Team Blue Besos!

6 / 27 / 144 / 15 / 16

The first game of Calgary Polo Club’s 2014 season was the perfect time to debut the official team jerseys of… wait for it… Team Blue Besos! In Club League, we’re assigned new team members each week: three regular players and a professional. Even though these guys may be my mortal enemies next week, last night they were the best teammates a girl could have. That’s super-pro four-goaler Big Joe Henderson, from South Africa, on the left. Moi and Simon, next. Doug Byblow playing his inaugural Calgary game. And Francesco Galdon, whose Argentinian heritage means he has polo in his DNA.Simon can barely contain his excitement about our new shirts.Just look at them! Kudos to Cal-Crests Ltd. The Calgary custom apparel company did a stylish, speedy job.The same Blue Besos dream team plays again this Saturday at 11am, in a Club League round robin: 6 chukkers of fantasticness. For fans of either polo or tailgating: come out and enjoy both at the Calgary Polo Club. Gracias for the superb team photos, Heather Lilly!

Holts Pre-Stampede Style Shindig

6 / 26 / 146 / 26 / 14

When I bumped into fashion icon Jeanne Beker at Holt Renfrew last night, it made perfect sense: we were in the shoe department. The last time I’d seen her was in the makeup chair beside me at the Chum Building on Queen Street West in Toronto. Before the massive media amalgamation in Canada, all of Moses Znaimer’s stations were housed in the same super-cool building with the news truck sticking out of the side, three stories up. With shows for Fashion Television, Bravo, Much Music, CityTV, CP24 and more being produced in the same place, it made for some fun moments in the makeup room. Fast-forward several years and one Order of Canada later — the snowflake pin is always a sure sign. Besides being in Calgary to emcee the HR charity event, Jeanne tells me she has a “big, fat new project” up her sleeve.

“I’m chomping at the bit,” she says, using a metaphor from the Stampede-approved list of cowboy colloquialisms. “It’s been two years since the show was cancelled. I can’t wait to sink my teeth into a new project.”

But beyond mysterious references to the digital nature of said project, Jeanne wouldn’t reveal any details. Hard to believe she resisted my tough questions couched in charming banter, but she’s a pro. She did talk fashion with me, though, assuring me it’s more than runways. She believes fashion is embodied by people, and it’s all about character. I agree, Jeanne. Love fashion, love life!The pre-Stampede party at Holts Calgary was a benefit for Calgary Health Trust, and the bold-faced names were out to lend their support, including luger Sam Edney, four-time Olympian.Country western singer Matt Masters was a natural choice for this hay bale photo op. His shirt’s a classic by Caravan, a Calgary company from the fifties and sixties. Yes, he does thrift shops. Although Matt tells me he lassos most of his cowboy gear when he’s on tour. His best finds are in Texas, natch, and in Mexico. He’ll be performing throughout Stampede, including CBC Radio’s morning show on Canada Day.The already impeccably attired Ryan Scott, left, and Gregg Scott, of Scott Lease and Land, told me they weren’t at the invite-only charity event to update their wardrobes — they were on the lookout for ladies. Seems like they go for the strong, silent types!A celebrity auction featured one-of-a-kind cowboy hats. I had to find the guys who made this Stampede stetson, made by Canadian jewellery designer Anzie Stein, look so good.Even with pressing business with Cher and Cyndi Lauper, the Style Guys, aka Jason Krell and Alykhan Velji, took time to bookend and say cheese, while I hoped my sweaty post-polo situation would be perceived as party glow. Thanks guys! And thanks to everyone who helped out Calgary Health Trust’s Best Beginning Program.

Kaleo’s Cerebral Pop Art

6 / 24 / 14

If you saw President Obama up against the Confederate flag, would it stop you in your tracks? On a recent meander through the Calabasas Fine Arts Festival (yes, the Californian region of recent Bieber and Kardashian renown), this painting compelled me to ask the artist what the heck it meant. Which, it turns out, is the whole point of Kaleo’s “cerebral pop art” — and so integral that he’s trademarked the phrase.

“I really love pop art, in and of itself,” says Kaleo. “But I wanted to create layers and do something that actually gets people to think, rather than just enjoy the image. I wanted to evoke more emotion.”

