Katie Girl of the Month: Sahar Nooraei

Sahar is one one of those girls that I Face-stalked before I knew. I kept seeing her masculin-feminin mug pop up in all sorts of Toronto cool-kids party pics and I couldn't help but wonder, 'What's a girl like that doing in this city?' Sahar's look is part Dylan, part Cry Baby, part Beatnik and totally Parisian. She has this amazing hair that punctuates each of those looks with crystal clear personality. Sometimes it's Blonde on Blonde curly, sometimes it's neatly tucked back like a latter day English butler. Also, she's super tall, waifish and only 21 years old. Oh AND she's the EIC of newbie Menswear mag, Rostam. Go figure, right?

Can We Hang Out With You, Todd Selby?

As if I didn't have enough of a complex about moving back into my childhood room avec les parentals, Todd Selby's gorge-and-a-half photos on http://theselby.com/ of some of the coolest pads around the world make me kind of want to kill myself... either that, or aspire towards becoming filthy rich and/or marry into a titled family who own many an uninhabited castle. Oh wait, that's already my goal... Ok, back to the point! Todd Selby is great and I know that you've all been fans forever just like me, so quizzing him about the East Village, life behind the lens and his new book, The Selby is in Your Place, last week during his personal appearance at Holt Renfrew, was obviously a walk in the park!

How did you get into photographing?

I always travelled to interesting places with my family growing up, and my dad always took pictures, so I started taking pictures. We never went anywhere typical, we went to Berlin when the Berlin Wall was falling, we went to Papua New Guinea, we went to the Amazon. We always did really cool trips!

Who would you photograph if you could from the past and the present? Napoleon Bonaparte in his island prison. Present, I’d like to photograph the Obama first family in the White House, and that includes the First Dogs. I’d also really like to shoot the astronauts on the International Space Station.

In the forward of your book, Lesley Arfin insinuates that your East Village apartment sucks. Do you agree? Lesley Arfin kind of insinuated that, but she also asked me that if I moved out, she wanted first dibs on my apartment. I think she makes fun of it but at the same time she wants in.

What do you like about living in the East Village? I love all the little restaurants and I love that its still got a lot of personality and its not just giant chain stores. It’s a lot of mom and pop spots. Its an interesting place.

Cabs? Subway? Bike? I’m buying a bike but it’s hard for me to choose so I’ve been looking for months now. I’ve had seven bikes in New York and they’ve all got stolen. I like to walk, I walk to shoots as much as I can.

What's your favourite movie? Is it mostly about the scene or the visuals in a movie that would get you? Mod Fuck Explosion by Jon Moritsugu. You’ve got to go check it out. The dialogue, the acting, the visual, the soundtrack - it's my favourite movie so it's got to win on all counts, right?

Can you describe your style without using phrases like boho chic, old Hollywood glamour or anything with a twist? I wouldn’t use anything of those anyways… I guess you would describe it as colourful.

Dreaming of Death Valley

Designers have become experts when it comes to bottling vague and random influences into stellar collections that may or may not actually look anything in reality like what they do in their minds. Anything from an Antonioni film to the lengthy neck of a tribally dressed African woman can be transformed into simple tees and short shorts. travel is a big one and as of late, my interest has been especially piqued by the constant recurrence of Southwestern locales, one such being Death Valley, California. Maybe it's just that I've become personally obsessed with the area as of late, but the place seems to fascinating that I vow to hit it next time I fly Westward. Sandy dunes as far as the eye can see and a topography that can only be compared to that of the Middle East - all located in Cali!


Lisa Mayock and Sophie Buhai often pull from the Southwest, and I spose its because they hail from Pasadena and Los Angeles. Resort 2010 was no different, as they referenced Antonioni's (I wasn't kidding.. ) 1970 Death Valley-centred film, Zabriskie Point. To my eye, I can't make the connection beyond the fact that the collection is full of easy, safari/vacation inspired pieces that feature slightly Tex Mex looking patterns... but I don't think I really care. I want to buy it all. Would you?


Fellow Pasadena natives Laura and Kate Mulleavy are similarly Southerwesternly inclined, most specifically with their Spring and Fall 2010 collections. For Spring, the sisters took a characteristically dark take on Death Valley, recalling its 'singed earth' by burning, ripping, sandpapering and painting cheesecloth, wool and leather. The models basically looked as dead as the earth, and certainly too dead for the rest of the state but not my closet, right?

The Drake General Store #3

Hey Torontonians! Did you know that that The Drake, otherwise known as the coolest hotel in town, has a store? In fact - they've got three! The Drake General Store #3 opened today at 82a Bathurst St (just south of King St) and let me just say that it's one of the cutest places I've ever been! Carrying a mish-mash of literally everything from mini-music boxes that twirl to the tune of Moon River, to granny-printed dishes that disapprove from below your food, to their in-house t-shirt line Shared, magic-themed for Spring! They've also got quirky decor on lock - they even have a heart-designed fortune telling machine! (For your info, it told me to stop getting fat, which I thought was pretty good advice...)

The youngest Drake General Store is the kind of place that makes it hard to buy every single thing you pass by, lucky for me - they didn't have their register set up for their little preview day. (My wallet thanks you, Drakers) I will totally be a financial mess next stop by because as you can see in the pics below there are about 5,000 amazing things to buy... top of my list? A lucky necklace with a pendant made of a strung together horseshoe, horse bridle and open palm.

My Feet Need: Red Door Spa

With all of my freakishly involved story-telling about my various freakish obsessions - be them fashion, fashion history, wearing fashionable things and so on - I've never really filled you in on my obsession with my body. Not in the anno way of course (at least not usually) but more like in a hardcore workoutish type of way as well as a pretty intense fascination with my actual innerworkings.

I've been working pretty hard at the gym lately so when I heard about Red Door, the Thursday-Saturday (between the hours of 7PM -11PM to be exact) foot-massage-only offshoot of Che Bella Spa, I was damn excited to pamper my peepers! Once in the relaxing homey space - my lovely massage-therapist Amanda not only took to my over-exercised legs with expert care, but she also kept telling me all this crazy shit about my feet! "Are you feeling pain in your neck? Your toes are out of whack... Are you feeling pain in your lower back? Your feet are really dry..." Like, actually? Tell me more! Like really though... did you know any of that? To any of y'all who wear heels like they're going out of style - a trip like mine is damn necessary this summer. Do it! Your feet will thank you! (Did I actually just say that... ?)

The CFDA's Latino Glamour Shots

To celebrate next week's CFDA Awards, the cameras were turned on the nominees for a majorly glossy and slightly ridiculous looking photoshoot. Don't get me wrong - the boys are looking totally babeular, but to my mind they are kind of also reminding me of cast members of a Latino soap. Or just any soap opera in general...

Alexander Wang: the androgynous, controlling mafia master who controls his
robotic girl-clan with even the slightest of glares

Joseph Altuzarra and Prabal Gurung: Two star-crossed lovers who cling to the wives that were picked by their family yet long to be dressing in drag together

Marc Jacobs: the elusively insane brother who's physical appearance is never made but mental influence is always felt