Fashion Monday with JJ Lee

from the minds of Wondermark Listen live on the CBC audio player , at 3:49 PM Pacific!

Thankless job of the week. Trying to pull off a Wonder Woman costume for a television show . How unwonderful. Why it won't work... read Michael Chabon's unitard theory in the New Yorker .

A short and sweet post about Fashionator 1000 and his campaign to improve the fashion sense of Canada's federal leaders on Jen Gerson's blog .

Andy Warhol’s Salvatore Ferragamo shoes. They are described as Brogues…they are in fact plain-toe Bal-type Oxfords. Am I wrong here? Brogues usually refer to shoes with punches in it. An Oxford will have v-shaped lace opening or closed lacing. I like the shabby chic of Warhol’s. Need I say, I LOVE them.

I spoke with Carly Lenarduzzi of Mintage Vintage in Vancouver about a few tips on how to buy a classic prom dress that's a blast from the past. I shared them with Stephen Quinn of CBC's On The Coast  in Vancouver. She's online on Etsy and has a store in Vancouver: www.mintagevintage.com carly@mintagevintage.com 1714 commercial drive, vancouver, bc 604.mintage

Today, I will be talking about how to buy a vintage grad (vintage prom) dress. What details to look out for and how to buy online. My advice comes from the lovely Carly Lenarduzzi at Mintage  in Vancouver (also on Etsy.com ). She has an expert eye and know what makes a great vintage find. Tune in today by live stream at 3:50 PM PACIFIC, on CBC Radio One in Vancouver, 88.1 FM or AM 690, for tips on going the oldie but goody route.

CINDERELLA PROJECT!!!! I had an amazing weekend being a Fairy Godfather. Yes, I had a magic wand. Made of chocolate. I received as my reward for helping three senior high school grads pick out their graduation suits as part of the Cinderella Project . My Cinder-fellas , that’s what they’re called, are students who have overcome lots of adversity and, to tell the truth, have survived heart-breaking life experiences to finish their studies and stand forth as graduates. The Cinderella Projects rewards them by providing suits, ties, shirts, shoes and more for free so they can be decked out to perfection for Grad Night (in the US, it’s Prom Night). Thirty teen boys and 130 girls went through the experience. The young women, of course, received beautiful dresses. Later today, I’ll be talking about my experience this weekend on CBC Radio One in Vancouver at 3:49 PM Pacific. Listen live with a pop-up player here . If you can’t wait to hear what the Cinderella Project experience...

For Spring 2011,  Barneys New York has a special edition Schott leather jacket. They originated the classic asymmetrical-zippered design of the Perfecto. It was made famous by Marlon Brando in the The Wild Ones . Schott will tell you it also appeared on the cover of Born to Run (love it, and the way the jacket looks there). Like jeans, a great jacket should be tight as a second skin but also comfortable as one. I wrote about the Perfecto a few years back - the pointers are still relevant. The ultimate cool coat Choosing the best leather jacket for that just-a-bit-dangerous feeling Leather should be totally cool -- and it can be, if men know how to wear it correctly. Too bad many don't. These past few weeks, I've identified a number of atrocious leather faux pas and found a few fixes: 1. Dressing like a cast member of The Matrix. To the dude on the C-Train who wears sunglasses and a long leather trench: Hello, you're not Keanu Reeves and the public transit syst...

As a recent San Francisco Chronicle article declared: pocket squares, handkerchiefs, puffs, what have you, are returning to the menswear lexicon thanks to TV shows like Mad Men. In Vancouver, a city which takes going casual seriously, the spray of fabric has become an acceptable replacement for a tie. It is dressy but not too dressy. But what of the pocket that holds it: the breast pocket? Imagine if the breast pocket were not there. What would be lost? Angled correctly a breast pocket, distinguished by the tab of fabric known as a welt, has the desirable effect of visually lifting and broadening the chest. Sometimes careless suit makers will make a breast pocket dead, flat horizontal, in which case, it would only visually fatten the wearer’s torso by making it look boxy. But a great breast pocket rises slightly towards the shoulder. Not too acutely. If done right it can enliven the dead zone between the lapels and the shoulder and through the introduction of a slight diag...

The big news is broody boy's hair is looking kind of red . I didn't really notice because I couldn't help see past the sheer mundanity of his tuxedo. On the left is how he appeared on the red carpet Sunday evening. The only concession he made to the black tie protocol was the satin-faced peaked lapel and the single button. The paucity of true dinner jacket details is dismaying. Is looking elegant such a crime? In the picture on the right, I've altered and added a few touches essential to a refined evening look: Bow tie - Yes, there are young men who hate wearing long ties during the day. So why do they wear them when they have to dress up? Why not skip the working man's leash and knot a bow instead. Nothing says, "I'm here for a good time," like a bow tie. Pocket square - take a white handkerchief and iron it into a square. Put it in your breast pocket. If you don't have a white handkerchief, fold a piece of paper into a square, it can...

Read the online version  here  (hip hip hooray) - but it lack pictures. So, here are a some of the items (abbreviated) in living RGB colour. At Crabtree and Evelyn, West Vancouver, Kent hand-made comb with case. The comb-maker of seven British monarchs. Brush your hair like you're Prince Harry. William, well, he doesn't have enough to use a comb, now does he ($29.75)? UGG Australia's super comfortable Ascot slippers in suede with shearling. Wear them in our out. Can be found at the Australian Boot Company $149.95. Designer Paul Smith, while visiting Vancouver's Holt Renfrew, put things this way: "Be brave. Do things more punchy, more special." Smith's signature stripes and bashful cowgirl hit the mark (at Holt Renfrew, starting at $105). They're dry and wry and give man jewelry a good name. Killer dice at Birks, $125. The glinty numbers are crystals. Box is crocodile stamped leather. For the nerdier Dungeons & Dragons-type man, ie m...

Three years ago, BC Place stadium experienced a roof failure. As CBC Vancouver's design columnist, I spoke with one of the designers of BC Place's roof, Horst Berger. As a partner in the engineering firm of Geiger Berger, they designed several air-supported roofs including Minneapolis's Metrodome. Here's the original piece: " Original BC Place roof engineers split over design issues (This Vancouver by Design column originally aired On The Coast on CBC Radio One in Vancouver) January 9, 2007 - Vancouver - One of the original partners in the design company behind BC Place's roof told Vancouver By Design he left the company precisely because of a dispute over the design of such structures. Horst Berger was one half of Geiger Berger - the company which designed the stadium's air supported roof; it collapsed last week after tearing. Described by local engineers, as "daring, innovative, and pre-eminent" in the field of fabric roofs, Berger ended his par...

“In times of stress, we need something to lift our spirits. Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going – perfect to ward off the blues,” explains Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute® . “Honeysuckle derives its positive qualities from a powerful bond to its mother color red, the most physical, viscerally alive hue in the spectrum.”  Eiseman continues, “The intensity of this festive reddish pink allures and engages. In fact, this color, not the sweet fragrance of the flower blossoms for which it was named, is what attracts hummingbirds to nectar. Honeysuckle may also bring a wave of nostalgia for its associated delicious scent reminiscent of the carefree days of spring and summer.”

The Blackfeet Indian Pencil - I own only this stub now. It is no longer manufactured on the soil of the Blackfeet Nation. It has a natural cedar finish. The graphite is dark and smooth -- sometimes lesser pencils have grit in them. A favourite followed by the Dixon Ticonderoga natural finish with a green and yellow ferrule (the part that holds the eraser).

The 12 - little things that count Instead of making a list of new things I want for the holidays I'm reflecting on the dozen items that make a difference to me - kind of like counting blessings.