The 10 best-dressed Canadians of 2021

This was a strange year for wearing clothes. From full French terry hibernation to vaxxed-girl summer patio looks to a season of fall/holiday glamour cut short, it’s been a rather discombobulating ride and the contents of many a wardrobe are likely still sitting 80 per cent unworn. But the 10 ultra-inspiring dressers featured below show that true personal style never wavers, whether it has a roster of parties to attend or just gets ready to go for a walk. What follows is inspiration, really, to take joy in fashion from some of the most country’s most creative, thoughtful dressers. Let the best-dressed Canadians list commence!

Sage Paul

A tireless advocate for Indigenous designers and communities in her capacity as the founding director of Indigenous Fashion Week Toronto, Sage Paul wears her heart on her sleeve. She also wears jewelry by Indi City, printed separates featuring the artwork of artist Caroline Monnet for the IFWT capsule collection with Simons and clothing by Evan Ducharme, among many Indigenous designers and creators. And she makes her own pieces — she designed a dress for director Danis Goulet’s TIFF premiere and on the Kit’s cover in July 2020, Paul wore earrings made from ermines tanned by her husband’s uncle. “When I wear them, I feel the love of family, the care in family and also gratitude for materials that come from animals.”

Judith Bradley

It’s difficult to find a photo of Judith Bradley in which she’s not wearing a jaunty hat, enormous vintage glasses, stacks of bangles, a brilliant red lip and a smile so wide you can’t help but absorb her joy. A model, actress and devoted fashion fan and supporter, she’s always interesting to look at (have you seen her tattoos?) and a delight to spot on the pages of a magazine or the streets of Toronto alike.

Dan Levy

Dan Levy needs no introduction at this point, but suffice to say the “Schitt’s Creek” creator’s move to L.A. and acquisition of a hefty Netflix deal has not hurt his wardrobe’s designer quotient one bit. There’s been a lot of Loewe by Jonathan Anderson lately, from a printed sweatshirt to launch his new book with his dad, Eugene, to strappy leather pants and a sumptuous knit to sit front row at the designer’s Paris show. But the most special piece has to be the Loewe look Levy wore to the Met Gala in May, beaded with an image of two men kissing by the late artist David Wojnarowicz.

Mouna Traoré

Mouna Traoré has had a big few years, acting-wise: you’ve probably spotted her in “Self Made,” the story of pioneering beauty entrepreneur Madam C.J. Walker, “The Umbrella Academy” or “Murdoch Mysteries” (and coming soon, “The Porter”). She’s a red carpet star on the rise, too, wearing an Aajiya cowry-shell-print suit on the famous red stairs at the Cannes Film Festival in October, a Horses Atelier Alchemical coat among Canadian pine trees in September and a wraparound leopard-print bikini on a Winnipeg summer day.

Marlowe Granados

Having released her debut novel “Happy Hour” in Canada last year, writer Marlowe Granados launched it internationally this year, wearing a variety of vintage-forward, designer-heavy looks to do so (she once wrote, “I am always one to choose dressing up and not down”). Favouring ’90s silhouettes and pieces from Italian and French icons like Prada, Missoni, Lacroix and Moschino, she always looks like she’s dressed to have a good time and maybe write about it later.

Joanie Pietracupa

You can feel Joanie Pietracupa’s sincere love of style and equally sincere wish to change the narrative around it through her refreshingly unedited selfies. The Montreal-based magazine editor wears a joyful array of sequined, fluffy, floaty and frilly outfits, and it all adds up to a great resource for shopping brands that offer inclusive sizes — Asos psychedelic-print stretch or gingham prairie-style dresses, Eloquii jeans, a candy-pink flight suit from Canadian boutique Femme Fatale, which offers sizes from XL to 5XL. Not to mention, she’s a major source of hair inspo with those glorious curly bangs.

Afiya Francisco

Afiya Francisco is a font of ideas for dressing well in everyday life. Whatever the former fashion editor wears — be it a cloud-like Alaia white shirt over straight-leg jeans, a Freed teddy coat with serviceable boots or a sharp blazer popped over a cosy hoodie — you can imagine yourself wearing it to perform your own various tasks of daily life, but looking much, much more put together than usual. She might be picking homegrown kale, hanging with her two kids or just gliding around her enviable, Scandi-serene home, but she always dresses according to this (very useful) golden rule: 80 per cent simplicity, 20 per cent experimentation.

Alyssa Lau

An advocate for the slow fashion movement, Edmonton-based Alyssa Lau founded the sustainably minded e-tailer New Classics, which carries handmade, low-waste and vintage pieces that never look crunchy. Lau herself wears them well, from a pair of patent chocolate-brown square-toe boots by genderless brand Suzanne Rae to pistachio ribbed loungewear from Seoul-based brand A Memento.

Lauren Wilson

Lauren Wilson of Timberlost might be Canada’s most stylish florist (although that booming category has a lot of competition). Whether spare or voluminous, her plant and flower arrangements always feel a little wild, with lashings of colour and asymmetrical, experimental shapes. And her style is just as enchanting — soft blazers, often in shades of peony or rose, silky robes, printed and quilted cotton jackets and colourful Loeffler Randall slides, many of which are finds from Toronto’s VSP Consignment, all paint a pretty picture.

Vivek Shraya

It’s a joy to observe the colourful, life-affirming outfits Vivek Shraya puts together. The artist, musician and author of “People Change” and “I’m Afraid of Men” wears vibrant dresses from beloved label NorBlack NorWhite, and a magpie’s nest worth of spangled, metallic ’80s vintage dresses of dreams. Smoked-out eyes, face gems and myriad hair looks complete the glamorous picture.

Rani Sheen is executive editor of The Kit. She writes about beauty and culture. Reach her on email: [email protected] or follow her on Twitter: @ranisheen