Month: May 2020

May 13, 2020 at 07:10PM While taking my daily morning walk through Toronto’s West Queen West neighbourhood, I’m consistently struck by the number of businesses that I pass that have boarded up windows. One shop that’s been a kind of oasis amid the brick-and-mortar drought is Gaspard, a boutique that focuses on selling lines from brands based in Europe and Japan. “It’s important for my mental health, but also for our customers who miss coming to the shop,” says co-owner Jennifer Halchuk about the routine she and partner Richard Lyle have maintained in keeping their lively window dressing going. View this post on Instagram Et Voila! Antoni & Alison magic a la Richard:) @antoni_and_alison A post shared by GASPARD (@gaspardto) on Mar 8, 2020 at 12:50pm PDT //www.instagram.com/embed.js Halchuck and Lyle, like their peers, have found online interactions now dominate their sales figures, but still having an IRL presence through changing displays could provoke an interaction. “Maybe they will send me an email,” says Halchuk of the nearby resident whose interest might be piqued thanks to a glimpse of an Antoni & Alison dress or a vibrant scarf by Inouitoosh. Scarves from the shop were certainly in hot demand leading up to Mother’s Day last week—Halchuk says she was at the post office every day leading up to Sunday’s festivities mailing them out. But she hopes as the weather turns, shoppers will turn their attention to Gaspard’s other wares, like pieces from the new brands the store had picked up

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May 13, 2020 at 05:45PM The humble men’s chain is having a resurgence of late, largely thanks to the TV adaptation of Sally Rooney’s book Normal People. The male lead character – Connell Waldron – has triggered a social media avalanche thanks to the subtle silver chain he sports across the series. Whether adorning his bare chest or subtly framing a crew neck tee, the chain has become more of a thirst trap than actor Paul Mescal himself. In fact, there’s an entire Instagram account dedicated to it, with 94,000 followers and counting. View this post on Instagram The chain + tan really hits different #connellschain ? A post shared by Connell Waldron’s Chain (@connellschain) on May 5, 2020 at 10:26am PDT //www.instagram.com/embed.js In a recent interview with BBC Radio 1, Mescal acknowledged the account’s popularity saying, “It’s slightly terrifying. I’d be slightly embarrassed if the chain account took over my follower count. But it’s probably going to happen at some time, so I better reconcile that fact, that the chain will always be more popular than I am.” He added that, as someone who’s always worn a chain, he’s happy to see the accessory finally get the credit it deserves. “Hopefully we’re doing a good thing for chains all around the world and we’ll see them getting the correct respect they deserve. We’ve been sleeping on chains far too long in my opinion.” On the celebrity front, Shawn Mendes, Brad Pitt and Jake Gyllenhaal are all partial to a

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