Scars and Bars certainly rouses a reaction. Some folks love it. Others have told him that he shouldn’t have put Obama on the Dixie flag (!!). For Kaleo, who grew up poor in Pasadena, the love child of a European-American mother and a Hawaiian-Spanish-Puerto Rican father, the dialog around this piece makes its own statement. “It shows far we’ve come since the time of the Dixie flag to have a black president elected… and yet how far we still have to go.”Besides being thoughtful, down to earth and charming, Kaleo is a natural hustler, faux-hawked and hawking his art at fairs around LA. He’ll hit ten in total this year, all while promoting his brand through every social media channel going. Celebrity obsession juxtaposed against a commercialized image to tell a story that’s in our collective consciousness? I’m in! After viewing the “Images of Irony” in his tent gallery, I had to see more.When Kaleo invited me to his studio in Santa Monica, I didn’t expect it to be at the Real Office Center on Arizona. As he gives me a tour of the space for small companies, I start to understand why. With Kaleo in the house, besides being a business incubator, the Santa Monica ROC location is also an artist incubator — although Kaleo seems to have the exclusive. His art adorns almost every surface in the building. Real Office Centers CEO Ron McElroy commissioned the tables, above, and bought other pieces to infuse the cubicles with a creative vibe. Kaleo, whose name means “the voice” in Hawaiian, grabs a Starbucks under his Start Ups Brewing custom light box, where the mermaid’s lei winks at both his Hawaiian heritage and to ROC’s new Honolulu location.Then, it’s down to Door Number Bruce Lee: Kaleo’s studio in the basement parking garage.Why use a drop cloth? Then you’re just cleaning up the magic.Inside, Kaleo takes off his sunglasses and gets to work. His latest series, “Positive Pop” gives iconic commercial slogans an inspirational angle. It’s his top seller.Kaleo didn’t take a direct path to this studio, where he works while standing, under the apoxy resin Mona Lisa gaze of three presidents. After playing college football, he jumped into music industry. He got signed, but didn’t quite make it… and ended up becoming a gold broker. Just when he was agonizing about losing his soul to a job that paid well but gave him no intrinsic satisfaction, he had an inspiration for his “Images in Irony” series. He stockpiled canvases for a year before approaching a gallery. Now, with galleries in London, Dubai and LA, Kaleo’s following his bliss. He plans to dress that bliss with his new line of Artwork by Kaleo T-Shirts, launching soon. If you’re in the Bu, July 26 & 27th, hobnob with him at the Malibu Art Show. Living the dream, Kaleo, living the dream!

Joydrop Roundup

6 / 19 / 14

Looking for bold Stampede bling? Mosey over to Joydrop at Market Mall and lasso up some heavenly horseshoes. Not everything at the new boutique is rhinestone cowboy, but I cried a tear in my beer for this cuff by Rebel Designs.Business partners Shashi Behl (on the left — I didn’t let her put down her champagne before the photo) and Lila Lewandoski celebrate the opening of their second store at Market Mall in Calgary. Friends since their Saskatchewan days, the two gave their first location a try in Westhills in June 2012. Now they’ve broken through the mall ceiling, as one of the rare locally-owned independents in the shopping hood. They’re targeting the lower-priced yet designer accessory range, which no one seems to be doing yet in Alberta. Taking a cue from the success of others like Blue Ruby in Vancouver, they’ve Joydropped the concept and made it their own.Featuring collections by Alexis Bittar, Melinda Maria and Love Heals, Joydrop has room for more Canadian jewelers. Lila tells me she’d love to see some Calgarian bling displayed in the store. So YYC designers, get to it!

