Interview with Phashion

"The way we chose to see the world creates the world we see" Phashions Interview with Fashion and Beauty Blogger, Leah Lamarche

Leah Lamarche is a Graphic Designer in the fashion industry that also moonlights an extremely successful Fashion and Beauty blogger! Lucky for us, she decided to sit down and answer a few quick questions about starting her blog, building her success and her next steps! What inspired you to begin your blog?   I’ve wanted to blog since I started watching fashion and beauty bloggers on YouTube back in 2012 or so. But I was right at the beginning of school studying graphic design and I didn’t have time to focus on starting a blog, so I promised myself that when I was done school that I would start a blog. And that’s just what I did! I got my first job out of school In the fashion industry about 3 months after graduation and once I was settled in my work routine, I launched my fashion and lifestyle blog in the beginning of 2015. In the blog I talk about what it’s like to be part of the fashion industry in Montreal. The styles that I’m into, the fashion events I go to. And sometimes just random lifestyle things that I like to share! Yes!! It took a while but having the blog has allowed me to meet a lot of people in the fashion industry in the city and eventually got invited to a lot of event; fashion shows and launches in the city! My very first invite was to Barbe Rose lingerie fashion show back in March 2015. I got to meet the models and the designer and sit in the VIP, It was a really nice experience! In fact they have all been great and I’ve met so manny great people. Recently in the past year or so I have tried my hand at modeling in some fashion shows. Something I never thought that I would do. I’ve found it so much fun and such a rush! It’s nice to be able to experience fashion from a different perspective, being the “object” or “performer” rather than the audience! It’s cool! ​ ​To tell you the truth, I’m not sure just yet. I’m sort of going with the flow right now and see where it all takes me! I’m wanting to continue with the modeling for now. I think I would like to take my blog to the next level and get into more edgier fashion and photography. My blog over very everyday fashion lifestyle at the moment, which is great because that is my life lol! But it would be super fun the experiment with some dynamic fashion that I have never tried before! Follow her on Instagram to keep up with her stylish content @leahlamarche Has your blog given you any cool opportunities to go to events, shows or meet influencers you admire?  What can we expect next? Check out her blog here "The blog is not just about beauty, it is about embracing the beauty we are all individually and naturally given. The way we chose to see the world creates the world we see".  ​

If i made it this far

I didn't make it this far just to make it this far

Dress from Dynamite
Clutch from BCBG
Heels from Aldo
Smile is all my own

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Beurd At festival de Mode & Design

This past weekend was the annual festival de mode & design. I’ve attended this festival for the past few years and had to say it’s been my favourite fashion show hosted in Montreal. The fact that it’s held on an outdoor stage in downtown Montreal’s quartier des spectacles, featuring some of Montreal’s top designers. 

I attended the show this past Saturday. When I first arrived at quartier des spectacles and noticed that the layout of the whole festival was different thank what it has been for the past few years. The stage was not closers to saint Catherine street. And the VIP tent just next to it. To be honest I was pretty disappointed in the stage set up change because I felt that it made the stage look smaller and less impressive then it has been in the past. Also the VIP media tent placement wasn’t ideal to see what was happening on stage. It was on ground level, while it past years it was on s higher platform, putting you at level or higher than the runway, which I prefer.  And ground level I was looking up at the models. Kinda a downer! Anyways!

> I was there to see the Beurd street wear show. Who specializes in original all over prints, and street wear styles. Now listen..... I’m all about streetwear as you all must know by now. Streetwear is my jam, especially Montreal streetwear. And I’m so down with all over prints! As a graphic designer I create them on the daily! I guess to be perfectly honest, I didn’t see as much streetwear vibes as I would have liked to with Beurd. There were a few cool 80s/90s hiphop vibe hoodies and sweater which a gals got mad love for. The first look to come out was so In Living colour circa 1990! But the rest of the collection felt very beachy with flamingo, palm trees printed button up shirts and turquoise pants. And don’t get me wrong, I’m down with a whole lot of turquoise. I just didn’t feel it embodies the city look. It’s know it’s summer and all but I guess I didn’t get much Montreal flavour from it. At least not as much as I was expecting. In fact it was very surfer/ Cali vibes. Especially since some of the models were carrying surf boards haha! Did I miss something? As diverse as Montreal is, I’m nearly positive that there is no surf of any kind in this lovely city. It could very well be clothing meant to wear while traveling on vacation. But if I were purchasing Montreal made apparel, I would really want it to represent Montreal!  I guess I feel like the promotion for Beurd was giving me more of a feeling like it would be more urban streetwear. It seems like a style for the more younger crowed. 

