FASHION Magazine

See the party photos from SMUT Soirée Toronto »

There’s basically two ways to keep up with celebrity gossip: Through the tabloids or through Lainey Gossip. Both are gratifying, but Lainey’s generally the only one telling the truth—her smart brand of gossip is all about the reasons behind why we hear the stories we do about celebrities. Needless to say, Lainey Gossip devotees are a dedicated bunch, which led to the creation of the SMUT Soirée: an annual event where Lainey goes even deeper with her Hollywood intel to reveal blind items, answer gossip questions and more. What started as a Toronto-only event is now a cross-Canada tour, with last night’s Toronto stop being the city’s eighth SMUT Soirée.

See Christian Louboutin Design Exchange opening party photos »

Last night, lovers of the greatest name in footwear came to meet the man himself at the opening of Christian Louboutin’s retrospective exhibit at Toronto’s Design Exchange. The designer, who graced the crowd for a moment in the VIP room on the third floor said but a few words, the most important ones being “French and Canadians, we get along ok.” We’ll take it! With that ceremonious kick-off, the party, which had been on for an hour at that point, really revved up. Amidst three floors of Louboutin goodness, the crowd, which included actress Sarah Gadon, Jeanne Beker, socialite Krystal Koo, and Design Exchange president Shauna Levy, got down to the hip hop stylings of New York-based It girl/DJ Hannah Bronfman.

The exhibit itself is a fantastical treat for anyone who not only loves shoes but the naughty likes of Dita Von Teese as well. Brought to town by the London’s Design Museum curator Donna Loveday, the exhibit is comprised of a mini carousel, a garden and a hologram of Von Teese which set the quirky stage for 250 pairs of Louboutin’s most iconic and outlandish shoes since he opened his first boutique in 1991.

See Luminato opening party photos »

On Friday night, Toronto’s arts elite flooded the sprawling canopied lobby of Brookfield Place for the opening of the Luminato arts festival. The event was activity-stacked, with Yves Saint Laurent handing out engraved Touche Eclat pens and branded cigars and a gigantic claw arcade machine in the centre of the room. The machine, entitled Stockpile, is actually one big performance art piece, with the part of the claw being acted out by nine different artists and the curious items in the cage being donated by the community. Naturally.

Fresh off the debut performance of The Life and Death of Marina Abramovic, Marina Abramović and Willem Dafoe joined in on the festivities alongside Luminato creative director Jörn Weisbrodt and husband Rufus Wainwright, who wore a custom made Jean-Charles de Castelbajac cloud-print suit. Elsewhere, Knot PR’s Amy Burtsyn-Fritz was making her own festive statement in a shimmering 3.1 Phillip Lim cocktail dress alongside freshly minted husband, Graham Smith.

See Big Bang Bash Viktor & Rolf Dolls Luminato photos »

Last Saturday night, the arty A-list gathered to celebrate the opening of the Viktor & Rolf Dolls exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. As the pre-emptive kick-off to the Luminato arts festival, which officially begins today, patrons, planners and performers came out en masse including the formidable foreign trio of Marina Abramović, Willem Dafoe and creative director Jörn Weisbrodt. To match the quirky aesthetic of the night’s satellite guests of honour (the designers were unable to repeat their May visit to Toronto), the ROM’s crystal lobby was tricked out with curiously interactive decorations like a sky-high mannequin whose dress gave out jewellery when guests placed their hands inside, a conveyor belt of treats and a literal piano bar which thrilled with its makeshift Prohibition vibe. Everything about the event seemed as if part of a surreal dream, which culminated in the fabulously fringed navy coat belonging to a one Suzanne Boyd catching on fire. With a few ceremonious pats, the fire was extinguished, leaving the glitzy gossipers with something especially titillating to talk about.

See the Mad Hot Ballet: Dangerous Love photos »

On Wednesday night, Canada’s best ballet dancers and their most glamorous fans filled the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts to bask in the sultry Spanish glow of Mat Hot Ballet: Dangerous Love. The National Ballet of Canada’s annual benefit gala took its theme from the current production of Carmen, showcasing a few highlights within a dazzling gala performance. Featuring four showy snippets from various pieces, it included Summer Pas de Deux, an excerpt from The Four Seasons, Enketi, choreographed by principal dancer Guillaume Côté and the astoundingly fouette-filled Grand Pas de Deux from Don Quixote performed by Piotr Stanczyk and guest artist Svetlana Lunkina.

See the Power Ball 2013 party photos »

Last night, Power Ball 2013 a.k.a. the art party of the year/social event of the season and so on and so forth went down at The Power Plant gallery on Toronto’s harbourfront. Despite the rain, the city’s finest art, fashion and social types filled the expansive space in designer gowns, costumes, and in one instance, a birthday suit. Celebrating its 15^th year under the guise of Andy Warhol’s famous line “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes,” the space was tricked out with Factory-worthy silver foil which made for some pretty fierce voguing props for designer Jeremy Laing and Frank Griggs much later in the evening. Power Ball’s famed exhibitions and installations were omnipresent as always, including a fortune-telling psychic, Chat Roulette-style wall projections, and two twisted prom queens dancing around a birthday cake and a mounted spinning motorcycle all night long. Curiouser and curiouser…

See the photos from the Renata Morales dinner »

Last week in Montreal, I attended an exclusive dinner at Centre PHI to fête the up-coming exhibition The 8-day Week curated by Renata Morales, a multidisciplinary artist who designs clothing as well creates as various artworks.

