Terry Selinger: Relaxed and refined

By Ashley Martin

As a manager of The Willow on Wascana, Terry Selinger keeps a “relaxed professional” wardrobe.

“We’re not that old-school steak house, wear your tie and vest and that sort of thing,” the 33-year-old explained. “We want the guests to be comfortable so we dress the same way.”

Selinger learned the value of dressing to impress while living in England and now makes an effort to look his best — but it’s hard with the limited shopping available to men in Regina. “For men’s clothing, there’s really four places to go for nice clothes,” he said, listing Havik, The Bay, VIP Mens Wear and Colin O’Brian as his favourite stores. “You go anywhere else — Calgary, Toronto, Winnipeg even — you’ve got so many more options.”

GLASSES: J.F. Rey from Viva Optical. “Nobody has glasses like them.”

SHIRT: The Bay. “Most of my dress shirts are Kenneth Cole, just because the fit is really good.”

BELT: Aldo.

PANTS: Alberto from VIP Menswear.

SHOES: Kenneth Cole from The Bay.

(from QC April 12)

Sarah Kowalchuk-Norton: Stylin’ stylist

From the March 29 issue of QC
By Ashley Martin
Photo by Don Healy

Fashion is an important part of Sarah Kowalchuk-Norton’s work. A hair stylist for 11 years — 3 1/2 of those at Soma, where she is also general manager — “it’s a big part of my work. Part of being a stylist is having a fashion-forward look to encourage your clients to try new things.” Kowalchuk-Norton has fun with her ever-changing wardrobe and tries to shop locally as much as possible, in Regina, Saskatoon and Lumsden where she lives. “I think there’s a lot of great shops right in Saskatchewan where you can get a lot of cool things, so if I can support local boutiques then I will.”

1. NECKLACE: Acorn ecoboutique in Lumsden. “A girl in Lumsden makes them, Ali Thompson.”

2. SHIRT: Three in Lumsden.

3. JACKET: Foosh in Edmonton.

4. BRACELET: Acorn ecoboutique.

5. PANTS: Manhattan Casuals in Saskatoon.

6. SHOES: Swank Shoe Lounge in Saskatoon. “They’re super comfy but they’re kind of playful and sexy. I can wear them all day at work.”

Michelle Hunter: Funky and frugal

from our March 8 issue
By Ashley Martin, QC

Michelle Hunter’s sense of style is determined by her situation. “I really like eclectic things, but in my career I like to project a professional image,” said Hunter, who is recently retired. “If I’m out with friends I like to be kind of casual, funky, but age-appropriate. I don’t really want to look like I’m trying to look like I’m 19 or 20 years old,” the 51-year-old added. An avid proponent of Regina’s arts community, Hunter is a frugal consumer — and she hates shopping. “My husband always laughs at me because he says I’m missing that gene in my body.”

1. EARRINGS: Dalmys at Northgate Mall (closed in 1991). “These are vintage. I’ve had them for probably 30 years. They’re a lot of fun and people always comment on them when I wear them.”

2. WHITE SHIRT: Bootlegger.

3. SWEATER: Winners.

4. SCARF: From New York. “I always like to pick up something when I’m travelling and I really like scarves.”

5. BRACELET: Hillberg & Berk. “I bought it at a silent auction because it was such a good cause.”

6. LEGGINGS: Running Room. “They have multiple purposes and they go great with boots.”

7. BOOTS: Steve Madden.

Hopps is hopping

New athletic line Hopps Limited working to create meaningful items.

From QC March 15 issue
By Ashley Martin
Photos by Michael Bell

As they say, necessity is the mother of invention. Such is true for Hopps Limited.

Jaime Boldt, co-founder of this athletic clothing company, was in Santa Barbara for her daughter Spencer’s basketball camp. When Spencer saw other players wearing loose-fitting tank top-like jerseys, she wanted one of her own — which led to Boldt turning the hotel room into a clothing factory. The experience gave her an idea.

“(We) started talking about some gaps in the market that we saw,” said Boldt “About things that we didn’t see that we used to see all the time, like those old Beaver Canoe hoodies that everybody used to wear.”

Thus Boldt and her lifelong friend Faisal Sethi — who has a 15-year career in creative design — started a business. Hopps has expanded to include T-shirts, hoodies, watches and more.

The entrepreneurs are making sure to give back through their company: $1 from each item sold helps empower girls through sport and education.

Get Hopps clothes online at hoppslimited.com or at World of Trout.

FAISAL SETHI

It’s kind of surprising that Sethi started a clothing company because he’s never been big into fashion and admits he “can’t stand shopping.” He goes for the basics: “I love the classic white T-shirt and jeans. I think it’s simple and it’s transcended time and space, basically. It’s always been a cool normal thing to wear. I love accessories, too. A fine watch or an eclectic pair of shoes or socks, but I don’t go shopping, really.”

