N ||||||||||||||||||||||||| Niki St. Angelo| Journalist 647.830.5133 nstang01@uoguelph.ca
Media Portfolio & Published Work.
HELLO. I am Niki St. Angelo, a 22-year-old freelance journalist from Toronto, Ontario. I recently graduated with Honours from the University of Guelph-Humber with a degree in Media studies, focusing on Journalism. The following pages include my resume, some of my published work along with my senior research project.
RESUME & ABOUT ME Education: 2005-2009 University of Guelph B.A.A., Media Studies with Honours Humber College Diploma in Journalism
Employment: August 2008-Present Glam Boulevard Toronto Correspondent | New York, New York Responsible for writing 6-12 articles weekly pertaining to the fashion industry Edit/Fact check information, work within a tight deadline Comfortable working within an online setting May 2007-Present CTV Freelance Freelance Events Staff | Toronto, Ontario Work at various specialized events. e.g., Canadian Music Week, Canadian Idol after party Responsibilities range from greeting guests, to seating, to wrist-banding, to promotion January 2009-May 2009 Notable TV Communication Strategist | Toronto, Ontario Liaise with local fashion designers, events, shows to create video, press for NotableTV.com Create and update editorial calendar with interviews and upcoming events Copy for website Updated website calendar using basic HTML coding Manage hosts and videographers
Online marketing, advertising and P.R. Responsible for social media updates, e-mail blasts, twitter, facebook. Business development Office administration September 2008-December 2008 Crave Magazine Assistant Art Director, Contributor | Toronto, Ontario Create layout design for Magazine using Adobe Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop. Work in team setting, high pace, with tight deadlines. Wrote article about riding bike in the winter months September 2007-April 2008 Guelph-Humber Newscast |Toronto Ontario Held the following positions: Camera operator, Editing and Camera Supervisor, News Writer, Feed and Play Reported on the field, edited daily news items to deadline Managed Editing and Camera department Wrote and edited daily news stories Covered a ‘breaking news’ story item, when someone fainted in the hallways Controlled each tape, and played when required September 2007-December 2007 Guelph-Humber Radix Business and Technology Editor, Reporter |Toronto, Ontario Wrote stories for Life/Entertainment section including Fashion Week review with interviews from Common Cloth designers, Red Tent Sisters boutique which is aims to give knowledge to women about alternative birthing techniques and female sexuality. Freedom Clothing
||||||||||||||||||||||||| Niki St. Angelo | Journalist 647.830.5133 nstang01@uoguelph.ca
Collective about 7 young Ryerson grads owning a successful store. Wrote FRONTLINE story for the News section about the new psychology program offered at Guelph-Humber which was also utilized on Guelphhumber.ca website as a news release. May 2007 to February 2008 The Much Store Sales Associate | Toronto, Ontario Execute daily target sales for the store Managed cashiering activities in areas of purchasing, returns, and exchanges, and enforced store policies. Tear-down, set up and promotion of in store events.
Volunteer Work: Many local events, such as One King Rocks event, NABS Canada: Sin in the City, Anokhi Magazine Anniversary Party, Chum/City sales party, Canadian Idol After party, Canadian Music Week party, Toronto Film Festival, Stair Climb for Cancer.
References: Mr. Mark Griffis Arts Department Saint Paul High School Niagara Falls, ON t. 905.356.4313 Mr. Julian Brass CEO of NotableTV Toronto, Ontario t: 647.345.1776 c: 416.994.9789
PUBLISHED WORK 2007-2009
GH PSYCHED TO GROW New psychology program spurs expansion Two new programs are being added to Guelph-Humber’s academic palette as the school continues its rapid development. “Psychology and Kinesiology will allow Guelph-Humber to grow to 3,000 people in the existing space” said Jock Phippen, Registrarial Services Manager at the University of Guelph-Humber, “The plan was to grow, as we have.” Currently, about 2,500 students are enrolled at the university. “If things did not go well in the first six years here, nobody would be talking about growth,” said Phippen. The concept, integrating the University of Guelph and Humber College, released its inaugural class in September 2002 with an enrollment of only 200 students. GH Began with only three programs: Business, Computing Co-op and Media Studies. Since then, there has been the addition of Early Childhood Education, Justice Studies and Family/Community Social Services.
