Gabrielle Trach

For the inaugural episode of Let’s Talk Clothes it only seemed right to have fellow fashionista, vintage enthusiast, and long-time friend Alyssa Newman on as the first guest. In this episode Alyssa and I talk: body image, questionable fashion choices of our youths, and personal fashion philosophies.

Alyssa is a mental health, disability, and self-love advocate, the creator of #boringactsofrecovery on Instagram, and the owner and creator of the Etsy shop The Pearl and Petal, where you can get hand-crafted crowns for both children and adults. Having been a fashion lover from a young age, Alyssa has developed quite the wardrobe, as well as some solid personal fashion rules, including: comfort is key, no denim diapers, and, most importantly, wear what makes you feel good!

Vintage clothing has been a life-long passion for Alyssa; I recall many a weekend or afternoon spent rifling through clothing racks for that perfect find. This blue silk robe was purchased at the now-closed, hometown gem The Stock Exchange, and is still one of her favourite finds to date. Along with vintage, Alyssa loves a bold accent — whether it’s a statement earring, bold lip, or an embellished sleeve. In her own words, when it comes to sleeves, “The bigger, the better”.

On top of clothing and fashion, Alyssa loves experimenting with makeup, and is a bit of a beauty junkie. This can be seen in her pristinely organized vanity table, which is well-stocked with lipsticks, mascara, false lashes, and more. (Can you say makeup goals?)

In this episode we also talk Met Gala, drag queens, and body positivity. Take a walk down Rihanna-fashion memory lane, courtesy of the ladies over at Go Fug Yourself; recap the Met Gala, and see how many of our predictions were right; or watch the ever-amazing Sasha Velour do a truly gag-worthy femme-Smeagol number to Kate Bush’s Wuthering Heights (skip ahead to 2:38).

There’s a reason why she won season 9 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. If you want some more body-positivity on your Instagram feed, check out @tessholiday, @notoriouslydapper, or @effyourbeautystandards.

If any or all of this sounds interesting to you, what are you waiting for? Go listen to Alyssa’s interview now! And if you want to stay up-to-date with Alyssa, her advocacy, as well as her business, you can follow her on Instagram at @lysslady and @thepearlandpetal.

And don’t forget to follow the podcast at @talkclothespodcast on Instagram, or email talkclothes@gmail.com