azamit
Royal Gilbert

Meet a Montreal Creative Who Really Knows How to Live

Azamit takes us inside her dreamy century-old apartment

Even on crutches, Azamit can’t hold still. She hops around her Old Montreal apartment, checking on the photographer setting up his camera in the living room, the makeup artist laying out his brushes on the kitchen island. “For me, everything has to be moving, all the time,” she says with a smile, her sleek chignon and graceful limbs creating the impression of an off-duty ballerina.

Next comes a review of the looks she’ll be donning for her Kit cover story, a goosebump-inducing lineup of Chanel, Hermès and Cecilie Bahnsen. “My friend told me, ‘Azamit is the coolest—she’s always in super high heels,’” says the stylist on the shoot. “Well, that explains this!” replies the woman of the hour, throwing a rueful nod toward her freshly mended meniscus.

azamit
Left: Chanel cape, bodysuit, shorts, socks and shoes, price upon request, Chanel boutiques, Biko ring (right hand), $135, ilovebiko.com. Right: Kika Vargas dress, $1,005, ssense.com, Jenny Bird earrings, $160, jenny-bird.ca, Ring, Azamit’s own, Miu Miu shoes, $1,350, holtrenfrew.com Photo: Royal Gilbert

But not even knee surgery can slow her down—nor deter her from her footwear of choice. Amazit is a force, a one-name tastemaker who’s helped shape the Canadian style landscape for over two decades. Born in Eritrea and raised in Ethiopia, she immigrated to Montreal at age 15 when political unrest began destabilizing the region. She says she felt at home in Canada right away, adjusting to her new surroundings seamlessly—well, almost. “Winter is the only thing I hate about Montreal,” she quips.

As for what she loves about it? “The fact that you can choose what you want in life here. When you live in a huge city that’s very fast-paced, you can get lost trying to keep up. In Montreal, you decide what you want.”

What teenage Azamit wanted above all was to make clothes. After studying fashion design at Montreal’s Collège LaSalle, she spent a year at the École supérieure des arts appliqués Duperré in Paris, interning at Nina Ricci and other labels. “To my surprise, I realized I didn’t want to be a designer after all.”

azamit
Rick Owens dress, similar styles available on ssense.com, Biko earrings, $215, ilovebiko.com Photo: Royal Gilbert

So she took some time off to figure out her next move. A statuesque beauty with soaring cheekbones, she had often been approached by model scouts but had never felt confident enough to try it. Now out of school without a job, she thought, “Why not?”

“I went to my first test shoot and saw this man arrive with a rack of clothing. I asked him what he was doing and he said, ‘Honey, I’m going to make you look fabulous! [laughs]’ And throughout the whole shoot, I kept looking over at him and thinking, ‘That’s where I’m supposed to be, not on this side.’” Once the shoot wrapped, she marched over to the agency and told them modelling wasn’t for her after all—styling was her calling.

Azamit would go on to style countless editorials for Elle Québec and Elle Canada, becoming a fixture on the Canadian fashion scene. So when a jewellery designer friend was struggling to make her way to Paris for a trade show, she offered to help, calling up her contacts and organizing a sample sale to amass funds. “It was a huge success. That’s when I realized people wanted to connect with local designers, but they didn’t know how to.”

azamit
Hermès dress, price upon request, Hermès boutiques, bracelets, Azamit’s own, Jenny Bird earrings, $125, jenny-bird.ca Photo: Royal Gilbert

And so the idea for the Souk was born. It started out as a (very chic) Christmas market and has since evolved into a platform showcasing emerging talents in every realm from clothing and accessories to food and ceramics. “Basically, it’s anything you’d find in your home, because that’s also when I realized I have this obsession with home,” she says.

To be fair, it would be hard not to be obsessed with Azamit’s home, a sprawling, sun-filled apartment dating back to 1881, right down the street from the historic Bonsecours Market. It was the first place she moved into after leaving her parents’ house, 25 years ago this year.