El Paseo Fashion Week 2014

4 / 25 / 144 / 25 / 14

Every year in mid-March, the Rodeo Drive of the desert, El Paseo, holds a week-long salute to spring fashion. Haute fashion thrives in the heat of the Coachella Valley. But this being the greater Palm Springs area, which has always had a flair for entertainment, there’s more than couture going on under the big white tent. Don’t let the ladies with the white hair fool you.Palm Springs knows how to party! Which Dr. Deb Windham, wearing white, specializes in. The physician and artist is a renowned Coachella Valley personality.So is Karen Barone, half of the husband-and-wife artist duo Karen and Tony. The super cool horse sculpture behind her is one of their creations.As someone who spends a lot of time agonizing over my as-yet unpublished novel, I particularly liked that books were also part of the party. Fabulous Books, with its homage to Tinseltown allure, is a wonderful shop on the main drag in Palm Springs. After everyone got their cocktail on, it was time for the catwalk. The runway was rocking all week, but the Saks Fifth Avenue show, featuring top designers from McCartney to McQueen, is one of the highlights. Below are pics of some of my fave outfits for both women and men.I had one of the best seats in the house, right at the end of the runway.… with a pack of paparazzi behind me. Forgive the blurry action shot.Then it was on to the after-party at the Palm Springs Art Museum in Palm Desert. There’s so much art in the desert, the museum needs an outpost just 12 miles away.Don’t tell the impeccably decked-out Francesco Santoro that I’ve been wearing the same outfit all week. The Beverly Hills handbag designer specializes in exotic skins like crocodile, ostrich and python. I tried to keep my threadbare Gucci out of sight.This party even gave a culture-boost to a break for the loo. I took the long way to the restroom so I could check out Red Sweater. Victor Rodriguez uses acrylic on canvas to show his daughter looking at a photo of Christy Turlington.Woman: can you believe how real she looks? Man: [wisely not saying anything].Joan by John Deandrea is beautiful and spooky at the same time.Ain’t no party like an El Paseo Fashion Week party! See you next year!

Tanya Taylor’s Tickle Trunk

4 / 11 / 144 / 12 / 14

When Tanya Taylor brought her trunk show to Holt Renfrew Calgary on a recent Thursday, the highlight of her evening plans included spending some quality time with the television. “We haven’t had very much sleep, so we might do some room service and Scandal.”While she may love a show whose main character is known for wearing white, Tanya’s palette this spring is anything but. Her designs are driven by color, and the one she’s loving this year is poppy orange.That’s what Tanya calls it. I saw tangerine. But deep coral, peach, citrus zest, no matter how you interpret it, the color was a definite theme, spreading throughout the back room on Holts’ second floor.There’s a couture element to this off-the-rack collection, available in Canada exclusively at Holts. The New York based designer says fabric is an integral part of her process. “I paint all the prints originally, then print them on silk. There’s an original hand-drawn quality about everything in the collection.”Originally from Toronto, Tanya is painter at heart. With a finance degree. She found fashion to be the perfect intersection between art and business. “I liked the idea of starting my own company, similar to the entrepreneurship I’d studied, but also being able to sit down and paint on a canvas, then translate that into a dress.”Trunk shows tickle Tanya with the opportunity to interact with the customers. Visiting Calgary comes with the bonus of interacting with her extended family here.For those who need more than poppy orange, there are options. And while Olivia Pope has been branching out from her go-to color of late, Tanya Taylor’s Spring 2014 Collection has an outfit to bring her white wardrobe back.

New Atlas On Tiffany’s Map

3 / 5 / 14

If your internal compass always seems to point to Tiffany’s, there’s a new reason to head to Chinook Centre.Walk through those heavy doors into the hush of the hallowed jewelry hall and you’ll forget you’re at the mall.Invited for a sneak peak at the newest necklaces, bangles and earrings in the store, I got distracted by the eyewear.I know, probably a little more low-maintenance than you’re expecting, considering the gems on display right in front of me, but just look at these! Perfect for my upcoming polo trip to the desert.But to get me back on track, Sarah Geddes from Sass Communications ushered me into a back room reserved for customers who want to purchase their carats and karats in private. As Sarah put it, “A lot of nervous men have been in this room.” Today, it’s reserved for a select few, chosen to view the latest pieces of the Atlas Collection to arrive on the Calgary map.Crafted in 18 karat yellow, white or rose gold, as well as sterling silver, 30 new pieces have been added to the collection. Still using the signature Roman numerals symbolizing strength and freedom, these ones are cleaner, sleeker and more modern. I liked this smaller rose gold pendant to the right.The pendant I actually tried on was so large I didn’t even get the entire piece in the picture. Hashtag: second-rate selfie.Inspired not by Greek mythology but rather the clock held by Atlas outside Audrey Hepburn’s favorite store on Fifth Avenue, the iconic collection was introduced in 1995. With a $145 starting price point, it’s tempting to start your own collection.Because who doesn’t need a little Tiffany in their life?

