We took a trip to Montreal a couple of weeks ago and visited our old apartment. We lived there seventeen years ago. Where has the time gone?
This is what I looked like when I lived in Montreal. Yes, my hair is actually blond.
My parents came to visit so we were showing them Old Montreal.
The photo below is when we were on a road trip to Prince Edward Island. We stopped in Montreal and took a photo on our old stoop.
It feels like I blinked and here I am.
We made the five and a half hour trip to see the Thierry Mugler exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts.
This was taken just outside the exhibit. Do you recognize the music icon painted on the building in the background?
Thierry Mugler Exhibit
The show was spectacular. It included a hologram from a production of Macbeth where Thierry Mugler designed the costumes.
It unbelievable what they can create with technology now.
Some of the above outfits were used in videos by George Micheal and David Bowie.
Thierry Mugler was a trained dancer born in France. His admiration of the human body is evident in his designs.
“Fashion is beautiful, 3-D art on a human being.” – Thierry Mugler
He drew his inspiration from nature and comic books and favored dramatic exaggerated silhouettes.
While we were exploring more of the galleries we stumbled across this painting that looks like the vintage Hawaiian maxi dress I was wearing.
Here is what the whole dress looks like…
It has a built in train!
We ended up walking so much that we had to make a quick run for some painkillers and popped into the closest Pharmaprix where I ran into my girlfriend!
Hello Mel! AKA Bag and a Beret
If that wasn’t enough there was a massive video of her too!
How cool is that?
One other cool thing we discovered in Montreal was this statue with a pug! Yes! A pug!
There was also a statue of a woman carrying a French Poodle.
This is the story…
On the South side corner of the tower, an Englishman, represented as a thin, elegant, pretentious man, wearing a grid pattern suit with a bow tie, firmly presses against his chest an English Pug and stares with condescendence at the Notre-Dame Basilica, symbol of the religious influence on the French Canadians. On the North side corner of the same tower, a Frenchwoman represented as a small, elegant, snotty lady, wearing a Coco Chanel suit, rubber zippered high heel shoe covers and an imitation Beret, firmly holds against her chest a French Poodle and stairs with discontent, at the Head Office of the Bank of Montreal, symbol of the English power. Both purebred dogs are attracted to each other but are kept by their masters to stay away and far apart.
This is what is inscribed on the statues…
A dashing looking English man, holding his pug, gives a superior stare at Notre-Dame Basilica, symbol of the religious influence on French Canadians.
210 feet away to the northern corner of the edifice, a woman in Chanel style suit, poodle against her, shoots an offended look to the Bank of Montreal’s head office, symbol of English power.
With their masters oblivious to each other, the two dogs on the alert already sniffed out the opportunity to unite.
Lastly I’m honored to be interviewed by Imogen from Inside Out Style Blog .
Be sure to click on the link above to read some of my stylish thoughts : )
I’m deep into preparation mode for an upcoming Vintage Clothing Show.
If you live in the Greater Toronto Area come down and say hi on Sept 28-29. I’ll be in the Enercare Centre at Exhibition Place.
Linking up with Visible Monday
, Turning Heads Tuesday, Fancy Friday, and Spy Girl
That Arizona moment and your stunning Op Art maxi and pose bring back wonderful memories.
That Arizona moment and your stunning Op Art maxi and pose bring back wonderful memories.
That Arizona moment and your stunning Pop Art maxi and pose bring back wonderful memories.
You get better with age! How lovely to see those photos of you on your front steps almost two decades apart.
Love the Hawaiian maxi and I recognised Leonard Cohen immediately! Look at Melanie, she’s a celeb!
I don’t know much about Thierry Mugler so your snippets from the exhibition were really interesting and I loved the story behind the two statues.
Good luck with your event, sell lots and lots! Off to read your interview. xxx
mega cool mel!
mugler was the crazy god of our early 90s design school. to see the G.M. video again after so many years is fab – thanx!
xxxx
Oh man, that is an exhibit we need to see, and by “we” I mean you come to NYC, and we’ll make it happen at the Met. We’ll take our aspirins before we start the tour. Glorious other-worldly looks, and that video with George Michael is a visual delight.
