'I full-on cried.' Host of The Great Canadian Baking Show on why her flirty wardrobe was a game-changer

The best part of a cupcake is the icing. It acts as the vessel that holds sprinkles, drizzles and candy (aka the accessories). If the cupcake is the body, the icing is the fun and cute outfit she wears. I like to think of Alan and myself as the icing of The Great Canadian Baking Show. We're not the experts like Bruno and Kyla, we're not the heart and soul like the bakers. We're kind of… the eye candy. Now, this isn't to say we're not an important piece of the puzzle: who else is gonna run around yelling puns to distract the bakers? We all have a role to play, and ours just happens to be as well-dressed agents of chaos in an already chaotic tent. "Ann, this is a baking show. Who cares how you're dressed? It's all about the baking," says my inner saboteur and probably a few other folks. Well, I care. 

For the first time maybe ever in my life, in the tent, I get to be one of the pretty ones. I'm eye candy.- Ann Pornel, co-host of

I care because as a fat, Filipino woman, I know how rare it is to see someone who looks like me on television. Fat women are often the mothers, the caretakers, or the comedic relief as the skinny heroine's best friend. We rarely get to be seen as the object of desire; the pretty one. For the first time maybe ever in my life, in the tent, I get to be one of the pretty ones. I'm eye candy.

Now you might think that's incredibly shallow, or worse, like I'm objectifying myself by reducing what I do to being a walking, talking doll. But as someone who has never fit into the North American standards of beauty, or even most of the Asian standards of beauty, to have the opportunity to just look like an absolute snack is meaningful. Because it's not like my physical appearance has changed: I'm still fat, I'm still tanned, I've still got a little nose, and I still have little eyes that disappear when I smile too big. I'm still all of those things that were never deemed to be "beautiful," but here I am, getting to wear amazing outfits on national television. The Great Canadian Baking Show has not only given me the gift of being part of an iconic franchise, but it's also given me the opportunity to work with stylist/artist/general superhero Vanessa Magic, who is every bit as special as her name would suggest. 

Lucky for me, this isn't even the first time I've worked with Vanessa. We previously worked on two commercials and a web series together. In those instances, I was playing characters different from myself — I was acting — but on The Great Canadian Baking Show I get to be Ann. Off-camera, my personal style is a representation of who I like to think I am: bright, playful, and just a li'l' bit flirty, and Vanessa wanted to honour that.

I had no idea how much I wanted to wear those traditional silhouettes until she presented them to me. In fact, it was the first time I'd ever put on something traditionally Filipino.- Ann Pornel

I don't need to tell you how successful she was. Check the receipts, mama: Vanessa understood the assignment. I have never in my life felt more special, glamorous and beautiful than when I put on all the different outfits Vanessa curated over the two seasons of the show. In fact, I full-on cried when I "unboxed" three of the outfits she had picked for this latest season. They were from VINTA Gallery, a Filipino-Canadian designer, and all were modernized versions of traditional Filipino garments: two different dresses, both with the classic terno sleeve, and a hand-embroidered barong. 

I had no idea how much I wanted to wear those traditional silhouettes until she presented them to me. In fact, it was the first time I'd ever put on something traditionally Filipino. I didn't even know it was an option because when you're fat, you have limited options. But working with Vanessa feels like there's a bottomless Tickle Trunk full of the prettiest outfits. Through Vanessa and The Great Canadian Baking Show, I've also been exposed to some great Canadian designers: Dr. Liza, Warren Steven Scott, and Caroline Mangosing at the aforementioned-mentioned VINTA Gallery. While each of those designers creates different things, they're all bright, playful, and just a li'l' bit flirty, like me. And like any good cupcake.