The models were caring lamps and potted plans. I guess I’m failing to grasp the concept over all. But I must say the models energy were very joyful and bubbly. They smiled and wave and the crowed, threw t-shirts and it interacted with each other. Which is refreshing and nice to see in my opinion. 

Maybe Beurd fall collection is more my cup of tea! After looking on Beurd social media pages and online store, I found more pieces and branding that suits my taste. I would have really liked to see more colour block clothing, but I really must say that I liked the energy of the models rocking the clothing. They seemed like a real team and real friends. I love to see that in any kind of show!

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Lola Rosa | No compromise on taste

Here’s a little something new about me. I’ve never really mentioned this just yet but for the past few months, I have been experimenting with my diet and going through little spurts of veganism. Yup! I’m a self-proclaimed “part-time Vegan”. What does that mean exactly? Well, I want to say that I lean towards a mostly vegan diet which is why I was so happy to discover Lola Rosa!!!! A cool vegetarian restaurant.

So, I first rolled up at Lola Rosa on Parc Ave, just on the trendy Plateau are a.k.a my favourite part of Montreal. I loved the decor inside. Super trendy, hipster vibes, low lighting, soft music. My kind of style place for sure.

First things first is drinks!!! Haha, I mean come on now, let’s not kid ourselves, were going all in, right? I was browsing over the signature cocktail menu and in case you didn’t know Sour drinks are my jam so I chose the keylime pisco sour, made with pisco, homemade key lime, avocados and lime. Delicious. Just what I wanted to suit my sour personality…. I mean taste buds. Ha! No but I really loved it for real!

Next up on the menu was appetizers!!! My favvv! The cool thing about Lola Rosa is that there are a lot of things on the menu that give you the option of vegan! for my first appetizer I chose a plate of nachos which usually comes with mozzarella, salsa, black bean, corn, roasted pepper, green onion, sour cream and guacamole. But I felt like experimenting so I chose the vegan option, so hold the sour cream and replace the mozzarella with Lola Rosa’s own homemade vegan cheese!

I’m a huge fan of cheesy nachos and honesty didn’t feel like I was missing anything with the vegan cheese. The combination of all other the ingredient with the nachos worked perfectly together. Perfect plate of nachos for a herbivore!

For my second appetizer, I decided on the Italian salad! I don’t really know why, I guess I felt that I still had ways to go when it came to how much food I was still about to chow down on, so I decided to keep it real or something lol but the salad really got the spot! Made with Romaine lettuce, sundried tomatoes, smoked tempeh, capers, Cesar and herbs dressing, croutons, olives. I swear I got bacon vibes in there! Obviously, there was not any bacon to speak of.
Maybe it was a Lola Rosa Jedi mind trick. Or that smoked tempeh!

Next was the main squeeze… or at least the first one. Ha!  You know I had to get the veggie burger. The Cajun Burger to be exact, because you know I’m spicy like that!  I swear I don’t think I’ve had a real beef burgers at least a year.

I always opt for the veggie burger where ever I can, so I had to try this one!  It in no way tried to mimic meet or beef taste, which is fine with me, it had its own hearty taste and feel that suited me perfectly, along with the fries. sweet potatoes patty, sautéed vegetable burger, onion rings, arugula and red onions.

I also asked for their special homemade spicy sauce to dip my fries in (I have a high tolerance for spicy). It wasn’t too hot in my opinion, very tasty but not too hot, then again my tolerance is high. The plate also came with a small green salad and sauce. I would never miss a meat patty with this killer combination.

And as my second main (oh yes a gal can eat) I had to have the Mac and cheese. Since I’m off my vegan bandwagon for this night at least I was all about living it up at indulging in some real honest to goodness, dairy cheese! I was not disappointed. I’m a fan of the Mac and cheese. I mean come on who isn’t? Jalapenos, aged cheddar, spinach,havarti. Served with green salad with this killer sauce!

After all this I figured it was time to try a second cocktail!! I was pretty stuffed as you can imagine.

