Posts from ‘Travel Notes’
I am a spiritual person. I am a political person.
I believe that I am empowered to make ethical decisions that are beneficial for my community by the money I spend as an entrepreneur . I believe that as an artist, it is my duty to create beauty for my customers to enjoy. I believe that women deserve to be treated like goddesses entering a temple when they come in to my boutique. They are to be served, taken care of, draped in fabric and made to feel beautiful. I believe this from the bottom of my heart.
I have always been politically active and I have always been crafty. There were certain points in my life where I felt guilty and pained because “just making pretty things” was not saving the planet. Now that I am running an ecological and local manufacturing business that serves and adores women, I feel better. I have merged my environmental activist with my feminist and with my local economist in a way that allows me to keep being a creative human being.
And here is Linda Evangelista, our Montreal-born International Fashion Icon, merging her political views that something is wrong in the world and someone should be held accountable with her love of the Madonna. She got to play a living Madonna in a Religious procession. I have traveled to Antigua in Guatemala to see these processions. They walk the streets playing sad brass band music all the while carrying statues and crying for the death of Jesus. They walk for 12-13 hours. My main reason for traveling there was to see the “carpets” that the locals make from coloured saw dust and flowers. The carpets are made in the street prior to the passing of the procession. When the procession passes, the carpet gets trampled. It was incredibly beautiful. (This is reminding me that I should do a post about those carpets.)
I am unusually attracted the the iconography of the Madonna even though I was not raised in any form of Christianity. To me the Madonna is the “mother”, gaia, goddess … and those are all great things. It represents female divinity, something each woman carries within herself.
I love religious art. I love folk art. I love making pretty things.
It can take quite a while in life’s journey to settle into being who you truly are and not who you wish you were.
This post was written by Erin based on Katrin’s telling of the making of her embroidered travel belt.
————————
While on my first road trip across Canada, with the man I later married, I wanted to record our travels. The problem was I get car sickness.
Despite, the fact that I couldn’t write in my journal, I found embroidery to be something I could handle even with the rock and roll of the road. Embroidery became my traveling form of journaling.
I stitched the landscapes and the names of all the animals we saw along the way.
The coloured threads depict the story of our road trip together.
I would sit in the passenger seat of our non air-conditioned van and stitch away.
The finished belt wraps around my body twice.
The needle pulled the thread in and out of the fabric stitching the moments I wanted to capture. The van hit the road. My needle pulled the thread. The wind swept us away at the start of our journey. The stitches became pictures. The pictures began the story of our journey. I stitched the flower called Indian paint brush. Wild to Canada, this flower called out to be remembered. I stitched the orange and yellow of it’s petals. The lakes in Ontario were numerous swimming pleasures. There were so many lakes. I painted with the blue of my embroidery thread just one to remember them all. As we approached the prairies fields of Canola, also called Rape seed, danced yellow blooms that waved in the wind. Dots of yellow thread floated across the belt.
The car broke down and we had to spend three days waiting for a part in Edmonton. I stitched the part we needed called a U joint. We drove on to the Rockies. Nights under the crescent moon were beautiful.
We took the fairy to Salt Spring Island and went swimming with purple and blue dragon flies.
We watched boat racing on a Native reserve on Vancouver Island. We walked in the red wood forest under the full moon.
Then we left Canada. We hit Seattle and we went to the fish and flower market. Four hours from Seattle, we spent two days at mount Saint Helen the mountain that erupted years before.
LOVE…….LOVE LOVE WAS EVERYTHING. Our van was love parked in dry lands that had sage bushes all around. I stitched a heart floating over our van. I stitched my love. My heart.
We drove through the Craters of the Moon and finally got back to the rivers of Ontario. Eager to get home we drove and drove and drove…day and night. We took shifts.
The road took us home.
When I went to Smirkus for the costume fittings this year, I took a little walk one evening and discovered Ramona. Ed Leclair had mentioned this gem, but I had no idea just how enchanted I would be to discover her for myself. She took my breath away and made me dream of a time when she was inhabited and on the road with a traveling show. Since she is currently residing inside a very nice barn, she is safe from rain and sun. The pictures are a little dark and do not do her beautiful paint job justice.