“I’ve had many lives here,” she says. “Everywhere I look, I’m reminded of an adventure, a time, a place.” There are the treasures unearthed on trips to Bali, Mexico and Japan, the objets crafted by the many local makers she champions, the disco ball on the coffee table—the centrepiece of many an epic party, including her 40th birthday bash. The 24-hour affair featured musician jam sessions, DJ sets, a gourmet brunch and traditional Abyssinian coffee prepared by her mother.

azamit
Photo: Royal Gilbert

“Everything has to be over the top with me,” Azamit says with a laugh. “I can’t have a simple dinner party—it needs to be a production! Everything I do, I’m like, ‘How can we make this amazing?’”

The adjective surely applies to both her interior and wardrobe, though the word she finds best describes her style is “personal”—every decision informed by an eye for beauty and a yearning for meaning. The same goes for her career choices. About 10 years ago, she retired from fashion to focus on the Souk and freelance creative work. (Make no mistake, a well-cut garment still sends her pulse racing: “I love dressing up—I would do it 10 days a week, 24 hours.”)

But as she’s gotten older, Azamit says she’s become more selective about where she invests herself. “I’m not someone who wonders, ‘Does this pay well?’ because that’s not what I’m after. I’m hungry for the satisfaction you get from working on a creatively stimulating project or meeting interesting people.”

azamit
Cecilie Banhsen top, $1,180 and skirt, $1,790, ssense.com, Ganni sneakers, $445, ssense.com, Biko earrings, $175, ilovebiko.com Photo: Royal Gilbert

She likes to start her days with a stroll along the cobblestones to a nearby café with her two Italian greyhounds, Tsuki Chichin and Puglia, then get to work in the home office she shares with her husband, Francis Rudman, a digital creative director and 3-D artist. “I mean, I don’t really call what I do work—I can’t believe I actually get to make a living out of this,” she says. “I definitely took risks in my life; I was prepared to have a certain level of financial insecurity as long as, in the long term, I could be at peace with the choices I made.”

And at peace she most certainly seems—not that that means she’s sitting back and taking it easy. In a few months, she and Rudman and the dogs will be relocating to Milan (her brother will be taking over their lease—“I couldn’t bear to lose the apartment!”). The couple had been travelling to Italy often over the past few years, both for work and to see friends, so they figured, “Why not just move there?” “We were in the mood for a change, something more challenging, more exciting,” she explains. It seems for Azamit, there are always more adventures to be had, more lives to be lived—each of them sure to be amazing.

Get the look at home

Capture Azamit’s laid-back, collected interior style with a few well-chosen pieces

 

The pendants

azamit
Amulette pendant, $650 each, annielegault.com Photo: Amulette
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Montreal artist Annie Legault melds ancient weaving techniques with a contemporary sensibility to turn everyday objects into what she terms “material poetry.” Her lamps in particular are meant to be “balms against coldness,” instantly warming up the atmosphere of a room.

 

The disco ball

azamit
Youdepot disco ball, $140, amazon.ca Photo: Amazon
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Nothing lets your guests know they’re in a fun, carefree home quite like a big ol’ disco ball. Instead of hanging it up (that’d be so expected!), follow Azamit’s lead and casually place it on the floor or among a grouping of books and other decorative objects on a coffee table.

 

The candle holder

azamit
Nadine Hajjar Studio candle holder, $750, nadinehajjarstudio.com Photo: Nadine Hajjar Studio
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Raised in Beirut and based in Montreal, designer Nadine Hajjar calls wood her “favourite canvas.” Her work is infused with a whimsical quality, often characterized by soft, organic lines. This walnut and copper candle holder is the product of her “great obsession with spheres.”

 

The side tables

azamit
Hintsa Rudman side tables, price upon request, jeandemerry.com Photo: Hintsa Rudman
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Azamit and her husband, Francis, recently collaborated on a furniture line inspired by childhood holidays spent visiting grandparents (in Eritrea for her, in the English and French countryside for him). The result is an intersection of cultures and styles as cool as the couple itself.

 

The modular seating

azamit
Article armless chair, $899, article.com Photo: Article
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Low to the ground modular sofas allow you to arrange pieces in whatever formation best suits the mood, whether that’s an intimate conversation with friends or an all-night dance party. (How does Azamit keep hers white with two dogs? By covering the seats with washable throws.)

Styling: Amanda Lee Shirreffs (Teamm Agency), Hair and makeup: Nicolas Blanchet (Folio Montreal) using Dior cosmetics

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