part in this sudden interest in morbidity. “With the constant threat of death and destruction, some people want to have brightly coloured ‘dopamine fashion’ while others are like, ‘This is a dystopian moment; I don’t feel like that,’” she says. “It works both ways.”
As the goth community expands, TikToker Victoria Maddox — known professionally as Baby Succubuz — says she’s seen more alternative Black creators here than on any other platform. “It has made me feel less alone,” she admits, reflecting on the process of becoming friends with other creators who look like her for the first time. Goth activist and lifestyle coach Jamila Anahata — professionally known as The Soulful Veganista — agrees, describing the amount of feedback she’s received from her popular Instagram account, where she posts about fashion, veganism and spirituality. Over the years, young Black girls have reached out to thank the influencer for her stunning representation of the Afrogoth fashion they’d always wanted to wear.
Content creator turned music artist Jones adds that the goth rules are more accommodating than they once were. The 22-year-old has over 7.3 million TikTok followers who watch her go from glam to gore in a single transition. “It doesn’t have to be super extravagant,” she shares. “You can wear a black T-shirt and jeans and still be goth.” Other goth creators have stepped away from the all-black trademark and opted for lighter interpretations. “I consider myself a Bubble Goth,” says Maddox. The 29-year-old influencer livens up her looks with colourful hair, makeup and accessories for her 108K followers. “With Bubble Goth, you take a light aesthetic and a dark aesthetic and kind of mush them together,” she says about her current colour fixations.
I can very much relate. At the beginning of 2020, I did something I’ve wanted to do since I was 13: I got my septum pierced — one small step for your average goth aficionado, one giant step for a former goth wannabe. Since then, my overall style has gotten a lot darker (and a lot more me) as well. In 2022, I wouldn’t say I’m goth, but I wouldn’t say I’m not goth either.
Goths are not monoliths, and neither are BIPOC. The evolution of the subculture in the age of TikTok promises that this remains true for both. Different representations of goth — whether they’re race, age or style — don’t diminish what already exists. Instead, these newer additions create a fuller, richer community that’s stronger than what existed before. Rather than fighting to protect a past that’s less inclusive than we remember, let’s celebrate the present with those who find beauty in darkness.
Click through the gallery below for some goth inspiration, courtesy of the runways.
We’re less than a week out from the first Monday of May, which makes for much anticipation, guest-list speculation and outfit predictions for the 2022 Met Gala.
This year, the theme is “In America: An Anthology of Fashion,” with a white tie dress code that specifies “gilded glamour.” Stretching from 1870s to the 1900s, the Gilded Age was a period of rapid economic growth and income inequality, with society’s upper echelon donning extravagant and fanciful dress as a means of demonstrating wealth.
“The 2022 Met Gala will ask its attendees to embody the grandeur — and perhaps the dichotomy — of Gilded Age New York,” Vogue stated in an article explaining the theme. As happens every year, we expect some to misinterpret the theme (this isn’t a Bridgerton party), and others to use the red carpet to make political statements (this time on the inequity that defined the era).
One thing’s for sure: there will be a plenitude of opulence on display this coming Monday. Here are five trends we expect to see at the 2022 Met Gala.
Reimagined corsets
Photography via ImaxTree.com
Corsets were a staple of womenswear during the Gilded Age, and thanks to this season’s ongoing flirtation with the garment, we expect to see Met Gala attendees donning experimental iterations. With the modern-day embrace of corsetry, there’s no shortage of inspiration. Old-school references can be drawn from Vivienne Westwood, who was a proponent of using deconstructed corsets in her designs. Recent runway shows presented even more contemporary corsetry, such as leather textiles and bondage elements from labels Dion Lee and Roberto Cavalli, as well as futuristic elements that evoke body armour from Balmain and Schiaparelli.
At the 2022 Met Gala, statement-making skirts are one of the trends we see coming. For starters, we’ll likely have some extravagant takes on the bustle: a padded undergarment tied onto the body to add fullness to the back of a dress. Pair this with a lengthy train, and you have gilded-glamour-meets-Met-Gala-extravagance. Already this awards season, we’ve gotten a taste of intense, jaw-dropping red carpet trains from Jean Paul Gauthier on stars such as Jada Pinkett Smith at the 2022 Oscars and SZA at the 2022 Grammys.
Regal jewel tones
Photography courtesy of Harris Reed
The dark colour palette comprising amethyst, sapphire, emerald, ruby, garnet and citrine is inspired by the rich hues of rare gems. It only makes sense, then, that these shades will be dominating the Met this Monday. Picture dramatic silhouettes with rich tones, from designers like Harris Reed. Whether it’s monochrome standout gowns or sparkling clutches, jewel tones will take precedence over trending Y2K pastel shades.
Gender-bending interpretations
Photo by Taylor Hill/Getty
Gender-bending attire is becoming a staple of red carpet glamour, and the Met Gala is no exception. Compared to womenswear, men’s fashion was pretty limiting in the Gilded Age — think top hats and waistcoats. Thus, we expect to see some attendees approaching the dress code through a gender-fluid lens. There will likely be women in tops and tails and men in corset gowns (we’re looking at you, Harry Styles and Billy Porter). The more, the merrier!
Regardless of what the red carpet yields, this Met Gala is sure to be filled with art, drama and showroom-worthy frocks.
Trompe L’Oeil, an art technique that uses realistic imagery to create the optical illusion that objects exist in three dimensions, has been around since the early 19th century. But the surrealist approach was first popularized in fashion by the designerElsa Schiaparelliin 1927 on a knitted sweater, and it has since become a signature technique of the house. From then on, many designers have dabbled with the detail, last seen on the runways of Moschino, Loewe and Bottega Veneta for their Fall/Winter 2022 collections, while Coach and Marni incorporated the whimsical element in their Spring/Summer 2022 collections.
As we head into fashion’s playful, dopamine direction, we expect to see elements like this become more prevalent in the next few seasons.
Ready to add some cheeky details to your wardrobe? Here are a few pieces available on the market now, from cartoon-ish interpretations to realistic prints.
