Posts from ‘Katrin Leblond’
Bal en Blanc féerique
Aya and Kat designed a dress in one mornig for Aya’s “Bal en Blanc” (that means the white ball) for Aya’s graduation from Daycare Ceremony.
She was soooo proud of herself.
She asked me if I cried when I watched her do her Song and dance with the rest of the kids in her group.
I did.
Lovin’ the cowgirl style!
Here’s a new goddess dress that Kat designed for high summer August weddings and parties.
It has a layer of ivory silk chiffon over a soft jersey lining. The embellishments are all silk and beadwork and lace.
And of course some Bridal bibis…we love headpieces!
Summer heat is still here.
Now you are tanned.
This is the time to wear white and ivory and feel like a fairy queen.
Kat’s love of purple is about more than the color. It is about a family legacy.
It is a family legacy that started with her Grandfather, “Bonpapa”.
Bonpapa and Bonnemaman…where it all began…sitting on a purple couch in the purple house (otherwise know as Val Mauve).
Kat’s grandfather was a scientist at McGill University.
It is Kat’s grandfather that tracked the movement of living cells through the body and discovered that cells regenerate. You know how when you look at the pictures of cells they are always purple. Why purple!
Maybe he didn’t choose the colour… maybe whatever he invented had to be that way to be able to photograph the living cells… Maybe he wanted to make all his work purple… Kat doesn’t really know.
What she does know is that he had custom made purple polyester suits….and a purple office… and a purple house with purple bubble chairs made by a french designer from the french pavilion of Expo 67 because he was just oh so French. So French!
“I always had a grandfather in a purple suit before I ever knew why” says Kat.
Yes! That’s Kat at a family party in the country. The dress was found at a vintage dress boutique and fit like a glove.
What does purple mean to Kat now? Loyalty? Fidelity? “Mostly celebration. … the wild side of people” says Kat.
“People who choose to wear purple are celebrating themselves in this crazy wild way. There is this little bit of rebellion in purple that comes out more like celebration. I like it because everyone else that I know who loves purple is awesome. …Like Rebekah Crown(the boutique’s star quilter and fiber artist) to name just one, and grandmothers that keep dying their hair and it becomes kind of purple.”
“ Purple is the opposite of conformity” continues Kat.
“I put purple in fashion because I love all colour.” She states.
Purple in the store now
Elizabeth Johnston earrings available in purple (and lots of other shades too) in store now.
Let free. Live in purple. Be crazy. Laugh at the confines of society!
It’s the launch of the KL swimwear line today in the store.
We will officially be hosting a ladies only swimwear party at the store today from 4:00 to 8:00 today.
Come drink cocktails and try on the summer swim wear and dream of the sand and water and sun.
Come check out the new styles.
Katrin’s designs are hands down the most original fashion statements in pret a porter swimwear I have seen yet. I am soooo excited to try these all on.
Howl the call of the cottage in confidence.
Get ready for a high summer of pool side enjoyment and trips to the beach in style.
Yes to feeling good in a bathing suit! Yes to your body just the way it is! Yes to hot days!
Check out this two page colourful spread!
This is a new mag about Montreal and the creative people that fill this city.
Thank you M!
PS: Some of these styles are still available in the boutique.
Top left bending back (Bibi with red tulle $120, Red Pop Cardigan wool $74)
Bottom Left page (Poppy sexy dress XS only $99)
Top Right page (Katharina Dress XS, S, L, XL $149)
Right Page middle with butterfly hair clip (Goddess Dress $220)
Right Page bottom right (Party skirt cotton print $220, Silk Bustier $158)
There are SO many different elements to great style… confidence, comfort, and practicality to name only a few… makeup holding a huge part of how you can finish off an outfit and bring your personality/beauty together.
Now although the weather has been extremely hot (as of yesterday and what looks like today again), color is always welcome in the summer (and paired with KL ensembles… I mean, you gotta keep up with the vivid colors Kat constantly dreams up!).
From a full-blown multicolored eye look to a juicy lip tint in a bright hue, makeup can really add that third dimension to any given outfit!
So don’t be afraid to play with makeup, at the end of the day everything is eraseable and cosmetics are merely another art form…
Enjoy another scorcher!
Slap on some waterproof mascara, peach blush and bright pink gloss for an easy summer look on a day like today 
xox
YEAR 3 as Smirkus costume designer!
This years’ theme was Nature, the seasons, the elements. It was almost to broad a theme to start with. We tried different angles to approach Nature with a narrower filter. We settled on a Nature Rock-opera with a touch of Burning-man and a lot of KL style.
The Winters were purple, like when you see shadows on the snow. We added fun fur and icicle shapes. We put the emphasis on the feet because they are tight-rope walkers.
Here we have one of the Fire girls. This year’s goal was to make as many headpieces as possible. I find a head piece really frames and completes a costume. The fire girls are the contortionists.
Spring and summer expressed in flowers. One day I would love to do a whole show based on the birds and the bees…flowers, insects and foliage.