Love, love the pictures of you on the stoop of your former home – and yes, you’ve gotten more beautiful over the years. And running into the fabulous Melanie at the pharmacy! xox
Patti
http://notdeadyetstyle.com
I definitely prefer you as a redhead – it suits your skin tone and personality! I wanted to see the Mugler exhibit so much but I can’t get to Montreal while it’s on. His designs are so fiercely creative; the gold pleated dress and “chandelier dress” are my favourites.
The dress you’re wearing is lovely – when I see dresses like that I now think of them as “Suzanne” dresses.
Good luck at the Vintage show – I’ll be in Toronto on the Saturday for a concert but likely won’t have time to get to the show.
What a great post! So much fun content.
You look *so* different with blonde hair. I enjoyed seeing Montreal last year and your photos bring back memories. That’s Leonard Cohen on the building. Pretty dress!
What a fabulous time Suzanne.
I love how you took a photo in the same place years later. It’s amazing how time flies…seriously.
And Thierry Mugler?? Would I be fired as a fashion blogger if I said I only thought he made perfume?? Obviously I need to get out more!!
And I had to laugh at the pug statue. How cute is that?? I’m sure Zoe approved…
OXOX
Jodie
Is Leonard Cohen Canadian then? Probably a stupid question, forget it…. But what a amazing exhibition, something to get really thrilled about! And Mel is really a icon isn’t she! I love your red hair much and much better!
I had to look at those old photographs of you twice. If you hadn’t mentioned it was you I would never have known! I think you’re looking so much better as a red-head. That’s such a gorgeous colour of you. The Thierry Mugler exhibition looks fabulous, and how exciting to run into Mel a Pharmaprix! Your dress is a work of art, quite literally. And I think I spy Leonard Cohen! xxx
Oh my goodness–so many great things in one post! Of course, my favorites are the walk down memory lane (they fixed the steps to your old place in the 17 years you were absent!), finding Mel at the drugstore, and that amazing Thierry Mugler exhibit. Oh yes–and your vintage Hawaiian dress that coordinates with a modern painting!
It looks like you had so much fun doing all the things you did in Montreal. Thank you for taking us along with you!
– Sherry
How lovely to go back to your old neighbourhood and home!
The exhibition looks fabulous but the clothes seem extremely wacky to me. I only ever associate Thierry Mugler with ‘Angel’ perfume and forget that a lot of perfumes are the cash cows for lots of designers…I loved both of the dresses you wore in the post especially the long sleeved one. Such a fabulous print.
It was wonderful to see Mel!
Gosh, you really look like a natural red-head, I would never have guessed otherwise 🙂 Love your dresses.
I love this coverage of the Mugler show. Next best thing to going there is seeing it through the eyes of a friend. I can’t believe that hologram piece. Simply stunning. Is it theatre, dance, stage, screen? The lines are totally blurred.
And I’m stalking you all the way to Montreal. Good thing you didn’t see that bridesmaid dress too!! It’s weird seeing myself so big. Thanks for showing me that my plans for global domination are working. Hahaha!
It looks like you had a great trip. The photo of you and Robert is a good keepsake. And the flashbacks with your house and blonde hair. Wow, so different, it takes adjusting seeing you like that; I’ve grown so used to your striking red hair.
I read the post on Inside Out Style as well. You chose lovely outfits to show. Some of them still make my jaw drop. Especially the ones with a black and white skirt or dress and flowers in all colours on top. So good.
As for you own post. I always regarded Thierry Mugler as more of an artist than a fashion designer. Some of his stuff was too much for me. But hey, I couldn’t afford it anyway. Only bought an apple green skirt suit on December 31, at 4 p.m., heavily reduced from 2.000 guilders (at the time) to 350. Which was still a lot of money for me back then. Great suit though.
Greetje
Wow, I would have loved to see that Thierry Mugler exhibit.
And I had no idea that you lived in Montreal once. Were we there at the same time? I was there roughly from 2000 to 2006.
So cool to run into Melanie, so to speak, ‘our very own ‘ schtar’!
Yes! We lived there at the same time! LOL We also lived in Quebec City for a couple of years.