Guests were seated at a single 40-person dining table decked out in gold sequins and personalized Moët & Chandon bottles of sparkling wine. Besides Morales herself and fashion icon Denis Gagnon (the two are part of an eclectic group selling select items in an avant-garde pop-up shop), featured artist Joe Becker was present. He unveiled three of his paintings, amongst them was Not everybody can sh*t rainbows, as well as a Kurt Cobain portrait imagined just moments after his suicide.” Leave the little kiddies at home.

Showcasing Morales’ love for underground music, guests received a compilation of artists who will be performing during the event. The handpicked line-up is clearly a showcase of Morales’ eccentric universe. Mark your calendars for shows by such acts as U.S. Girls, Petra Glynt, Prison Garde and Young Paris.

See all the photos from the Opera Atelier Versailles Gala »

In a city that’s packed with artistic endeavours, it can be hard to stand out and get noticed. But based on the fashionable crowd that gathered for last week’s Opera Atelier Versailles Gala, the independent opera and ballet company has made quite an impression on Toronto’s arts community. Jeanne Beker played emcee for the evening and—after impressively prancing across the stage in sky-high heels—reminded guests to “bid fiercely!” on both the silent and live auctions that happened throughout the night.

After all, the fundraising gala’s main objective was to support Opera Atelier’s international touring, which includes a very prestigious performance in 2014 at the Palace of Versailles. As in, at the opera theatre that was built to celebrate the wedding of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette—no big deal. The company’s founding co-artistic directors, Marshall Pynkoski and Jeannette Lajeunesse Zingg, took to the stage throughout the night, both to introduce performances from the school’s students as well as performing with them. Impressive costumery was a big part of the gala—as Opera Atelier’s mandate is to perform rare operas from the Baroque era, authentic attire is a must. Costumes from past productions with gold brocade, intricate embroidery and elaborate hoop skirts were all on display throughout the Ritz-Carlton ballroom.

See the Greta Constantine Fall 2013 collection photos »
See the Greta Constantine Fall 2013 party photos »

Continuing the tradition of showing their collections off schedule and off the grid, Greta Constantine designers Kirk Pickersgill and Stephen Wong debuted their Fall 2013 offering with a restaurant meets art party meets impromptu runway show last night in Toronto. Beginning at the west end hotspot Parts & Labour, the duo hosted the city’s top media and clients for a three-course meal, interrupted of course, by many shots of Stolichnaya vodka. As Greta-clad guests including Cronenberg It girl Sarah Gadon, socialite Stacey Jordan (formerly Kimmel) and trend forecaster Carly Stojsic indulged in main courses of chicken and gnocchi, Amazonian models took to the makeshift runway (aka the bar) in the duo’s latest wares. The clothes, while heavily styled with tribal inspiration—think long braids, faux mohawks and animal skulls worn as jewellery designed by Dandi Maestre—forged ahead with last season’s new motto: sleeker, stronger and relatively pared back. Amongst the pleated and curved statement dresses, the standout look was a long and lean cow’s hide coat paired with black wideleg pants and a simple white crew neck.

See the photos from Michael Kors’ Toronto visit »

“Just when you thought you had everything, along comes a camouflage mink stole,” drawled Michael Kors, as a model glided into Holt Renfrew’s café in an outfit from his Fall 2013 collection.

The mini-show followed lunch for 20 or so top clients at Holt’s Cafe yesterday following a fête at his Bloor Street store on Wednesday night, with hostess Hilary Weston presiding over the affair in an aqua Oscar de la Renta tunic and pants.

Elsewhere there was much Michael Kors Spring 2013 about, including a dermatologist in a colourblock dress, and a capital markets trader a peony pink sheath. After tucking into sweet pea ravioli, lobster over fried green tomatoes and a sliver of cheesecake, there was an exodus downstairs to the racks of fall clothes available for special order.

See the TFI New Labels runway photos »
See the TFI New Labels party photos »

Toronto Fashion Incubator crowned its annual New Labels prizewinner on Tuesday night at a glittering gala stacked with the city’s society and fashion hall of famers. For the second year in a row, Target added a red sheen to the event, promising an exclusive capsule collection to be sold nationwide next year in addition to the existing prize of $25,000 from high society’s grand dame philanthropist Suzanne Rogers.

As notables including Stacey Mackenzie, Arthur Mendonca, Nicholas Mellamphy and David Dixon (he currently moonlights as TFI president) indulged in post-dinner chocolate cake, the tables were transformed into a runway, on which the competition began. With a mix of aesthetics ranging from Secret Garden-esque to hard edged to femme to frankly, sloppy, four designers—Sarah Stevenson, Paria Shirvani, Christopher Paunil and 7/31—paraded their wears. In a decision that surprised no one, Stevenson’s pretty floral capsule was crowned the winner. With an existing reputation as Toronto’s resident floral print mistress, we look forward to seeing Stevenson’s career blossom (pun intended) following this major boost.

See the party photos »

Only a few weeks ago, Tiffany & Co. threw a big New York bash for the exquisite costume jewellery it featured in The Great Gatsby. It was only a matter of time before Prada followed suit, celebrating its own affiliation with the film and the fabulous Gatsby costumes Miuccia Prada designed in collaboration with the film’s costume designer, Catherine Martin.

Last night, Prada’s New York flagship (that’s the Prada New York Epicenter to you!) fêted this connection with the star-studded opening of an exhibition of the costumes. On display for only a couple of weeks, the exhibition  showcases mannequins dressed in character’s costumes, dresses, hats, shoes, and jewellery side by side with sketches, production stills, and never before seen backstage footage. If that’s not enough of a reason to visit, also displayed is a 200 foot mural depicting a montage drawn from the spectacular scenes hosted by Jay Gastby (aka. Leonardo Dicaprio) at his Long Island mansion to really help the visitors capture the roaring ’20s experience.