When you open the side door, a little ladder appears that can be hooked onto the exterior door jam.
This is the upper front window in the bedroom. All beveled glass and stained glass windows.
This is the view from the interior living room into the bedroom.
Here is that front bedroom window from the inside.
And of course there are little 3-d stucco angels on the walls. The details in the moldings and finishing back then was truly high art.
Why not put a fireplace into a roulotte? You need to stay warm, entertain and feel like an all around classy lady when you are working a mud show.
And here is the tail end of Ramona. Once maybe she was pulled by horses and had wooden wagon wheels. Just imagine that chandelier clanking about. Could I have designed and made costumes back in the day and lived in Ramona… Definitely!
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.
To one of the most serenely beautiful countries in the world… to neutral politics… to ethnicity’s of every spectrum making Canada such a diverse and incredible country…
We love you old gal and thank you for being such an amazing place to live and explore!
Cheers to Canada (who is looking mighty fine for her age might I add)…
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
xox
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.
view from the studio around 7pm
These are some of the sunsets I love. On the beach in Thailand, from the windows of my studio and playing with eyeshadow. I have attached a cheesy video that I love because it was my first introduction to make up as a playful artform using colors.
Kat
Wow! The Sylvie’s have been hitting up Italy in style!
From yoga to sightseeing in some of the most beautiful locations, it seems our lovely KL ladies are soaking in what Europe is all about – a beautiful lifestyle! With gorgeous weather, perfect surroundings and hopefully some exciting travel stories to match, the Sylvie’s will be returning to Montreal well rested and with the memory of the perfect getaway!
Enjoy some more of the personal pictures they sent the KL team (it’s like a mini tour via blog).
Enjoy!
(Above Ostuni)
The gorgeously serene beach 
Alberrobello et ses trulli
Polignano A Mare
Rome Piazza di Navona
The yoga room were they attend classes twice a day…
A rooftop view of Ostuni…
A beautiful building in the town of Matrina Franca!
Polignano A Mare, the city surrounded by the lush blue waters of the Adriatic sea!
“The trip is fantastic!!! Beautiful weather, beautiful landscapes, great food and even better company. Our yoga group is so sweet and gets along famously! We have two yoga sessions a day that are about 2.5-3 hours long. The first one is very (too) early at 6:30am and the next is at 4:30pm. Between classes we visit the towns around or we take it easy by the pool. In the evenings we have dinner outside as we are serenaded by our host who is a former Italian rock star and loves to sing and play his guitar for us!
Here are some pictures!
Bisous,”
Sylvie G
Have a beautiful Tuesday!
xox
Sylvie H wears the KL Jolly Dress in white ($139) and Wendy Thomas necklace ($30)
The KL Sylvies (yes – we are lucky enough to have TWO in ONE store) have been enjoying what seems to be an absolutely drop dead gorgeous retreat to the Santa Maria del Sol yoga center in the South of Italy, Puglia!
Of course they packed along their beautiful KL wardrobes and are vacationing in true style… enjoy some of the photo’s they sent us from various locations!
Sylvie G wears the Hanna Broer Venus Tunic ($78)
Sylvie H sports her KL Leggings (normally $85 and now on sale for $65)!!!!
Sylvie H in her Katharina Deluxe Dress ($149)
Sylvie H total rocks the Sexy Dress ($99)
Sylvie H (left) wears her Paris Cami ($75)
Stay tuned! More travel pics of their exciting Italian adventure to come!!!
Happy Tuesday!
xox
The Katrin Leblond team welcomes you to the Montreal 2010 Formula 1 race weekend! Amongst all the hype and commotion we invite you to discover our wonderland for a little “break” from both the crowd and the parties!
Step into our world of color, creation and imagination… you will find the perfect ensemble to stand out from the crowd and allow your personality to shine!
Come visit us and allow yourself the souvenir of a great race weekend alongside a beautifully hand made Montreal wardrobe!
xox
Visit the Official Site!