Article: GH Psyched to Grow Front line story. Published in the 15 October 2007 Issue of Radix Newspaper
Psychology was added this fall and Kinesiology is slated for fall 2008. Rena Borovilos, Program head of Psychology, is optimistic about the success of the first batch of students. “They’re raring to go. The students have already taken the initiative with the GH Psychology Society. The club allows them to get to know each other better, form study groups and give me feedback on the program,” said Borovilos. “The program accepted about 60 student this year, and prospective students are already inquiring about next year.” The curriculum includes specialized pathways into varying areas of psychology following the first year. Students can personalize their schedules to enter the graduate school path, education field or counseling. With a projected enrollment of 64 students, next year’s Kinesiology program will offer a summer bridge semester offered to Humber College graduates.
The summer semester will accept into the third year of the program and an additional 65 students from Humber that have a diploma in Fitness and Health promotion. “A 75 per cent average in any of the nine Canadian colleges that offer the Fitness and Health Promotion program is the guideline for entrance into the bridge semester,” explained Elaine Popp, Program head of Kinesiology. The program is unique because the Kinesiology students will have the opportunity to travel to the University of Guelph via bus to utilize their cadaver lab. To accommodate the new increase of students, the fourth floor of the GH facility is currently being completed. “The new surge of GH students shouldn’t interfere with returning students or create any space issues,” said Jonathon Christie, Admissions Co-coordinator, “We will be able to coordinate the new programs with the new space.” With the steady growth of GH, Phippen promises the University will not lose its identity as a small school. “The great thing about the building is that the biggest classroom we have seats 130 people, and the vast majority of the others sit 65 or fewer,” said Phippen, “Even if we doubled in size, we’d still be the smallest Toronto area university by far.”
TWO SISTERS FIND A COMMON CLOTH Simple clothing. Extravagant tailoring. Striking fabrics. It is all in the details for Toronto-based clothing line, Common Cloth. The fashion duo, sister’s Melanie Talbot and Kristina Bozza, showed their latest collection at L’oreal Fashion Week. The Spring/Summer ’08 collection encompasses a “very beachy, light, fresh, fun look,” explains Raquelle Rodrigues, intern at Fashion Television. “I thought the show was phenomenal. The live band was a great element.” Model’s literally rocked the runway with a live band, complete with drums, bass, guitar and keys blasting tunes at the top of the strip. Two distinctive motifs in each model: either dawning typical nerd glasses, high-waisted shorts with tailored super-soft cotton tee’s, the look was geek chic vs. the long, flowing greek-goddess dresses floated down the runway in perfect sync with the music. “It truly is always about the fabrics, tailoring and the lines with Common Cloth,” says Caroline
Article: Two Sister’s Find a Common Cloth Published in the 5 November 2007 Issue of Radix Newspaper
Shaveed, third-year journalism student at Ryerson, “They are so meticulous about the details.” The result is a full contemporary collection that is a play on masculine vs. feminine, casual vs. dressy. The show was packed from top to bottom, “Everything went flawless,” says Melanie Talbot, designer and co-founder of Common Cloth, who later DJ’d with sister, co-designer and co-owner Kristina Bozzo at the Drake Hotel for the after party. The work never ends for this pair, next up for Common Cloth, a dog line called “Fetch”. For More info: Common Cloth, 1233 Queen W, 416-203-7710. www.commoncloth.com
SEX TOYS, CHILD BIRTH AND BABY CLOTHING, OH MY! One window displays sex toys and the other, baby toys. Red Tent Sisters’ located at 810 Danforth east of Pape, is not your typical health store. Named after the book “The Red Tent” by Anita Diamant, the store name refers to the practice of women gathering for support during the time of childbirth and menstruation. The store was opened three months ago by sister’s Kim and Amy Sedgwick with the motive to give women a space that is their own. “All too often women are given few choices when it comes to their bodies, and even less information,” says Kim Sedgwick, Co-Owner of Red Tent Sisters, “Amy and I were fortunate enough to grow up surrounded by a community of wise, supportive women, we have always felt connected to our bodies.” However, both Sedgwick’s are aware that this is not the case for all women, “At Red Tent Sisters’
Article: Sex Toys, Child Birth and Baby Clothing, Oh My! Published in the 26 November, 2007 Issue of Radix Newspaper.
we tried to create a space where women feel comfortable discussing topics generally considered taboo,” says Kim Sedgwick, “and hopefully by creating a dialogue, women will feel more empowered in their decisions.” Red Tent Sisters’ carry a range of products, specializing in fertility, sexuality, contraception, menopause, childrearing and pregnancy. On the shelves there are alternative menstrual products like the DivaCup, Lunapads (washable menstrual pads), and Sea Pearls sea sponge tampons, a selection of baby slings, baby singing videos and other baby products, fertility and charting products including the Justisee manual and basal thermometers, a selection of adult toys and personal lubricants, the Avalon line of organic body products, and a collection of books relating to parenting, pregnancy, sexuality, menopause and general women’s health.