HAT: Coal Headwear, from Austin, Texas. “I wear it everywhere.”

COAT: Canada Goose down bomber jacket.

HOODIE: Hopps Limited.

PANTS: Corduroys from the Gap.

SHOES: New Balance.

DOG SWEATER: Woof, from New York.

BRODY BOLDT

HAT: Hopps Limited.

HOODIE: Hopps Limited.

JEANS: LRG.

SHOES: Sanuk.

JAIME BOLDT

SCARF: Infinity by American Apparel.

PLAID SHIRT: American Eagle. “Very old and worn but I love it.”

T-SHIRT: Jordan T-shirt by Hopps Limited. “When you talk about athletes and who’s iconic from my era, it is Michael Jordan.”

JEANS: Joe’s Jeans, from the U.S. “It’s all about a good pair of jeans. Jeans and T-shirts never go out of style.”

SHOES: Minnetonkas, from Coda.

SPENCER BOLDT

TOQUE: Hurley.

HOODIE: Hopps Limited.

JEANS: Levis.

SHOES: Mukluks. “I just like comfy clothes and my Mukluks, I wear them everywhere.”

TODD BOLDT

T-SHIRT: Gretzky by Hopps Limited.

WATCH: Hopps Limited.

JEANS: Hudson.

SHOES: Converse.

Koko Patisserie

A look back at the tastiest Inventory feature in QC’s short history — Koko Patisserie from our Feb. 23 issue.

KOKO PATISSERIE-1205 Broad St. & Hotel Saskatchewan

Marcie and Kirby Punshon opened Koko almost three years ago on Broad Street. “I always loved to bake,” said Marcie, whose business-minded husband Kirby turned it into their profession. Koko expanded its operation in November, opening a shop in the Hotel Saskatchewan lobby and offering coffee and sandwiches in addition to its array of delicious pastries.

MOST POPULAR CAKE: Callebaut chocolate mousse cake (8 inch), $39 

MOST POPULAR SANDWICH: Goat cheese with wild mushrooms, pesto and roasted tomatoes, $7.95

BESTSELLING PETIT GATEAU: Lemon ganache, $3.50

BESTSELLING TART: Lemon, $3.75 

BESTSELLING SLICE: Raspberry cheesecake brownie, $2.95 

OVERALL BESTSELLER: Bittersweet chocolate truffle cookie, $1.50 

BESTSELLING MACAROON: French macaroon with coffee buttercream, $1.25 

Let it snow

In light of this weekend’s anticipated cold snap, here’s a look back at our winter fashion feature from the March 1 issue of QC.

Let it snow

Cold weather shouldn’t mean a freeze on fashion

By Ashley Martin, QC

This year’s mild winter is a welcome change for best friends Ashley Hooker and Chris Hawryluk. As Hawryluk puts it, “Saskatchewan’s the sort of place where if you forgot your keys somewhere, you could die.” So fashion usually takes a back seat: “You have to dress for what the temperature is outside.” Added Hooker, “It’s definitely that classic battle between utility and creativity.”

CHRIS HAWRYLUK

“I like to dress pretty conservatively: a pair of boots, some jeans with a blazer, tie,” said Hawryluk, a 29-year-old U of R grad. “I like to dress like I’m trying.” Even when it’s cold out, the Koko coffee expert doesn’t let the weather inhibit his style: “You can still have that nice little rolled cuff on your jean but you’ve got to wear two pairs of socks now.”

1. TOQUE: Below the Belt.

2. SUNGLASSES: Ray-Ban.

3. SCARF: “A friend of mine’s mother made me this scarf.”

4. COAT: The Bay.

5. JEANS: Levis, from Winners.

6. SOCKS: “I always like having fun socks on so I can roll up my jeans.”

7. BOOTS: The Bay.

ASHLEY HOOKER

Hooker, a 24-year-old University of Regina French student, relies a lot on her family for fashion. “I have a lot of hand-me-downs, and my mom and sisters always get me gifts of clothing and that’s what I wear most of the time,” Hooker explained. “I just work with what they give me.” Her winter wardrobe is “warm and practical,” and she opts for dark colours and earth tones because “it’s very easy to pair anything you’d like or different patterns.”

1. JACKET: “It’s my sister’s old jacket. The double-breasted is very warm, keeps out the wind.”

2. SCARF: “From my nonna in Italy.”

3. BOOTS: “A gift from my mother.”

Stanislava Frolova: One look fits all

From the April 5 issue of QC
By Ashley Martin
Photo by Bryan Schlosser

Her home city is one of the world’s fashion capitals, which explains Stanislava Frolova’s lifelong affinity for style. She moved to Regina from Moscow eight years ago with her family. Now married with two children, working full time as a relationship manager at Conexus Credit Union and studying human resources at SIAST, Frolova still finds time to look good. Keeping it casual yet dressy, she combines her wardrobe for work and play: “I kind of like to mix it up. I don’t have separate really nice jeans for going out and nice work clothes. I have it together. I just think I have one style and I always like to look that same kind of style.”