My eye totally caught the turmeric Lassi. What an interesting combination. I’m a of mango lassi and I’m a fan of turmeric so why not? It’s actually really delicious, more on the sweet and slightly savory side rather than sour so my original keylime drink is still my big winner. But turmeric lassi is definitely an original and delicious cocktail. Would def order again!

Just as I thought it was about to be over! Bam! Dessert menu rolled up! So, you know I was about thug it out and have that extra room for dessert. Especially when there was choco-caramel pie on the menu. And just to be on the safe side, a gal ordered a lime pie too because that just the way I am. I thoroughly was living for the choco-caramel pie, it was everything I dreamed it would be. I’m such a sucker for caramel and combined with the chocolate and the
crumbly crust. Pure perfection! At all cost make sure you leave room for the chocolate caramel pie!

And lastly the lime pie for good measure. It was a nice fresh contrast to the heavy richness ofthe chocolate pie before. I’m always a fan of lime and it was giving me all of its lime sweet and sour realness, but in this moment, I think the chocolate pie was the ultimate heavy weight champion.

All in all, I’m so glad to know have discovered Lola Rosa, my now “part time vegan/vegetarian” friendly, trendy spot that I can go to when I’m fiending a nice night out and some cocktails and good food with some friends. I know that food has so much variety and flavor that my Veggie and non-veggie friends will both enjoy!

Festival Season

Summer, especially festival season, is the perfect time to don floor sweeping dresses and skirts! And yall already know about my little bohemian life! My long paisley skirt  is from Forever 21!

Beware of Dawg

Again with the grunge! but I cant help myself! This is me! With a little throwback Back to the future T-shirt and a cool plaid flannel shirt skirt thingy! thank you very very much!

Centre Helight | The Healing Light

This Spring as we Montrealers were still going through the treacherous weather a new place came to team Best Kept MTL’s attention: Centre Helight. We were invited to review the place by one of our favorite PR partners Felipe Del Pozo. I knew nothing of the centre or the services provided there and decided to give it a shot with an open mind. I arrived at the pristine center, accented in red, located close to Quartier des spectacles near Places Des Art. I was welcomed by Jasmine Lebeau, the manager. She explained to us the services that the health & treatment centre provides.

Helight is a natural technology that regulates cellular metabolism with light. It uses powerful red light-emitting diodes (LED) to revitalize cells while also providing the body with an overall sense of well-being. With Helight technology, cells benefit from the full power of repair.

Through a process comparable to photosynthesis in plants, Helight allows cells to transform light into energy. All of this was very new to me, but I loved the idea of it being comparable to photosynthesis in plants. It is 100% natural, non-invasive, no side effects, no pain. Great!

Jasmine offered us to try Helight for a period of 12 sessions. I just had to choose what I wanted to focus my treatment to. In the end I chose my face, to improve my collagen and elastine. After all it is supposed to be anti-aging and rejuvenating and a gal isn’t getting any younger if you know what I mean. So I went for it! I started my first session then and there. First having to remove my make-up and any creams from my face. There’s a little area in the back with sinks, mirrors, make-up remover and all that good stuff. Next I got put in a little room. There’s a comfy big white, dentist looking type of chair. I sat in it and Jasmine gets you settle in with pillow and a blanket. You are given special goggles to protect your eyes from the light. You just put them on,  sit back and relax while the attendant starts the light treatment machine.

For my case, my light treatment requires 10 mins of light to my face 2-3 times a week for effective results. So the light is turned on. I can’t really see anything because of the googles and my eyes are closed but I do see a bit of red from behind my eye lids, and that’s it, I lay for 10 mins and relax. There’s soft music playing in the center. I drift off and just meditate. 10 mins go by fast and a little sound goes off when the time is up, then the attendant comes in and moves the light machine and takes off the goggles. You have a little drink of water and boom you’re done! That little 10 mins is equivalent to 4 hours in the sunlight! pretty nice. I came out feeling pretty great, awake and rested. I continued these sessions for 6 weeks, 2 sessions a week for 10 mins each, same procedure every time.

I have to say, my skin was looking not so great when i first started Helight back in April. It was looking dull and dry. I started seeing improvement after every session, usually the next morning, my skin looking more hydrated, and brighter. After 6 sessions, my face was definitely softer!

