FASHION Magazine

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12 Years a Slave premiered last night at TIFF 2013 and it already has people buzzing about Oscar noms. On the red carpet outside the Princess of Wales theatre, director Steve McQueen chummily posed for photos with star Chiwetel Ejiofor, whilst Michael Fassbender triggered many a sigh in a navy pin dot two-piece Tom Ford suit. Meanwhile, alt-hunk of the moment Benedict Cumberbatch posed with Paul Giamatti in matchy-match relaxed suits with unbuttoned shirts.

Despite the long list of megawatt celebs (Clive Owen! Leighton Meester! Emily Blunt!) that rolled through the Variety Studio at Holt Renfrew this week, the vibe was decidedly relaxed. We stopped by on Saturday to do a bit of celeb stalking and instead of the flurry of stress we thought we’d be met with, the celebs were easy breezy, spending a couple of minutes in front of the camera, and then schmoozing, playing the new Nintendo DS, drinking wine or tea, and accepting gift bags full of swag from Moroccan Oil and Canadian jewellery company Anzie.

While we were there, we spotted Rachel Weisz, alongside her Deep Blue Sea co-star Tom Hiddleston, looking breathtaking (we mean that literally) in a Giambattista Valli resort leopard dress, with a simple shape and sky-high black pumps. Leighton Meester, who was interviewed alongside scene-pros Allison Janney and Oliver Platt for their film The Oranges, was looking sweet in a Louis Vuitton resort 2012 pleated dress, a blazer by Nonoo, and pink and black Pierre Hardy wedges. Meanwhile, Elizabeth Olsen and Sarah Paulson sported matching prints.

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At the red-carpet screening of Martha Marcy May Marlene, the taut, psychological tale of a woman recovering from time spent in a sexual cult, were stars Elizabeth Olsen, Sarah Paulson, Hugh Dancy, and writer/director Sean Durkin. Fresh from the Vanity Fair party the night before that celebrated the film, Olsen looked stunning in a long Erdem gown in rich jewel tones, which she says she chose because “it has great colour, and it feels like a long, pretty maxi. It’s the only thing I’ve put on that fit me right away.” She paired the elegant ’40s-style dress with bright-blue heels by Jason Wu.

After the Melancholia party at Hugo Boss, we moseyed on over to Scarpetta at the Thompson Hotel for the Vanity Fair party, hoping to calm our Skarsgård-induced heart palpitations. Well, turns out that they actually increased; we spotted the vamp Viking right as we walked in! To boot, the Skars was embracing a one Juliette Lewis. Old friends? We hope something far more salacious. (We had a whole story going, but would rather not share.) The soiree, officially billed as the Vanity Fair/(Belvedere) RED/Fox Searchlight party, hosted the casts of The Descendants and Martha Marcy May Marlene a.k.a. George Clooney, Elizabeth Olsen, Hugh Dancy, and Sarah Paulson. James Franco was there too, sporting a patchy beard, lumpy sweater, and plenty of grimy sex appeal. (Yeah, we know you’re with us.) Also on hand? A buffet table of delicious finger foods that we’re pretty sure no one was touching except for us.

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