Customer’s tend to be “Women from the neighbourhood, although our first customer was eight and a half months pregnant and traveled by subway from Dufferin and Bloor to buy a birthing tub!” said Kim Sedgwick. But like the store, the clientele is equally as diverse, “Many of our customers are new mothers who attend our baby sign language classes or come to purchase a baby sling,” explains Kim Sedgwick, “We have a lot of older women interested in our menopause workshops and books, as well as a number of women struggling with fertility challenges. Quite a few women of all ages have come into the store to purchase their first vibrator, since they don’t feel comfortable going into a traditional sex store.” Stephanie Candeloro, 24, first time customer agrees, “Having a store like this [Red Tent Sisters] is really great,” explains Candeloro, “I don’t have to feel like I am doing something bad when I go in here.” The Sedgwick sisters’ put a lot of thought into how to incorporate the sexuality aspect of the store, “Women’s sexuality is often stigmatized in our society and there are few sexuality stores that cater specifically to women,” explains Kim, “When we did our market research we asked women how they would like the adult toys displayed: openly displayed, displayed discreetly above children’s view, in a back corner or not available at all. Most people responded ‘discreetly above children’s view’.” The toys are displayed on the top shelf of our sexuality/menstruation shelving unit. Another precaution taken by the sisters’ is “a sign on the front door advising parents of the ‘mature nature’” says Kim, “While we have had a few customers walk in and seem a little shocked at the contents, no one has verbally expressed their disapproval in the store.” That said, Red Tent Sisters have been told that there are some people in the neighbourhood who refuse to come into the store due to the sexuality products. “We’ve just had to accept that we can’t please everybody!” says Kim, “By and large, women who come to our store seem to be incredibly grateful that such a place exists. This is what we focus on and what drives our ongoing commitment to our business vision.”
MODEL WATCH: JOAN SMALLS Don’t count on a name like Smalls to hold this model back. Joan has big things in her future. The 20-year-old Puerto Rico Born bombshell’s rise-to-fame began in 2007 when she signed with Elite Models in New York and received first booking as a model in the Tory Burch presentation in New York City. Later that year, Smalls appeared in ad campaigns for Liz Claiborne with Anouck Lepere and modeled for the Nordstrom catalog. Still, her most influential job launched in September 2007, when Smalls closed the Port 1961 Spring/Summer 08 runway show. In turn, leading to her most recent accomplishment as the face of Port 1961. Since being named the Face for Port 1961 earlier this year, she has walked the fall Diane von Furstenberg, James Coviello, Ports 1961, and Sass & Bide shows in New York and also appeared in a Cosmopolitan editorial. This July, she was featured in V magazine and was photographed by Taghi Naderzad. Expect Joan Smalls to keep growing, and growing….. and growing…
Articles Above: Written for Glamboulevard. To see more writing for Glamboulevard visit: www.glamboulevard.com/author/nicole-st-angelo/
MODEL WATCH: HONORINE UWERA Keep an eye out for Canadian model Honorine Uwera The dark haired, dark eyed beauty is catching the likes of Cavalli, Phillip Lim and Vivienne Westwood just to name a few. You may recognize her from one of her many shows in the past, including her debut at the spring Akris, Costume National, Viktor & Rolf, and Yves Saint Laurent shows in Paris. If that doesn’t sound familiar, she has also walked the Spring Summer 06 runways for Antonio Marras, Dries van Noten, Just Cavalli ready-to-wear, or perhaps you’ve seen her in the Fall Winter 06 runways for Phillip Lim, Akris, Baby Phat, Brian Reyes, Emanuel Ungaro, Heatherette, Issey Miyake, Richard Chai, Ruffian, Vivienne Westwood ready to wear…and the S/S 07 Jean Paul Gaultier ready-to-wear. The very accomplished Uwera has also appeared in Nordstrom catalog, walked the very prestigious 30-year retrospective of Jean Paul Gaultier in a vintage gold lame bodysuit. Most recently, the model has been photographed by Steven Klein for Italian Vogue in 2007. She also has being featured in Trace, and in a Mixte editorial and starred in the Moschino F/07 ad campaign shot by Peter Lindberg.