I’ve finally come to the end of my 12 sessions and i must say my face is all set and fresh for the summer! I saw a great improvement over all. I just look a lot fresher and rested. And i feel great! it’s really something to take even just 10 minutes out of your day to lay down and take a little nap or clear your mind and lay in the ,sun.

The staff were so friendly and nice, it was a joy to see them every week. Super nice environment. I would definitely recommend Centre Helight to anyone looking for a natural alternative to improving their over all beauty and well being.

Still I Rise

BY MAYA ANGELOU

You may write me down in history

With your bitter, twisted lies,

You may trod me in the very dirt

But still, like dust, I'll rise.

Does my sassiness upset you?

Why are you beset with gloom?

’Cause I walk like I've got oil wells

Pumping in my living room.

Just like moons and like suns,

With the certainty of tides,

Just like hopes springing high,

Still I'll rise.

Did you want to see me broken?

Bowed head and lowered eyes?

Shoulders falling down like teardrops,

Weakened by my soulful cries?

Does my haughtiness offend you?

Don't you take it awful hard

’Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines

Diggin’ in my own backyard.

You may shoot me with your words,

You may cut me with your eyes,

You may kill me with your hatefulness,

But still, like air, I’ll rise.

Does my sexiness upset you?

Does it come as a surprise

That I dance like I've got diamonds

At the meeting of my thighs?

Out of the huts of history’s shame

I rise

Up from a past that’s rooted in pain

I rise

I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,

Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.

Leaving behind nights of terror and fear

I rise

Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear

I rise

Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,

I am the dream and the hope of the slave.

I rise

I rise

I rise.

Cover Girl!

Cover girl! Put the bass in your walk. Head to toe let your whole body talk
.
Wearing @fcapuanomtl Tarah dress in Re[action] fashion show. Photo by @morgpetphoto#montrealfashion #runway #modeling — at Musée McCord Museum.

Photoshoot Day

Ayo Slip dresses

Slip dresses are essentially an essential in your wardrobe. They are incredibly versatile, and can be styled in multiple ways. Wear it alone. or add warmth this Fall by layering under your favourite Fall jacket! 

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International Womens Day

And since we all came from a woman got our name from a woman and our game from a woman
I wonder why we take from our women? Why we rape our women do we hate our women?
Time to heal our women, be real to our women.
And if we don't we'll have a race of babies that will hate the ladies that make the babies. I know you're fed up, ladies, but keep ya head up

#tupac
#internationalwomensday

My Night At Lola Rosa

Heres a little something new about me. I’ve never really mentioned this just yet but for the past few months, I have been experimenting with my diet and going through little spurts of veganism. Yup! I’m a self-proclaimed “part-time Vegan”. What does that mean exactly? Well, I want to say that I lean towards a mostly vegan diet. Vegan: a person who does not eat or use any animal product, such as meat, fish, eggs, cheese, or leather. Sooooo I don’t do this vegansim a full 100%. For instance, I didn’t go throwing out any of my leather or fur clothing… dang. I just try to make a conscious effort to avoid products containing meat, fish , dairy and or eggs, I don’t consider it the end of the world if I do by accident sometimes. Also, sometimes I have some slip ups, mostly when there’s something that I really really want on the menu at a restaurant that contains animal products or something. Hence all these reasons I call myself a part-time vegan…. Or more appropriately a vegetarian…? pescetarian…?... ok ok I had a bacon omelet last week!! I confess!!!! For goodness sake I gave up a real turkey to have a Tofurky this past Christmas! Don’t I get some kind of vegan title for that at least!!!? It was actually really good though. 

All in all it doesn’t really matter, I don’t care much for the logistics of the title, I just call myself “part-time vegan”. Anyways, Yes I fall off the wagon sometimes when there’s something I really want, but for the most part I like to consciously eat vegan. And ultimately I would love to have a 100% vegan lifestyle. In time, lol. I’ll get there.

So as of lately as you could imagine, I’ve been keeping my eye open to places in the city where I can dine. Its sometimes difficult to go to a restaurant when you are staying away from animal products, most of the time you option a very minimal. You may get lucky sometimes but most of the time your choices are filtered down to a green salad… maybe a soup….? So yeah. Which is why I was so happy to discover Lola Rosa!!!! A cool vegetarian restaurant, and place that can cater to my veggie/ vegan lifestyle and also satisfies my want to go out to a nice restaurant for a meal with friends.