Autumn-Man, the superhero of leaves. This set of Fall foliage costumes required some hunting for sewable orange leaves. Green fake leaves are easy to come by, but yellows and oranges and reds required some searching. I finally found a supplier specialized in Retail decor. They also sold oversized fake ice cream cones.
Great work Katharina on the embellishments!
Our very Canadian looking lumberjacks. We just couldn’t help ourselves.
And here we have our rock-star unicyclists sporting some very extreme gear. I can’t wait to see these helmets light up under a spotlight. They were made with gem stone studs and a dis-assembled disco ball. Hanna made the power-ranger inspired gear.
These are the costumes for the Water girls. The wavy textures make these my favorite costumes. The girls also had headpieces made with blue hair extensions and purple hand-dyed yarn.
We did it again! This year my costume team consisted of:
Katharina Pitczuk and Hanna Broer (the two blue costumes above)
and Siobhan Martel (who is currently on tour with Smirkus).
Thank you Smirkus!
WE LOVE THESE BECAUSE THEY ARE fabulously embellished and brightly colored fun for your sunny beach times.
This summer is the first ever debut for swimwear in the store. WE have lots of different styles to soak up the sun in.
We love these because they are SKIMPY! Some times, when you are deep in vacation land, and you have had enough time to shed your northern inspired body issues and fears, and the sun keeps calling, and the sand is delicious and warm, - you want to wear a little less. You could, do like some of the locals in your paradise spot probably do – GO Naked! Or, you could slip into one of these playful little numbers. These beachwear pieces are high on style and small on coverage. Tee heee hee ! Have fun! Enjoy the sun!
Miss Sara M discovered these gems for us, in her home land of Columbia, where the swim pieces are lovingly made and embellished by hand. WE love the color combos and three dimensional elements. The bikinis with the leaves have a particular KL flare that fits into the boutique so nicely beside Kat’s own swimwear designs. Wear these mini pieces with some great cover ups like Kat’s flying vest $64 or Patricia Woods Beach Wrap Cardigans $ 115 (available in sheer black and Ivory and Gray). Then add on a fun Pupina beach bag for good measure(available in store for $24 to $36 in variety of bright colors with floral ascents).
Katrin has equally playful options available in store that she designed herself that offer all the fun with more coverage. Katrin Leblond offers her own designs in bikini and very covering tankini versions.
I personally can’t wait for the tankini to hit the shelves. I’m looking forward to going with my daughter to Montreal’s outdoor pools and wading pools and not feeling too shy to get wet and have fun with her.
- this mom and daughter know how to keep cool on summer’s hot days
The Athena dress makes a great beach wear pairing to which ever swim pieces you choose as the dress is actually made of highest quality swim compatible fabric. Put on your dress and high heels, grab a martini and jump in the pool! The fabric is quick drying and light and stays great in water. Kat is THE true goddess of swim and poolside clothing. Many of her Art Skirts and Katrina tanks and mini skirts also make amazing beach or poll side cover ups for over your swimsuit. No doubt you can be the best dressed Pool side Party hostess in your KL ensembles.
I did this embroidery on a vintage $2 bill in my early twenties.
The Queen is very important in hat-wearing society. I learned how to make bibi hats from Pauline Duguay, and the studio has recently released a new batch of bibi creations. I personally love the turquoise butterfly terrarium and the leaf.
Kat
This is about Betsy. She said to me on the phone that she wanted a rainbow wedding dress. I was delighted. Just my kind of project. We talked and I got a sense of her personality and then I took the time to make my first three sketches.
Elements of all three dresses became her dress. We chose her favorite silhouette, neckline and mixed up the embellishments to create the boquet-butterfly-fiesta party dress. The butterflies that I used as sequins on her dress have also been used by Martha Stuart to make this fab rainbow butterfly cake.
I have always been attracted to the myth and meaning of animals. We are so far removed from them in our urban day to day, that when a fox runs across the road in front of me, it is a profound moment. For years now I have been documenting all the animals that I encounter. Surprisingly, this happens without having to drive to the country. In Native folklore the meaning of these chance encounters are called animal medicine.
The Deer is gentleness:
Stop pushing so hard to get others to change, and love them a they are.
Apply gentleness and become like the summer breeze; warm and caring.
The Rabbit is fear:
What you resist will persist. What you fear most will be called to you by worry.
(But today we see rabbits as sweet and cuddly and innocent and edible. )
The Giraffe is the ultimate fashion model animal.
The exoticism of this animal is essential in it’s public perception of today. Seeing a real live giraffe is as unattainable in real life as the perfect body.
Regularly I see a beautiful woman trying on a dress in my change-rooms who sees herself as defective. Her eyes fixate on one spot: her hips, her knees, her shoulders, her tummy, her whatever….and she cannot see the whole picture of who she is anymore. It’s too bad, because the whole picture is a beautiful woman.
The porcupine is innocence.
Don’t get caught in the world of fear, greed, suffering. Let go of seriousness and severity.
Remember fantasy, imagination and COLOR. This will lead you to JOY.
May it be beautiful before me.
May it be beautiful behind me.
May it be beautiful above me.
May it be beautiful below me.
May I walk in beauty.
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