Home and Garden and… Fashion!

2 / 24 / 14

The clock is ticking on the countdown to the Calgary Home and Garden Show, Feb 27 – Mar 2. And since who couldn’t use a little Fashion with their Home&Garden, the event is kicking off with a fashion show, hosted by the Style Guys.(photo courtesy the Guys)

Alykhan Velji & Jason Krell, of humble Cowtown origins, have put their cowboy hats in the walk-in closet permanently. If you want to see the spring fashion trends they’ll pull from CrossIron Mills retailers, or local media personalities like CTV’s Aisling Tomei, Citytv’s Jill Belland or Virgin 98.5’s Danaye Maier strutting the BMO Centre catwalk, then you might want to enter the

BLUE BESOS HOME AND GARDEN SHOW GIVEAWAY!

For two free tickets, answer this sooper-dooper skill testing question: what kind of mall is CrossIron Mills? Send your answer to: tiffany [at] bluebesos [dot] com. The show is at the State Farm Main Stage this Thursday, February 27 at 7PM sharp. Therefore the contest ends soon!

Girls’ Trip to Seattle

2 / 22 / 14

Now that Valentine’s Day is in the rearview mirror, it’s time to spend some quality time with the girlfriends. I recently met up with one of my besties in the USA, for a girls’ weekend in Seattle. We arrived in the heart of downtown via the ferry from Bainbridge Island. Check out the new ferris wheel spinning on prime waterfront real estate. Taking a cue from the other cities in the ferris wheel club, like Singapore and London, Seattle built this baby in 2012. It costs 13 bucks for a ride on the Great Wheel, the official name, which I googled, because it was not uttered by anyone during our entire Girls’ Weekend. We resisted in the name of priorities: shopping.Instead, we drove off the ferry and a few blocks to our hotel, just down the street from that other iconic Seattle symbol I have never been to, the Space Needle. I don’t know what it is about cities and their towers (even Calgary has one) but it’s interesting to see the changing of the guard in the status symbol department from phallus to unity.If you’re not on a five-star budget but you require a hotel that’s hip enough to be your base camp for a weekend of dining and shopping, Hotel Andra is a good choice. Given a Swedish name to emphasize the Scandinavian decor – that “A” is supposed to have an umlaut over it – the boutique hotel opened in 2004.The rooms may not be the most stylish in the world (after all, Sweden has given us Ikea, not B&B Italia) but they are uncluttered, huge and have everything you may need, from a desk and flatscreen…… to a bar area, to a separate beauty area that doubles as a walk-through to the closet (not shown)…… to a modern bathroom…… with Swedish products, of course.

Meanwhile, just a few blocks away, the heart of the Seattle shopping district was bustling! On a late Saturday afternoon, I almost thought I was in New York. The buzz was that good. Seattle, I didn’t think you had it in you.Everywhere you turned, something was going on. I found this talented cellist outside Barneys. The Barney’s itself was a little disappointing — much smaller than San Francisco’s, and of course tiny compared to the flagship store in New York. But there was almost every shop you could ever want.We all know Seattle is the original Starbucks city. Which of course made me want a different brand — I’m always so contrary. But I was like a lemming to the sales, shopping up a storm. That Vicky’s Secret bag may be small, but it contains a lot of undies.The cool store window award goes to…… British fashion retailer All Saints.Here’s a rare and exclusive shot of my elusive friend Emily, who is beautiful but hates being photographed. Gotcha journalism, courtesy of yours truly. Sorry Emily. Yes, that’s right, I’m saying it in the most passive-aggressive Canadian way. I don’t mean it. You look wonderful, and besides, I need to include it —proof that this was indeed a girls’ weekend.The bargains were so good we actually ran out of time before we ran out of money. Back to the hotel, now lit up in moody blue. Or Blue Besos blue?No time to relax in the lofty lobby… we’re got to do a quick change to be on time for our dinner reservations. Next up, Art Restaurant & Lounge. Mmmm.