So, I first rolled up at Lola Rosa on Park ave, just on the trendy Plateau are a.k.a my favourite part or Montreal. I loved the decor inside. Super trendy, hipster vibes, low lighting, soft music. My kind of style place for sure.

First things first is dranks!!! Haha, I mean come on now, let’s not kid ourselves, were going all in, right? I was browsing over the signature cocktail menu and in case you didn’t know Sour drinks are my jam so I chose the keylime pisco sour, made with pisco, homemade key lime, avocados and lime. 'Twas delicious. just what I wanted to suit my sour personality…. I mean taste buds.Ha! No but I really loved it for real!

Next up on the menu was appetizers!!!!! My favvv! The cool thing about Lola Rosa is that there are a lot of things on the menu that give you the option of vegan! for my first appetizer I chose a plate of nachos which usually comes with mozzarella, salsa, black bean, corn, roasted pepper, green onion, sour cream and guacamole. but I felt like experimenting so I chose the vegan option, so hold the sour cream and replace the mozzarella with Lola Rosas own homemade vegan cheese! I’m a huge fan of cheesy nachos and honesty didn’t feel like I was missing anything with the vegan cheese. The combination of all other the ingredience with the nachos worked perfectly together. Perfect plate of nachos for a herbivore!

For my second appetizer, I decided on the Italian salad! I don’t really know why, I guess I felt that I still had ways to go when it came to how much food I was still about to chow down on, so I decided to keep it real or something lol but the salad really got the spot! Made with Romain lettuce, sundried tomatoes, smoked tempeh, capres, cesar and herbs dressing, croutons, olives. I swear I got bacon vibes in there! Obviously there was not any bacon to speak of. Maybe it was a Lola Rosa Jedi mind trick. Or that smoked tempeh!

Next was the main squeeze... or at least the first one. Ha!  You know I had to get the veggie burger. The Cajun Burger to be exact, Because you know im spicy like that!  I swear I don’t think Ive had a real beef burgers at least a year. I always opt for the veggie burger where ever I can, so I had to try this one!  It in no way tried to mimic meet or beef taste, which is fine with me, it had its own hearty taste and feel that suited me perfectly, along with the fries. sweet potatoe patty, sautéed vegetable burger, onion rings, aragula and red onions. I also asked for there special home made spicy sauce to dip my fries in ( I have a high tolerance for spicy). It wasn’t too hot in my opinion, very tasty but not too hot, then again my tolerance is high. The plate also came with a small green salad and sauce. I would never miss a meat patty with this killer combination. 

And as my second main (oh yes a gal can eat) I had to have the Mac and cheese. Since I’m off my vegan bandwagon for this night at least I was all about living it up at indulging in some real honest to goodness, dairy cheese! I was not disappointed. I’m a fan of the Mac and cheese. I mean come on who isn’t? Jalapenos, aged cheddar, spinach,havarti. Served with green salad with this killer sauce! 

After all this I figured it was time to try a second cocktail!! I was pretty stuffed as you can imagine. My eye totally caught the turmeric Lassi. What an interesting combination. I’m a of mango lassi and I’m a fan of turmeric so why not? It’s actually really delicious, more on the sweet and slightly savoury side rather than sour so my original keylime drink is still my big winner. But turmeric lassi is definitely an original and delicious cocktail. Would def order again!

I just as I though it was about to be over! Bam! Dessert menu rolled up! So you know I was about thug it out and have that extra room for dessert. Especially when there was choco-caramel pie on the menu. And just to be on the safe side, a gal ordered a lime pie too because that just the way I am. I throughly was living for the choco-caramel pie, it was everything I dreamed it would be. I’m such a sucker for caramel and combined with the chocolate and the crumbly crust. Pure perfection! At all cost make sure you leave room for the chocolate caramel pie! 

And lastly the lime pie for good measure. It was a nice fresh contrast to the heavy richness of the chocolate pie before. I’m always a fan of lime and it was giving me all of its lime sweet and sour realness, but in this moment I think the chocolate pie was the ultimate heavy weight champion.   

All in all I’m so glad to know have discovered Lola Rosa, my now “part time vegan/vegetarian“ friendly, trendy spot that I can go to when Im fiending a nice night out and some cocktails and good food with some friends. I know that food has so much variety and flavour that my Veggie and non-veggie friends will both enjoy!