This week I'm going to be writing a bit of a story about my relationship with Le Chateau.
When I was a little girl, I would spend the weekends with my aunt, uncle, and grandma. My aunt read magazines full of beautiful, graceful women who posed in gardens and beautiful rooms. I would sit along side her and flip through the glossy pages with perfectly decorated rooms and beautifully laid out images. They looked so put together; I idealized them. I couldn't wait until I was old enough to wear those clothes.
Their house always had the radio playing somewhere in the house. I sometimes remember sitting by myself upstairs listening to music while drawing. I'd hear club music (MC Mario's Mix Down, anyone?). I thought the music was so cool, and it was. The music was so different compared to the Celine Dion and folk music I heard at home. My parents were trying to figure out their life in Canada.
Enter puberty. I was listening to a mish-mash of music and looking at a lot of fashion magazines. One day, close to my 13th (I think) birthday, my aunt sat me down and told me.
"You're getting older and I can't buy you things without worrying if you'll like them or not."
My aunt would always dote on me and my brother because she didn't have any kids of her own, she took gifting occasions pretty seriously. The solution to her problem was to take me shopping and have me choose my own clothes.
We went to Polo Park Shopping Center and walking up to the Le Chateau I could hear that baseline.
*baseline noises that I can't figure out how to spell, so think of something like a person who is beatboxing, but very simply*
What was this magical place? I was intrigued by the blue lights and the rows and rows of clothes seen from just outside the glass doors, so we went inside.
Did anyone remember the girls' section Junior Girl? THAT WAS MY JAM. For a while, I was buying everything from there. It was just so different from the kid's clothes and my brothers hand-me-downs I was so used to wearing. It was also the closest I'd be able to get to the outfits in the magazines. Yes, Junior Girl was my jam. I remember my aunt bought me a maroon knit suit and I wore that everywhere, even with the zip up blazer, oh yes I did.
One year for Christmas I received a pair of heavy satin pants with a tie up closure, it was very Britney Spears. I wore those pants with a pale pink knit sweater for grade 7 picture-day. My grade 8 grad dress was from there too. I wasn't feeling the tooth fairy looking satin dresses that seemed to wrinkle as soon as they touched your body. I opted for a black large floral patterned halter dress with an asymmetrical hemline and slit, purchased at Le Chateau.
Practically every birthday I would get a party shirt and a pair of jeans. I would almost only wear jeans from Le Chateau. They fit me the best. My first suits came from Le Chateau, I still have my favourite, it was a boot cut pant with a beautifully structured jacket made of black fabric with a damask print embossed. Thankfully, I remained (for the most part) the same size and can still wear it every now and again.
I couldn't imagine what it would be like to no longer have this Canadian fashion powerhouse sitting in my local mall. This store shaped my style, and it remains a big part of my growth into adulthood. I hope that this store survives while the American brands continue to expand their businesses here. Le Chateau is essential to the Canadian fashion industry and I really don't want it to disappear.
Have a good weekend.
Their house always had the radio playing somewhere in the house. I sometimes remember sitting by myself upstairs listening to music while drawing. I'd hear club music (MC Mario's Mix Down, anyone?). I thought the music was so cool, and it was. The music was so different compared to the Celine Dion and folk music I heard at home. My parents were trying to figure out their life in Canada.
Enter puberty. I was listening to a mish-mash of music and looking at a lot of fashion magazines. One day, close to my 13th (I think) birthday, my aunt sat me down and told me.
"You're getting older and I can't buy you things without worrying if you'll like them or not."
My aunt would always dote on me and my brother because she didn't have any kids of her own, she took gifting occasions pretty seriously. The solution to her problem was to take me shopping and have me choose my own clothes.
We went to Polo Park Shopping Center and walking up to the Le Chateau I could hear that baseline.
*baseline noises that I can't figure out how to spell, so think of something like a person who is beatboxing, but very simply*
What was this magical place? I was intrigued by the blue lights and the rows and rows of clothes seen from just outside the glass doors, so we went inside.
Did anyone remember the girls' section Junior Girl? THAT WAS MY JAM. For a while, I was buying everything from there. It was just so different from the kid's clothes and my brothers hand-me-downs I was so used to wearing. It was also the closest I'd be able to get to the outfits in the magazines. Yes, Junior Girl was my jam. I remember my aunt bought me a maroon knit suit and I wore that everywhere, even with the zip up blazer, oh yes I did.
One year for Christmas I received a pair of heavy satin pants with a tie up closure, it was very Britney Spears. I wore those pants with a pale pink knit sweater for grade 7 picture-day. My grade 8 grad dress was from there too. I wasn't feeling the tooth fairy looking satin dresses that seemed to wrinkle as soon as they touched your body. I opted for a black large floral patterned halter dress with an asymmetrical hemline and slit, purchased at Le Chateau.
Practically every birthday I would get a party shirt and a pair of jeans. I would almost only wear jeans from Le Chateau. They fit me the best. My first suits came from Le Chateau, I still have my favourite, it was a boot cut pant with a beautifully structured jacket made of black fabric with a damask print embossed. Thankfully, I remained (for the most part) the same size and can still wear it every now and again.
I couldn't imagine what it would be like to no longer have this Canadian fashion powerhouse sitting in my local mall. This store shaped my style, and it remains a big part of my growth into adulthood. I hope that this store survives while the American brands continue to expand their businesses here. Le Chateau is essential to the Canadian fashion industry and I really don't want it to disappear.
Have a good weekend.
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