Hello Ottawa

A fashion blogger and communications student, Sabrina uses her sense of fashion as a way to connect with the city and people around her. We met on a rainy Saturday for photos in Old Ottawa South, the first neighborhood Sabrina visited when she was being introduced to Ottawa as a student; it’s still one of the places she feels most represents “her Ottawa.”

As a special aside this week, I’d like to extend a sincere thank you to Jessey Bird of Local Tourist Ottawa, who transcribed this interview for me. Thank you, Jessey!

Tell me about yourself!

My name is Sabrina. I’m a third year student at Carleton University studying communications.  I’m originally from suburban Toronto, from one of the Toronto communities – Scarborough - that has an Asian majority. Coming to Ottawa was actually kind of a culture shock for me.

 I guess one of my main interests right now is my blog - I blog as Sincerely Sabrina. I used to blog under the name “I am Talentless” which is funny, I guess, because I kind of thought I was one of those kids who didn’t have any special talent or skills – like, I didn’t play the piano and I wasn’t very good at sports, so that’s where the name came from. I’m a fashion blogger, so I typically post on my own outfits, and I occasionally throw in items that inspire me. To take something from the inspiration around you and make it your own, I think that is what fashion really is: creative, inspirational, and innovative.  Starting a new blog has been really great for me because I’m kind of stepping out of that ‘talentless’ shell that I had, and moving on to bigger and better things for myself. 

You mentioned that fashion is about drawing inspiration from things around you and making it your own. How do you incorporate that into your own life?

Inspiration is something different for everyone, but for me it can be anything that catches my attention.  If I see something I like, I’m not going to copy it directly, but I will take aspects of it and add in my own ideas to make it more “me.”  I find that inspiration isn’t always a conscious act, so I tend to find myself using what I see all the time and hardly realizing it. 

Do you feel like your sense of style has changed since you moved to Ottawa?

I’m definitely different from who I was in Toronto. In Toronto there are so many other people, it can feel like you’re drowning in a big crowd. Fashion is a way for me to stand out. I like going to class and turning heads in that way; I tend to push my limits through fashion, I think. What can I get away with in every day life? One day I’ll go with the three-inch heels to class, and another day I’ll go in five layers of jackets. I was more conservative in Toronto and didn’t really think much of fashion, but in Ottawa I can kind of let my creative senses be free.

Now that you’re here in Ottawa, how do you feel about the city?

I actually love the city. I honestly didn’t expect to love it this much. I came to Ottawa with the mindset that I was here for university, that I’d go back home to Toronto when it was over, and that would be it. Now when I go back to Toronto it’s almost like I’m a guest in my own home. Ottawa isn’t just a second home to me anymore. I think I’m ready it turn it into my home.

The cultural scene here is pretty interesting to me. I’m from a predominantly Asian community in Toronto so I often find myself comparing it to Ottawa. Here, I see Chinatown as a little street with a few restaurants and hair salons, but for the most part it seems pretty detached from the rest of the city. The same goes for a lot of the other cultural communities here, though.  It’s kind of ironic that Ottawa is home to a lot of foreign embassies, but there aren’t very many cultural events that take place that are open to the public.

As far as fashion, one of the first things I was told about Ottawa was that it’s a Gap city – you know, that there would be a lot of people who shop at the Gap and walk around wearing sweats – but that’s not it. When I came to Carleton that’s not what I saw. I saw people getting creative. Especially with all the students, you have a lot of people that come from many different places – Toronto, small towns, other places in the world, so there is some fashion diversity that comes together, at least on campus.

What advice would you give someone who is just starting to express his or her self with style and fashion?

Be experimental. A lot of people ask me what my style is, and I still call it undefined. I don’t have just one style that I prefer. I like being experimental and seeing what sticks. If someone were trying to test out their style to express themselves more, I would recommend being experimental with it. Keep a fashion journal – I blog about my fashion choices, which is like keeping a photo journal. It’s interesting to see how I have changed over time. I can look back and see how much I’ve grown, and how much growing I still have to do. Documentation is about looking at what works for you and what doesn’t – not just in terms of aesthetic fashion, but in terms of your personal style.

Thank you, Sabrina! You can check out Sabrina’s fashion blog at Sincerely Sabrina.