Writers + fashion

I don't consider myself stylish. I make rather boring fashion choices, and over the past couple years have taken to trying to look like a boring grown-up. My most recent favourite purchase is a secretary top: a blouse with a high collar secured with a big bow, originally conceived to keep cleavage out of the workplace. I think modesty is making a comeback, and who but the reclusive writer most embodies modest style?

Matches & Misses was the fashion event of Thin Air. Charlene Diehl set it off when she explained her outfit choice for the night; the theme was love, so she went with her "date clothes." Also taking into consideration the pink-patterned Loud Chair from EQ3 that none of the readers ever sit on, Charlene wore a tangerine cowl-neck sweater and a pleather skirt—with slits up both sides. I'd say it was a date outfit: cute, and a little saucy.

Each of the night's readers was sporting a signature look. David Bergen looked the most writerly of the bunch: black blazer over black t-shirt and dark jeans. All it took was the jacket to take him from writing in his den to headlining The Mainstage. The adorable Rebecca Rosenblum donned a cotton dress and cardigan. She became the sweetheart of Thin Air when in the middle of introducing her new book Once, she stopped, shrugged her shoulders and smiled. Cute!

Then there's the woman who breathes fresh air into writer fashion, Daria Salamon. I met Daria back in 2003 when I was interning at her husband Rob's record label , so I know that she's always had style. In fact, I remember thinking that her wedding dress was very similar to Carolyn Bessette Kennedy's Vera Wang gown. In a nutshell: Daria has great taste.

Last night she wore a fitted grey/pink/white cocktail dress from Swank. She said it was a toss up between heels and boots, and she ended up going with black motorcycle boots. I was into the combination, it reminded me of Rihanna: though with girly. Daria expressed concern about a potential wardrobe malfunction; she told me at Bloodlines that the dress showed more cleavage than when she tried it on at the store. The solution: a camisole.

So how does Daria pick out her outfits?

"I wear whatever Oskar (her almost-two-year-old son) rips down from the closet."

Rob has his say too. Don't be fooled by the band t-shirts, Daria says her husband has "great fashion sense." Your consultants do good work, Daria! Pasha Malla called you "a dynamite."

Pasha Malla held his own, too. He looked like a New Yorker, in impeccable jeans and a heavy ivy cap. He confessed to having style by default:

"I own one button-up shirt. And my girlfriend told me that I should wear a button-up shirt at a reading."

What about the hat?

"My hair's thinning, and it's hot under the lights."

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Ashley Sy is a Winnipeg born and bred freelance writer specializing in arts, music, and culture. She has written for Stylus, The Manitoban, and MyWinnipeg.com, and has begun copywriting for the Regina-based firm Benchmark PR. Currently, Ashley is working on getting her short fiction published—she fully embraces the classification of emerging writer. You can hear Ashley every Saturday night on 101.5 UMFM, on her pop-punk nostalgia show, Parking Lot Rock.