LAGERFELD’S DOM PERIGNON ROSE VINTAGE 1996 ADS Leave it to Karl Lagerfeld to create a supersexy and controversial “Room Service” advertisement for the Dom Pérignon Rosé Vintage 1996 campaign. Lagerfeld shot the still ad campaign featuring models Eva Herzigova and Brad Kroenig according to this scandalous story line: A beautiful young blonde woman gets the largest room in a hotel, than stuffs it to the rim with clothing and champagne. She than goes on a massive shopping spree at Dior, goes back to the hotel, drinks Dom Perignon Champagne while admiring her new clothing and invites herself into the sexy man staying the room next door to hers– of course, ending up in his bed. As I mentioned above, Karl shot the still ad campaign featuring models Eva Herzigova and Brad Kroenig as strangers who meet in a posh Paris hotel, but it is important to note that this was made into a short film which can still be found on youtube. And yes– it is just as scandalous.
THE UNOFFICIAL GUI RIDING YOUR BIKE IN WINTER It was the hottest, smoggiest, muggiest, most sweltering high-pollution July afternoon of last year that I first decided I needed a bike. After stepping onto the packed-full Queen streetcar heading west toward Ossington, the distinct smell of B.O. mixed with that awful body spray Hawaiian mist was inescapable. There were so many people crammed into the streetcar that I was virtually unable to hold onto anything. Expectedly so, I slammed into a rather husky man talking to himself; until I realized he had one of those blue tooth’s in his ear. Seemingly seconds later, two little girls pointed at me and openly commented about the redness of my hair ‘do you like her hair?’ the one girl said to the other. It was only that moment, when I looked outside the window to avoid the little girls that I saw my escape literally passing me by. I needed a bike. But riding a bike wasn’t as simple an escape as I had imagined. The difficulty wasn’t actually riding the thing; that’s a skill you never forget. It was more complexity of riding the bike in the city, on busy city
Article: The Unoffical Guide to Riding your Bike in the Winter Published in the S/S 09 issue of Crave Magazine
roads, with busy city cars, and busy city people going busy city people places. You see, riding a bike in Toronto isn’t like riding a bike in the ‘burbs. In Toronto, a cyclist must follow the rules, regulations and etiquette in order to be treated with respect from fellow bikers, pedestrians and motorists alike. Which perhaps, isn’t quite so essential in a smaller city or town. First, in Toronto, a cyclist must share the road with streetcar tracks, large trucks, car doors, vespas, fellow bikers, construction-ridden roads, angry driver and pedestrians. In order to survive, a cyclist must abide by the same rights, rules and responsibilities as an automobile driver. Simply: a cyclist must stop at all stop signs, ride on the road, follow traffic lights as well as execute basic right of way rules. “Certainly, there are a whole bunch of safety procedures a biker must know, but certainly see and be seen,” explains Barb Wentworth, Bicycle Safety Planner for the City of Toronto, “You have to see the motorist, pedestrian or biker in order to make good decisions, and the driver or person must see you as well.” Next, be predictable. Ride in a straight line. “It seems so simple, but riding in a straight line is a skill,” says Wentworth, who also is an instructor for Can-Bike, a bike-safety course offered for adults who’ve never rode, and children learning how to ride. “Are you a cyclist?” she asks me. “Yes,” I reply. “Than you understand how annoying it is when a cyclists ahead of you I swerving all over the bike lane!” but not only is it annoying, Wentworth makes clear ,“If you swerve, you’re not very visible either. It’s so important to ride straight, for example, if you’re looking for an address, you should be positioned from the curb,” Wentworth puts in plain words, “If you hug the curb, you’re decreasing your chances of being seen.”
