FASHION Magazine

Alas, the age-old question: How to look polished sans effort? Want to walk the line between glamorous and laid back? That’s where Montreal-based label Mulcair comes in. Designed by Parsons grad and former Vena Cava intern, Juliana Bennett, Mulcair is a two-years-young collection of easy breezy separates made to exude sophistication on the fly—literally. The designer cites wind, movement and paramilitary aesthetics as the jumping-off points for spring. Key to the Mulcair DNA is a wearable influx of options, and this season is no different. From sweats to military vests to colourfully draped dresses, Spring 2011 is chock full.

While it’s impossible to pick a favourite amongst the fresh crop of talents virtually transforming the fashion scene in London right now, Peter Pilotto is surely one the brightest. The brainchild of Pilotto and co-designer Chris de Vos who met while studying design at the Antwerp Academy, the line has become known for its hyper-coloured digi-print dresses that feel very much like sculptural works of art. The duo broke new ground for spring, experimenting with trompe l’oeil printing on light and airy fabrics. Amidst a seasonal transformation (and over a lobster lunch last month at Holt Renfrew in Toronto), we sat down with the pair to talk all things pattern, collaboration and meeting the Queen.

Yet another of the hot young Canadian talents burning up NYC, Toronto native Kaelen Farncombe is one expatriate you might want to keep dibs on. Relocating to the Big Apple to study fashion design at Parsons New School for Design a few years back, Farncombe honed her skills while interning for designers Stella McCartney and Jenni Kayne. Channeling the easy sophistication favoured by those two designers, Farncombe launched her own effortless line of standout separates, Kaelen, early last year. With only three collections to date, the 26-year-old has developed a reputation for spinning unusual inspirations (her starting point for Spring was literal tornado chasing) into richly modern pieces that seem to transcend trends. The young designer’s aesthetic is already easily identifiable: effortless, elongated geometry with pops of colour like fall 2011’s riffs on chartreuse, red and tangerine.

We chatted with Farncombe about her aesthetic, chasing tornadoes and the business of fashion.

The mention of Brazil usually brings to mind exotic images of beautiful beaches, dancing until dawn at Carnival and knockout models like Gisele Bündchen. Another image to add to that list is the ultra-colourful work of one of the country’s most renowned designers, Ronaldo Fraga.

With a knack for turning arts and crafts concepts into high style, the glasses and curly-tipped moustache donning man always creates collections that tell the story of his country with an execution that is so spot on because, for the past eight years, he has worked with rural artisan groups from every corner of Brazil. “I believe there’s an immediate need to close the gap that exists between designers and artisans in Brazil,” says Fraga. “I think much of our identity in Brazil is handmade.” For his last two collections, Fraga worked with the same group of craftswomen, Gatas Bordadeiras, from the city of Passira in Pernambuco, a state in the North-East of the country.

Tania Martins, the designer behind Toronto-based cult label Pink Cobra, is one of the city’s finest yet surprisingly underrated talents. Never one to hoard the spotlight, Martins just goes about her business⎯that business being the wildly popular Queen Street West boutique, Carte Blanche, which she co-owns with Dan Augustino and designing Cobra, the store’s in-house label that celebrates its 10^th collection for fall. At 5”2, the pint-sized designer packs more natural confidence, poise, beauty and style in her tiny body than most of us could ever hope to, and translates it effortlessly into her uncomplicated collections of sexy standout LBDs and biker jackets (editors note: last fall’s version is the best jacket I’ve ever owned…)

Martins gave us the first peek at her fall 2011 collection, featuring brilliantly tailored and slashed button downs, sexy backless dresses and pleated skirts. Naturally, we NEEDED to know more…

Back when Aja Singer and Anna Zeman were new-found Parsons grads, the Toronto and Seattle natives banded together to fill the gap between high-end and the everyday. Five seasons later, the two have clearly defined their New York-based brand, Alex & Eli, as the answer to virtually every wardrobe dilemma a twenty-something girl about town might have. With a combined resume boasting apprenticeships at the likes of Zac Posen, Carolina Herrera and Rodarte, its no wonder that the fairly young brand has got such strong vision. While others may design with pure fantasy in mind, Singer and Zeman just get it.

Both having studied science in their undergraduate years, the designers were inspired by Star Trek when creating their fall collection. Blending those far-out references with the duo’s yen for tailoring, the collection comes off as flawlessly relaxed and firmly planted in reality. As soon as we got our hands on the fall look book, we had no choice but to find out more from the horses’ designers’ mouths.