FASHION Magazine

See the Operanation 2014 party pics » As I mentioned earlier this month, this year was my first time co-chairing Operanation, the annual gala benefiting the Canadian Opera Company’s Ensemble Studio, amongst other things. As such, it’d be something along the lines of self-important to dub Operanation 2014 the best party of the season/year/century so […]

The post Operanation 2014: 38 party photos from inside this year’s gala turned rave appeared first on FASHION Magazine.

See the looks from Toronto Fashion Week »

It’s official. Toronto has had enough of winter. For the kick-off of World Mastercard Fashion Week, the fashion crowd opted for lighter layers and vivid pops of colour. If we dress for spring, it’ll come quicker right?

Toronto socialite and fashion patron Sylvia Mantella went for a bold orange coat, accenting her ivory and bright pink Mikhael Kale dress underneath. Why go for one bright colour when you can rock two? Stylist Odessa Paloma Parker’s bubble gum pink furry coat looks even more chic when paired with an equally psychedelic clutch. Habitual street style stars Samantha and Caillianne Beckerman were out in full ‘90s kitsch in bright yellow with a ying-yang backpack and a homemade DIY Simpson’s appliqué denim jacket. They glammed up their look, switching out their usual relaxed tresses in favour of throwback ‘40s curls and victory rolls, while fellow blogger Mo Handahu added byzantine blue to her look matching the deep hue of her burgundy jacket. Model Stacey McKenzie braved the cold and went for full glamour in a thigh-high slit dress with embellished mock-epaulettes.

See the street style from outside Toronto Fashion Week »

Just when the international Fashion Weeks wind down, Canada revs its engines. Last night, the unofficial pre-cursor to Toronto Fashion Week, The ShOws, kicked off with presentations from Bellevance and Steven Tai. As the city’s industry insiders rejoiced in the 24-hour teaser of warm weather, light spring jackets in mostly neutral palette of blues, beiges and greys were spotted on the street outside the shows. Not wanting to tempt fate however, others layered up, ready for whatever Mother Nature decided to dish out. (Cue today’s blizzard.)

Canadian model Liisa Winkler brought a little bit of rural chic to the city, donning a mid-length lightweight black jacket, paired with a denim ruffled midi skirt and black Chelsea boots with socks. This is how you country in the big city, folks. Holt Renfrew’s Brittany Barkwell and Blaire Borins looked perfectly chic. Barkwell opted for a matching patterned top and trousers finished with lace up heels and a wide collared camel coat, while Borins looked cozy a fuzzy knee-length coat finished with big buttons, adding a raspberry red bag for a well placed pop of colour.

See our blogger-approved picks » With the rise of the online resale market, Canadian ecommerce site Trend Trunk has gone one step further making buying another form of social networking by connecting buyers and sellers through its marketplace of fashionable closets. This week, the site is holding their first ever Blogger Fashion Week, which runs […]

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See the Bad Words party photos »

If you’ve ever wanted an excuse to be pushed up against Jason Bateman‘s chest, last night’s party for Bad Words was the place to be. Held in the James Perse Boutique, the minimalist Yorkville shop reached maximum capacity to celebrate the film’s TIFF premiere—which, based on the tweets of fans and critics alike, is sure to be the next big dark comedic hit. (And also the reason why the film’s producers spent just as much time outside the party closing deals as they did inside enjoying the Mexican-themed drinks and treats.)

See all the photos from The Libertine launch party »

In the grand tradition of secret bars and speakeasies, The Libertine may have one of the best locations out there. Hidden behind a tarot card reader’s business, the basement entrance to Toronto’s newest restaurant is sure to prompt many double takes. However, thanks to the crowd that gathered for last night’s launch party, the secretive snack bar is destined to become quite well known in the months to come.

A mix of fashion and foodie guests mingled while hand-crafted cocktails and bites of fried chicken made the rounds. Anita Clarke, wearing a custom plaid Philip Sparks jacket, looked just as dapped as her well-suited table mates, including the designer himself and NOW’s Andrew Sardone. Holt Renfew’s Blaire Borins matched the mysterious mood of the decor in a slate-grey Greta Constantine dress while ornamental necklaces and bright lipsticks were accessory of choice for other guests.

See The Outnet party pictures »

For those of us who sideline in online sale stalking, The Outnet is a mainstay. Launched in 2009 as the post-sale outlet for designer den Net-a-Porter, the site has morphed into a full fledged Mecca for designer discounts boasting insane slashes on over 200 brands including Valentino, Stella McCartney, Alexander Wang and its own in-house label, Iris & Ink, which serves as a head-to-toe top off collection for the all the rest of the site’s covetable wares.

