Holiday season style is all about healthy nail-care, dress rentals and bold men’s jewellery

This is the weekly Style File, featuring what’s on the radar of The Globe’s lifestyle desk. This week we’re talking about the latest in holiday fashion, and how to make getting ready for a season of glitzy parties easier and more budget-friendly.

Something borrowed

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As preparations for corporate holiday parties, New Year’s events and family Christmas card photo shoots are in full swing, Canada’s largest rental dress company is in the middle of a busy season. The Fitzroy, founded in 2016 by Julie Kalinowski and Angela Pastor, fills a gap in the Canadian rental market: “Men have been renting suits and tuxedos for many years, while its really women who need the variety for events,” says Pastor. At Fitzroy, you can rent dresses from brands such as Aidan Mattox, Reformation, For Love and Lemons and more, for around $100-150, and have them shipped anywhere across Canada.

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To the founders, it is both an economical and sustainable choice, especially when styles keep changing. This year, they’re seeing a trend in wearing formal jumpsuits, rosettes (large floral appliqué – a fun nod to the 1980s and 90s), sequins, lush jewel-green tones, gold, velvets and leather to holiday events. For online buyers, The Fitzroy provides a 30-minute virtual styling session, during which a stylist will provide options based on your preferences, speak to how they fit and show you how to measure yourself. No appointment is needed to walk into their new 9,000-square-foot Toronto headquarters, or you can book a more intimate private area for small group fittings with a dedicated stylist. For more information visit fitzroyrentals.com - Aruna Dutt

A subtle statement

Men’s jewellery has come a long way from the days when accessorizing meant donning the appropriate tie clip and cufflinks. Marc Alisa-Costales, an executive with Toronto accessory design studio Vitaly, says the best way for gentlemen to navigate the various party dress codes, from smart casual to superswank, is to focus on accessories that complement the outfit, rather than overpower it. “I’m excited to lean into smaller and daintier jewellery styles this festive season,” says Alisa-Costales, whose Toronto-based company won accessory designer of the 2023 at CAFAS (Canada’s arts and fashion awards). Vitaly’s Aim ring, for instance, can be worn on its own for a classy dinner party, or it can be stacked with other rings, on multiple fingers, for a fun night out on the town. Another top pick is the versatile Transit chain, whose industrial-style, low-profile look means it works great on its own or can easily be paired with other chain lengths, gauges and styles to the holiday wardrobe up a notch. The key with accessories is knowing when to infuse some of your personal style while still looking sophisticated, says Alisa-Costales. Vitaly’s genderless collection, available at vitalydesign.com, is constructed from 100-per-cent recycled stainless steel. - Gayle MacDonald

‘Less is more’ is back for nails

A great holiday manicure can bring a level of festivity to your look like nothing else, but which type of manicure – press-ons, gels, acrylics or dip powder (a hybrid between gel nail polish and acrylic extensions) – is healthiest for our nails? Toronto dermatologist Dr. Renita Ahluwalia says a regular manicure or dipping nails are safest “as they don’t require harsh UV lights to cure the finish and it’s a gentle removal process.”

Acrylic nails, which require the surface of your natural nails to be filed until they feel rough, are the most damaging, she says, because this thins and weakens the nail bed, the chemicals used to apply them can irritate the skin, and their removal often requires soaking nails in acetone or filing them off, which leaves nails brittle and parched.

A gentler option is soak-off gel nails which don’t need to be filed off. However these, too, come with a caveat. “Make sure you go to a salon that uses an LED curing light rather than a UV curing light,” says Ahluwalia, founder of the Canadian Dermatology Centre. “Anything that requires UV light to cure it, is damaging to the nail and can increase the risk of pigmentation change and even skin cancers such as melanoma.” Also, be sure to ask your nail technician to skip the cuticle trimming, she adds. Cuticles protect your nails and when you trim them back, it’s easier for bacteria and other germs to get inside your body and cause infection.

As for press-ons, there are a variety that are chic, durable and easy to apply. But the glue needed to adhere them to your nail can also be damaging, Ahluwalia says.

Her final word? “Everything in moderation. Reserve artificial nails for special occasions so that your nails have a chance to recuperate.” Better yet, Ahluwalia suggests embracing the latest trend – the so-called “no-nicure” – which celebrities such as Carey Mulligan and Kate Middleton love. It celebrates well-groomed, naked nails that look undeniably confident and chic. - Gayle MacDonald

Don’t arrive empty-handed

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Museum gift shops are an ideal place to find unique gifts at the intersection of art, culture or natural history. A new pop-up shop in the Royal Ontario Museum’s boutique will have Indigenous-made clothing, hats, beadwork and polymer clay jewellery, bags, home accents and more on sale until Feb. 9. In partnership with the non-profit Indigenous Fashion Arts, the shop includes work from designers who were featured at Milan Fashion Week earlier this year, such as Niio Perkins, who infuses a modern aesthetic with the traditional Iroquois raised beadwork technique, and Lesley Hampton, whose designs have been worn by celebrities such as Lizzo and Lainey Lui. Prices range from $5 to $300, and museum entry is not required to shop. - Aruna Dutt

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