Women We Admire | Claudia Dey of Horses Atelier
Designer, author, playwright, actress, badass lumberjack lady – you’ll be hard-pressed to find something Claudia Dey can’t do. A prominent figure in Toronto’s arts + fashion industries, Dey is without a doubt a woman we admire. She is one-half of Toronto fashion label Horses Atelier, and her latest novel HEARTBREAKER (released August 2018) has been met with great critical acclaim. Here are a few things that make this creative tick:
What do you do when you wake up?
Kiss my boys, put the coffee on, try to remember my dreams.
Name a book or a band you are obsessed with right now.
Band: La Force.
Book: The Dark Dark by Samantha Hunt.
What's the best advice you've ever received?
Focus Thine Anarchy.
If your business was a band, what band would it be?
Pussy Riot.
Who do you admire and why?
Teen activists. Courage, fight, hopefulness, the future.
What’s the best part about being an entrepreneur? / What’s the worst part?
The heavy and beautiful autonomy of being self-led / There is no worst part.
What is your beauty routine?
I do Frankincense Honey masks (Living Libations) with my eldest son once or twice a week. I wear very little make up and never fall asleep with it on. I wash my face and moisturize the way my Mother taught me. The products I use most faithfully are:
Dr. Hauschka Soothing Cleansing Milk
Earth to Body Shargan Butter (my aunt and uncle make this in their kitchen)
Province Apothecary Radiant Body Oil
Everyday Oil
Hourglass No. 28 Lip Treatment Oil
What’s your top ‘beauty secret’?
My top beauty secret is that I don't self-police. I eat wine and fries for dinner when I want to eat wine and fries for dinner. Beauty is inner liberty.
Claudia Dey is the author of HEARTBREAKER, listed as one of the Most Anticipated Books of 2018 by Entertainment Weekly, The Millions, Publishers Weekly, Buzzfeed, Globe and Mail, Flare, Chatelaine, CBC Books––also, a Staff Pick at The Paris Review.
Dey's first novel, STUNT, was a finalist for the Amazon First Novel Award, and a Globe & Mail and Quill & Quire Book of the Year. Her plays have been produced internationally and nominated for the Governor General’s and Trillium Book Awards.
Dey’s writing and interviews have appeared in many publications including The Believer, Lit Hub, Rookie, and The Paris Review. Dey has also worked as a horror film actress and cook in lumber camps across northern Canada, and is co-designer of Horses Atelier. She lives in Toronto.
Instagram: @claudiadeytona
Twitter: @claudiadey
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