WE'RE SUPPORTING

I’d been trying to figure out who the illustrator was who had done a few of the beautiful pieces for this year’s Kiehl’s holiday display for a while until I was serrendipitously pointed toward a certain rep’s website to check out some of their illustrators and I discovered it was Justin Gabbard. Score! Since finally coming upon Gabbard’s site, I’ve been back more than a few times to ogle his colorful, chiseled paintings, as well as his fantastic assortment of drawings and experiments. What I find most wonderful is the way in which Gabbard appears to continually tweak his techniques, painting one time, trying it digitally the next, throwing in a little of this and a little of that from one project to the next. Next time I’m out and about in the city and manage to happily stumble across Gabbard’s work, I won’t have the least bit of trouble placing it. Read more

WE'RE THINKING

Taking a page from French cooking, the classic red velvet cake is redone so you can eat it for brunch without feeling guilty. If this doesn’t make your mouth water, I don’t know what will. Read more

The issue of abortion has hardly ever been represented so honestly by a movie. Knocked Up and Juno gave the pro-choice movement a boost, and of those two, only Juno came close to confronting the issue. In the Princess of Nebraska, the main character suffers through indecision, naivety and turmoil that seem much closer to reality. Read more

WE'RE TRAVELLING TO

When I first moved to London and didn’t know a soul, I joined up with the British Film Institute [BFI] and started going to the talks they put on. When I went to see Gene Wilder speak, all the know-alls in the audience kept asking questions, not to find out anything, but just to show off to the room how much they knew about film making. He got annoyed. Genius boy genius.

WE'RE READING

Activists from all walks of life — architects, artists, children, students, skaters, and more — are documented on the Tools for Actions website, aiming to show us how, whether deliberate or not, the tiniest or the biggest project driven by the quietest or loudest voice can trigger radical change in today’s urban centres. It’s an inspiring blog, particularly for those feeling disempowered. Read more

WE'RE LISTENING TO

The Sound of Animals Fighting again unleash their experimental blend of progressive electronic hardcore rock. Known only by their animal names — Nightingale, Walrus, Lynx, and Skunk — and wearing masks for their rare live appearances, TSOAF have released two albums. Their latest, The Ocean and The Sun, offers an intense mix of genres, as delicate Brazilian-inflected melodies careen into shattering guitar workouts.

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WE'RE WEARING

Swedish designer Paula Hagerskans has a cool masculine-edge to her female fashion lines. But it’s her attention to detail that really blows my mind. Her perfectly tailored jackets, along with her flat dress shoes, make dressing up fun, comfortable and classy. When asked what she keeps in mind while designing, Hagerskans responds, ‘Bohemic music lovers, humor, graphic design and the female body’.