See The Room’s Viktor & Rolf party photos »

Viktor & Rolf’s love affair with Toronto began last night with a fittingly springy fête at Toronto’s Hudson’s Bay Queen Street flagship. In town to celebrate their recent collections as well as to do press spots for their upcoming Dolls retrospective exhibit with Luminato this summer, designers Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren sported matching embroidered jeans (Horsting’s featured sunglasses while Snoeren’s featured moustaches) and matching thick rimmed frames, making them the ideal models for Toronto’s new eyewear-specific blog, The Spectacled.

In keeping with the Dutch duo’s eccentricities, The Room was transformed with newly papered walls featuring the Fall 2013 runway room’s eerie black and white floral print, a string quartet playing instrumental takes on pop music and strapping waiters, who passed many a prettily-decorated Perrier-Jouët champagne flute while wearing V&R-esque (and maybe even a little Denis Gagnon) glasses.

As snarky as What Not to Wear may be, hosts Stacy and Clinton seem to always get one thing right: many women have no idea how to dress for differing body types. Since we all know that no two bodies are exactly the same, 9 of our unique and uniquely beautiful Style Panelists took on the challenge and styled themselves in what shape suits them best. Whether it be with tight fitting clothing, loose pieces or even balancing out both, our stylish go-to girls were able to manage the trick of dressing for their bodies

Determining what shape of body you have is the most crucial step before you start playing around with looks. Although many ladies this week, including new member Melissa Knight, agree that they prefer wearing loose-fitting over tight clothing due to comfort, most say that confidence is the real key to pulling off a look that flatters anybody’s curves (take a cue from our next new member, Barbara Solomon, if you don’t believe us!)

So no matter what your shape or size, hopefully our Style Panel will inspire you to dress for your body, and just werk it.

Question 25: What’s your foolproof way to dress for your body type, no matter the trend Read the answers now! »

Or jump to: BARBARA ANN SOLOMON, TORONTO | CARA MCLEAY, VANCOUVER | DANIELLE ROCHE, TORONTO | GRACIE CARROLL, TORONTO | KAYLA SHORT, HALIFAX | MARTA TRYSHAK, TORONTO | MO HANDAHU, HALIFAX | MELISSA KNIGHT, VANCOUVER | VICKIE LALIOTIS, EDMONTON

See the Paul Hardy 10th anniversary party photos »

Party Hardy! Finally—I’ve been waiting to say that ever since FASHION received an invite to Canadian design star Paul Hardy’s 10^th anniversary bash in Calgary on Saturday. It was an exclusive guest list, after all, (including Dragon’s Den billionaire W. Brett Wilson and his date, the Real Housewives of Vancouver’s Mary Zilba as well as Vancouver’s blonde and bubbly country singing sisters, Carly and Britt McKillip of One More Girl), and might have been the biggest, brightest, boldest birthday party to ever hit the Alberta fashion scene.

Mr. Hardy, Tourism Calgary and Travel Alberta flew in fashion’s top editors, bloggers and VIP’s from Vancouver to Toronto, including the Globe & Mail’s Tiyana Grulovic, Hello! Canada’s Tara Henley, FASHION’s resident street style photographer Stefania Yarhi, and Style Panel’s Gracie Carroll. After waking up in the swanky Hyatt Regency Calgary and chic-boutique Hotel Arts, the first snowfall of the season made our trek to the island River Café feel like some kind of wonderland—or as Hardy perfectly positioned it, “Narnia”.

Check out the photos of the MOON Ambassadors! »

Fresh from the launch of their new e-commerce website and recent pop-up shop in Toronto, Canada’s MOON Apparel has given us a peek at their new campaign, which will feature bloggers from across the country, including some very familiar faces.

The modern fashion line, which is helmed by Jordin and Tamara Mimran (the nephew and niece of Mr. Joe Fresh himself, Joe Mimran) is celebrating individual street style and in doing so have partnered with ten stylish fashion bloggers from five cities across Canada. The bloggers that have been specially selected will be members of an ambassador program set to launch this month in conjunction with MOON’s recently launched online store.

Check out the first Canadian Ann Taylor store and party pics!

Ann Taylor has touched down on Canadian soil. As a part of the brand’s global expansion, the first Canadian store was unveiled atToronto Eaton Centre. Conveniently nestled between the must-shop Apple Store and Lululemon, the bright white space was unveiled on Thursday. And there’s only one way to celebrate a store and that’s a party.

The spacious store was filled with bloggers like Style Panel’s Gracie Carroll and The Backseat Stylers’ Sharon Ng Hayes. Zoomer Magazine’s editor Suzanne Boyd and menswear designer Farley Chatto also showed up with others to scope the selection. Champagne and wine was sipped and tiny snacks consumed, the makings of any good party.