I like things that last – old things, forgotten things, things that keep going. I’ve always gravitated towards colour and light and styles that have a bit of longevity to them. Being in the world feels so volatile sometimes: I want to know I can depend on something, and fashion has always afforded me a modicum of control.

I was 30, living in Kingston, Ontario with my grad-student husband and two children. I had gone on a girls-day-out kind of trip to Ottawa, and Bouclair Fabrics was the prime destination.

The question of my favorite outfit really got me thinking about what would constitute a favorite for me – something that I wear a ton but will eventually get rid of like my current favorite jeans, something of sentimental value like a wedding dress or concert tee, a rare vintage find?

I purchased the red dress in Italy on a choir tour. The trip was a noisy tumble-dryer of emotional highs and lows fueled by countless bottles of red wine, singing, and my tears of guilt over the fact that I had left my family at home to deal with the very short and shocking timeline my mom had been given just before I left.