1. EARRINGS: A gift, she guesses from Le Chateau or Aldo.

2. CARDIGAN: Dots.

3. PURSE: Stella & Sway.

4. BRACELET: A gift from her friend in Moscow.

5. PANTS: Bootlegger.

6. BOOTS: Sears. “I love heels. They make me look taller and slimmer.”

Handsome Thursday!

In honour of Handsome Thursday, here’s last month’s feature from QC.

Best friends get spiffy for Handsome Thursday.

By Ashley Martin

Bart Soroka, a third-year economics student, and Nathan Sgrazzutti, a second-year theatre student, are rarely poorly dressed, but when they heard about Handsome Thursday, they were able to apply a fancy title to their lack of jeans and hoodies.

“I dress like this probably more often than I need to — mostly because I spent a lot of time managing this summer so I have a large collection of ties I like to bust out every once in a while,” said Soroka, 20.

“I actually dress like this every day,” added Sgrazzutti, 19. “I work days at Earls Vic East so I wear this every day, and just because I’m working so constantly it ends up that I won’t have time to change, so I end up going somewhere in my work clothes. I’ll end up at the bar in my work clothes half the time, I’ll end up at school in my work clothes so it just becomes part of my style and personality.”

Handsome Thursday originated in Saskatoon last year with the idea of dressing up for work — especially if you normally dress down.

This concept suits Soroka just fine.

“I just can’t let my nice clothes hang and not get used until I have to wear them for a presentation or something. That seems cruel,” he said.

Sgrazzutti agreed: “I like the idea of Handsome Thursday. I love getting dressed up and going out. I’m a big vest guy; I like to wear vests a lot. I’ve got six.”

Follow Handsome Thursday on Twitter at @handsomethurs.

_____

BART SOROKA (pictured on the right)

Soroka knows the tricks of dressing well — matching ties and pocket squares, or breaking the rules when necessary. Today was one of those days, because “I like the pink shirt with the black tie,” he said. “I’ve found that pink is a great way to draw the eye. Having a nice dark jacket on, taking it off for a presentation; having the bright pink is an excellent way to make people look and stop talking.”

BLACK STRIPED SUIT JACKET: Moores.

PINK SHIRT: Le Chateau.

PINK POCKET SQUARE: Le Chateau.

CUFFLINKS: “My dad gave me these for my 16th birthday.”

STRIPED PANTS: Moores.

_____

NATHAN SGRAZZUTTI (pictured on the left)

Nathan Sgrazzutti is not a casual guy. “I can’t wear jeans, I can’t wear T-shirts,” he said. As a bartender and acting student, he moves around a lot on the job, and “I hate jeans because I find them really restricting.” He ends up wearing black a lot for work, but has one colourful fashion ambition: “I want to buy a sweater-vest. I think that would be hilarious. I’d rock the sweater-vest.”

SHIRT: Moores. “It’s a slim-fit because I don’t fit anything else. They have to bring the shoulders out and bring the sides in.”

TIE CLIP: Le Chateau. “Wonderful thing, absolutely an amazing invention. Your tie doesn’t get into food, it doesn’t fly everywhere.”

TIE: Le Chateau.

BELT: Mexx.

PANTS: Banana Republic.

(FROM THE FEB. 9, 2012 ISSUE OF QC)

Fashion: Courtney Christensen

By Ashley Martin

Courtney Christensen works at Madame Yes, so we could venture to guess her style is not exactly mainstream.

The 21-year-old, who is also a stylist at Chatters in east Regina, describes her style as “unique, different. I just have fun with it – something funky, kind of ripped apart or laced. That’s what I usually go for.”

1. HAIR: As a stylist, Christensen’s hair is an accessory on its own. Dyed black and blond, she punches up the colour with clip-ins in red and purple, and a bandana from On Track Fashions in her hometown of Fort Qu’Appelle.

2. ACCESSORIES: Christensen wears earrings, bracelets and rings aplenty. The earrings were made at The Box on Scarth Street, while her rings came from the exhibition.

3. SHIRT: One of many Madame Yes items finding their way into her closet, layered over lace tank tops from Garage.

4. BOTTOMS: Warehouse One jean shorts are layered over lacy leggings from London Drugs.

5. BOOTS: From Urban Planet, where Christensen says you sometimes have to dig to find good stuff.

(From the Sept. 15, 2011 issue of QC)