You’ve heard of press tour style—when top Hollywood actors promote their films with one splashy red carpet appearance after another. (Often, method dressing is involved.) But this month, I was tasked with attempting book tour style.
When I published my memoir, From the Rez to the Runway, I did not anticipate the week-long press circuit that would come along with it. Talk shows! Panels! Book signings! The endless array of events meant I would need many different outfits. And given I have no celebrity stylist to pull things for me, I quickly needed to think of a focus for my tour wardrobe.
It didn’t take me long to come up with a clear fashion direction. In my memoir, I wrote about my journey from growing up on my traditional Indigenous homelands—on my reservation, Nipissing First Nation, back in Canada—to eventually landing in the heart of the fashion world in New York City, where I now write for this very magazine. Because much of the book centers around Indigenous culture and the world of high fashion, I knew my tour looks should reflect that in some way.
To sweeten the pot, I wondered: Could I exclusively wear Indigenous designers for the entire week? These days, the Indigenous fashion landscape is diverse and beautiful. Contemporary Native designers are cresting everything from suiting and gowns to streetwear and even athletic wear. Surely, then, I could find a week’s worth of intentional and Indigenous-made statement pieces to elevate my own closet. I was not disappointed.
