Who is Leah Morrigan?
Leah Morrigan is an Image Consultant. Photo by: Breda Murphy.
Leah Morrigan started her career in Image Consulting for men in 1986, when she worked in the menswear department at Eaton’s. She has Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre: Design – Costume, is certified in Image Consulting and has studied Fashion Design. “Leah is the first woman in Canada to specialize in men’s image and has been optimizing men’s presentation since 2004,” reads her biography on TransformYourself.ca. Morrigan has also researched the masculine condition, assisted the Globe and Mail‘s first “Suitable” men’s makeover and is a contributing expert for The Toronto Star‘s entrepreneur blog, launching this April.
See below for an uncut interview with Morrigan on her career and experiences with males and body image:
Career:
Q: You were the first woman in Canada to specialize in men’s image and have been optimizing men’s presentation since 2004. Give us an example of what a day in the life of Leah might be like.
A: I’ll use today (March 22) as my example – I wrote a post for my blog, In the Key of He (collar and cuff information this time), went to the gym, chose fabrics for the tailor I’ll be taking a client to this week, organized meetings, edited a Toronto Star blog post.
Q: When did you know you wanted to get into image consulting for men?
A: I began life with the intention of being a men’s clothing designer, but the psychological aspects of clothing drew me in too much. With image consulting, I’m able to meld these two fields together, plus I toss sociology, endocrinology, neurology and general observation into the mix that is uniquely mine.
Benefits of Image Consulting services:
Q: Why is it important for men to use Image Consulting services?
A: Men haven’t had the opportunity to experience the world in the same way women have. I don’t think this is fair; preventing men from enjoying the glory of colour, the sumptuousness of fabrics, and the fun of self-expression through clothing is a crime against them. I help men see themselves from a different perspective, showing them how attractive they are and bringing out their authenticity, their confidence, and their character. I want the man to be his own man – not the man society says he is.
Q: On TransformYourself.ca, the first thing that comes up on the home page is, “Image is everything. What does yours say?” How do/would you think men respond to this question?
A: I hope that men are moved to consider themselves this way and think about who they are and how they come across.
Q: You provide Appearance Services for men. What does this entail?
A: Colour analysis, grooming, body and wardrobe work and shopping. Follow up style session after the clothes come back from the tailors and follow up notes documenting our work together.
Q: What do Body Work sessions focus on? How do they impact the men who attend them?
A: Body Work is a part of the Body and Wardrobe service, meant to help a man become more conscious of his body, what it’s doing, and what it’s saying. I use yoga poses and ballet exercises to get the client in touch with his body and relaxation techniques to help him mentally connect his body. Here, I also analyze posture and give him feedback about my observations.
Q: Give a few examples of experiences you’ve had with men when providing them with image consulting that are moving and inspirational.
A: I used to volunteer with an agency that pulled wardrobes together for people entering the workforce. We used to dress young adults from Eva’s Phoenix, (a wonderful organization that helps street kids get their lives together) to prepare them for job interviews. One of the young men that I dressed was overweight and the other guys teased him about it – he was the token fat kid in the class. He arrived, like the rest of them, in baggy clothes and no idea of what to wear. We found a good-fitting suit for him, shirts, and I taught him to tie a tie. He had never seen himself look this good and couldn’t keep his happiness inside – I got a big bear hug and he left with his suit on!
Males and body image:
Q: Is discussing body image insecurities taboo for men? Why or why not?
A: It could be but I’m very supportive of my clients and I talk to them frankly about their bodies – there is never any judgment and I understand that people are at where they’re at. Usually by the time they get to me, they’ve already made the decision that they want to change so it isn’t such a big deal.
Q: How does society currently define the term, “masculinity?”
A: Men are gaining attention for being the ones left out of our feminized society and their roles and identities are changing. To complicate matters, we have say, four or five generational representations floating around with their own idea of what masculinity is. I’m not sure that I can answer that question because the concept of masculinity is changing and it is changing quickly.
Males and eating disorders:
Q: How do you feel knowing that approximately 10% of people with eating disorders are male?
A: I think it’s sad.
Q: How do you feel knowing that Telehealth Ontario has no information on males with eating disorders, because having one is considered to be most-common amongst females?
A: I think that’s sad, too. Not including males with eating disorders in the Telehealth system is like denying its existence. Men need a louder voice here/society needs to take men’s eating disorders (or any other physical or mental health issue) seriously and give men the support they need; they are not born to suck it up and remain unaffected—this is abusive toward the male gender.
Q: How do you feel knowing that there are only a few centres in the GTA that provide FREE service for people with eating disorders?
I’m not surprised. Eating disorders, I think, are still considered rare but if we open our eyes as a society, we would see just how deeply ingrained body image/food is to everyone and how profoundly it messes us up.
Society needs change:
Q: What needs to change within society so people can begin to accept themselves for who they are?
We as individuals have to change the rules and create standards of our own. When we decide that we’re fantastic as we are, we will stop judging ourselves and each other. Also, living in such a competitive society does not help matters at all—this comes from living in millenniums-old patriarchal society. Men are ruled by testosterone and testosterone makes men competitive and aggressive. If we didn’t have to look through testosterone goggles, the world would be very different.
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