IDE TO N THE Subsequently, while always being sure to ride straight, it is important to also stay in the bike lane about a car door’s length away from parked cars. “Can you guess what the number on killer of cyclists is?” asks Wentworth, “Car doors.” If a cyclists rides any closer to the curb, they risk getting struck by the unassuming car driver. The number two killer? Trucks. “Last year, I saw a girl get hit by a truck. I tried not to look, but hearing her scream was disturbing enough. I’m pretty sure she swerved or something to get out of the way of a car door, and her handle bar got caught on the truck somehow, so it sort of starting dragging her,” explains Alexis McClaren, an avid biker in the city, “She ended up falling off of her bike, and than the second set of wheels from the truck ran her over. It was disgusting.” In the past three years, a total of seven cyclists have been killed on Toronto roads in a collision with a truck. Since 2005, Toronto has launched the “Please Don’t Squeeze” Program, aimed to educate cyclists and drivers of trucks, as well as other large vehicles about how to share the road safely. Wentworth also explains the importance of wearing bright coloured clothing, using a light at night, making eye contact and the position taken in the lane, “See and be seen is a great way to pull everything together.” Of course, it is also necessary to have a mechanically well-tuned bike. “If you’re bike has been sitting in the garage for five years, you’re going to want to have it fixed up,” Wentworth said. This includes ensuring the bike is adjusted to fit you properly, it outfitted with a bell, or horn, or whistle, had rear-view mirrors, reflectors, lights and a rack/basket. It is in the best interest of the cyclists to wear a helmet as well. The first bike I ever bought for the city was this $60.00 vintage cruiser of craigslist. Not even three days after riding it to work, did the entire
chain fall off, and get so incredibly entangled, that I couldn’t even walk my bike. Coincidently, It this incident happened a mere five meters away from renowned bike store, Urbane Cyclist. As I carried this bike, which was bigger than me into the store, I could hear the laughter. It sort of was like that revolutionary streetcar ride I mentioned before. It was hot, sweaty, muggy, polluted and the sales associates were laughing this time at my red bike, not my red hair. “I hope you didn’t pay more than $60.00 for this thing” said the sales associate, “If anything else goes wrong with this little bike, get rid of it.” I kept that little bike though, for the rest of the summer…each time I rode it, a random biker would asks me at the lights if I was hit by a car. (Apparently, the wheel was bent in, I never even noticed…) With winter vastly approaching, I thought I would have to bid adieu to my dear bike, But it isn’t so. The city of Toronto is promoting all-weather riding. Of course, it is much more demanding on the cyclists biking skills, but it is possible. “You can buy winter tires for your bike,” said Marty a sales associate at Urbane Cyclist, “But, they aren’t very common in Toronto. As long as you dress properly, pay attention to the weather and maintain your bike, riding in the winter can be an excellent way to stay in shape and good for the environment.” Also, if worst comes to worst while a cyclists is riding in the winter, the TTC offers bike racks on most buses. The exact routes currently available can be found atwww.toronto.ca/ttc/bike_racks. htm or by calling 416-393-INFO. “I ride my bike to work every day and people say ‘You’re nuts, you’re going to get killed’,” said Wentworth, “I say to people ‘You drive to work on the 401 everyday, you’re going to get killed.’” “So far, I believe there have only been two fatalities in Toronto this year, and only about 200 reported injuries annually as well,” said Wentworth, “Sometimes that number goes up, sometimes it goes down, but it is pretty stable.” Especially when compared to the amount of car accidents, “I think people feel more vulnerable on a bike, because there is no safety belt, no air bags,” said Wentworth, “But if you look around now, there are bike traffic jams in downtown core: So Yes, I think cycling is a very reasonable way to get around.”
SENIOR RESEARCH PROJECT 2009
Senior Research Project: Longevity is the New Black: from Secondhand to Ready-to-wear Over a two-semester period, I was responsible for writing a thesis paper and a creative project. I successfully identified a problem and asked a well-formulated research question, which set forth a Thesis Statement. In researching, I created a review of literature, which exposed state of the art information about my research question. I uncovered gaps in the literature, identified problems and controversies and highlighted different methods of approaching the issues in an order to situate my study in an ongoing dialogue. I generated a methodology justifying the approach I took for conducting my study in light of the issues discussed in my Review of Literature. By applying the evidence from the Review of Literature as the tools for my analysis, I successfully proved my hypothesis and demonstrated my own thinking abilities. The ‘Process Book’ you are viewing is the creative aspect of my thesis. It displays the pieces of clothing I constructed in response to the critical information uncovered in my study. My study focused on using textile-saving methods from World War II in order to create a more environmentally friendly world. The study uncovered the symbiotic relationship between the environment and the econmy.
GET IN TOUCH ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Niki St. Angelo | Journalist 647.830.5133 nstang01@uoguelph.ca
I WOULD BE DELIGHTED TO MEET AND DISCUSS MY WORK IN PERSON.