Toronto bid farewell to Honest Ed’s this weekend with a crazy art maze, a craft market and a few rowdy parties, all organized by the Centre for Social Innovation. During the four-day extravaganza, Torontonians popped in to pay their respects to the iconic building, in eclectic outfits that would have made Mr. Mirvish proud. Here, some of our favourite looks, featuring a lot of awesome vintage finds, storied hand-me-downs and even a stolen item or two.
29, Music teacher “My grandmother made this coat and the vest underneath it—most of what I wear is homemade. The skirt says ‘You are the light that lights up my life.’ It was outside a shop at Queen and Ossington last summer; it was the owner’s and she didn’t want it anymore.”
25, Arts manager “My style is somewhere between vintage, modern and hippie. I bought this dress yesterday because I was feeling kinda down and wanted to make myself feel better.”
25, Social worker “I came to a 1930s-themed party at Honest Ed’s years ago, and I bought white suspenders and a white tie. I walked out feeling awesome.”
52, Art dealer “My style is eclectic. I’ve been obsessed with Honest Ed’s for a while, and I’m here selling art. I bought this T-shirt at a closing sale a few months ago.”
21, Shop supervisor “I hate shopping, so I wear a lot of hand-me-downs. I’m wearing a Canadian tuxedo today and I think it’s working? The jacket wasn’t necessarily stolen, but it was left behind at a bar and the manager gave it to me.”
27, Artist “I wear whatever floats my boat. I like quality pieces with character and soul that have some history. I also like to upcycle and remake things, like cut-up shirts. These shoes are from my best friend’s mom—I love that they were already worn-in.”
27, Sales rep “I’d describe my style as a form of self-expression that changes every day. Today I was feeling blue and naughty.”
25, Photographer and musician “My style is discordant. It’s basically all stuff that was passed down from my mom. Today I was just trying to protect myself from the windchill.”
26, Sales rep “I’m really androgynous. I like to mix it up by dressing really femme, then adding a nice button-up or baggy pants. I’m obsessed with spiders right now and recently got a bunch of spider tattoos. I bought this ring from a shop on Queen called Durumi.”
42, Gallery brander “My look is all-black everything. I like to support local street brands, but I wear the same black jeans every day—Levi’s 510s. My jacket and hat were designed by my friend’s brand Dope Society.”
33, Production assistant “I’m just wearing the most comfortable thing that was available to me.”
Designer “My look is rainy day explorer meets Rhoda.”
48, Stylist and Leslieville Flea co-founder “This kimono was a $3 Value Village find. I made the T-shirt myself and crafted the bracelet from a vintage Ontario license plate.”
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