On January 14, 2016, the love of Celine Dion’s life, René Angélil, passed away from throat cancer, leaving the singer and their three children to walk a long, winding road of grief.
But throughout her heartache and sorrow, the 49-year-old has found one outlet to ease her pain. That outlet? Fashion.
Opening up in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE magazine, Celine explains that while she’s always had an eye for style, fashion, in particular, has helped her deal with the loss of not only her husband, but the death of her brother, Daniel, who passed away from cancer just two days after René.
“I’ve always loved fashion, from as far back as I can remember,” she begins.
“But as everyone knows, I’ve gone through some extremely difficult times in recent years, and I suppose that I’m spreading my wings a little bit more these days and doing so with the help of beautiful clothing and accessories.”
“Fashion is fun. Fashion is fantasy,” she continues.
“It can often provide the escape that we need to take our minds of our daily problems, even if only for a short but necessary time.”
As previously reported by The Australian Women’s Weekly, Celine has been embracing her creative side of late, even posing naked for Vogue.
Previously speaking out about the agony of living her life without René, Celine has described her aching heart as something that will never heal.
“I think I will probably grieve for the rest of my life…”
“I miss him a lot. I miss him a lot — for my partner, for the man I was embracing, kissing, making love with. My worries, my dreams . . . ”
Fortunately, she finds some hope, happiness and creativity in the clothes she chooses (and refuses) to wear.
“Fashion can have a huge influence on how we feel from day-to-day,” she says.
“We can be feeling a little bit down when we wake up to face the day, but things start to brighten up a little when we put on that fancy outfit, with the vibrant colours and a spectacular pair of heels.”
h/t PEOPLE magazine.