FASHION Magazine

Another day, another black legging… that’s the way it seems to go in the never-ending saga of the skin-tight trend we thought had disappeared along with La Lohan’s popularity. In her LG debut yesterday, New York-based designer, Heather Lawton brought an all-black collection of you guessed it… leggings, as well as a series of crinkled tees, silk button-downs and goat hair vests. A far cry from what we imagine Lawton’s picturesque Prince Edward Island upbringing must have looked like, the designer seemed hell bent on recreating the darkness of basement bars and back alleys of her current home. Aside from several tepid takes on these downtown staples, Lawton did show a few beautifully slung bag dresses with rope and goat hair entangled throughout.

View the Heather Lawton gallery »

Perhaps the designers were crafting their collections while staring out their studio windows into the snowy landscape of the last few months, but this seems to be the week of great Canadian outerwear. And from a brand known for their iconic parka, we would expect no less. At last night’s Lundström Collection, that very parka⎯done up in ivory with a fur-trimmed hood and paired with a tone-on-tone ribbed woolen dress⎯hit the right note on the sophistication scale. Coloured fur collars, sleeves and scarves were a welcome addition to the repertoire, especially a tres trendy grape stole. The major blip on an otherwise ladylike radar (skirt suits, metallic-flecked tweeds and bathrobe shapes a-plenty) were the velvet kaleidoscopic pants. A parade of Audrey-approved little black dresses, including a couple of special order gowns (a first I believe for the collection), closed the show but opened the door to a world beyond cold winter wear.

View the Lundström Collection photo gallery »

While most of us have embraced the sunny side, it seems that some are still clinging to the darker than dark androgyny made staple by the likes of Gareth Pugh and Rad Hourani for dear life. That being said, some do it better than others and Sid Neigum definitely fell into the “better” category in his LG debut. Whereas Heather Lawton⎯who showed later on the same day⎯didn’t do much to expand on downtown staples of black leather leggings and beat up motocross, Neigum breathed new life into the skin with his shark-finlike triangles built into the backsides of jackets and sleekly defined shoulders on blazers. Currently studying at New York’s F.I.T, Neigum already has a kind of reputation in the works after showing at fashion weeks in Edmonton and Vancouver. With his strong eye for the details, we’ll place bets on this designer growing leaps and bounds by next season.

View the Sid Neigum photo gallery »

Given the number of new designers on the schedule each season, it’s clear that we’re big supporters of emerging talent. Fresh off of Seneca’s Textile Design and Fashion Arts Awards, newbie Choryin Choi may already have a devoted fan base. Exhibit A: uproarious applause by the student-filled crowd. A kooky capsule collection of complicated pieces (I heard more than one whispered Tim Burton reference) included big-buttoned bubble hem coats, lace blazers, rippling ribboned bottoms and moth hole skirts that upon closer inspection revealed a collage of masked faces. “Out-there” designers are a great part of Toronto’s fashion fabric, but those wishing to enter the fray will also have to learn to distill their vision and build a following beyond their peers to attract buyers. There may be a steep learning curve ahead, but isn’t that what fashion week’s all about?

By Renee Reardin

As soon as my gaze fell upon the first model at the Rudsak fall 2011 show, I instantly thought of the ultimate city-chic icon Andy Sachs of The Devil Wears Prada hailing cabs in one coveted outdoor look after another while and breezing through the brisk streets of New York City. Like Rudsak designer Evik Asatoorian’s collections from seasons past, the look is one of metropolis-inspired style, with sleek leather jackets, shoes, and handbags, touches of fur, wool and down-filling, paired with long flowing hair. Favoured must-have items include the black minimalist leather jacket with a tie cinching the waist, the cognac leather jacket with endless trim of caramel-coloured fur lining the jacket and hood and one of the neon-bright motorcycle helmets that will get no more use from me than it did on the runway, it’ll merely act as my handbag!

View the Rudsak photo gallery »

By Renee Reardin

Although the midi is said to be the hemline of the summer, Brandon R. Dwyer brought hemlines back up and then some. Bums the word for the Basch by Brandon fall 2011 collection, as hems on mini dresses were cut just under the tush, and asymmetrical dresses and gowns had sexy slits gracing the upper thigh. Bodycon sheer and jersey LBDs, and a floral palette of silk draped dresses were adorned with lime green thick or wrap-around belts and strappy heels. The show however wasn’t all a walk in the garden. We cringed in sympathy with having to watch the models tug their dresses down before striking a pose, and one girl having the sleeves of her dress glide down her shoulders, and having several cameras flash before she realized the wardrobe malfunction. Our nerves began to settle when we were wowed by a silk cobalt gown showing off the model’s full leg and a black sheer gown with silver beading in just the right spots, which have definitely fallen into our mental shopping basket!

View the Basch by Brandon photo gallery »

Wesley Badanjak’s Wednesday night show—an ode to his mother and aunt—gave us forgiving fashion with modest cuts and conservative suiting, a choice that certainly reflects the dedication to two “real” women. The young Bay St. banker looking for a little femininity will be a fan of suiting with subtle pleats, peplums and out-of-the-ordinary zipper detailing, and while the more formal dresses were a fashion flop, Badanjak’s bitsy fall floral prints, capes, and oversized knits will keep us cute and cozy come the cool winter months.

View the LOVAS photo gallery »

“This hair is chaotic⎯it’s an organized mess,” said Paul Pereira, Schwarzkopf Essential Looks Stylist who enlisted OSiS Dust It mattifying powder and OSiS Freeze hairspray to achieve the big volume and tumbleweed-like textured updos that reminded us of the lopsided beehives at Vera Wang’s Spring 2011 show. The organized part revealed itself when the models turned around. “Lucian wanted the nape of the neck to show,” said Pereira, so he created a tight and tiny French braid that ran up the back of the head to meet the messy portion.

On the third day of shows, it seemed to be all about Loubs, Wangs and plenty of YSL for our photog Lewis Mirrett. Spotted in the crowd? Designer Heather Lawton, love-her-or-hate-her fashion newbie and star of the web show The Avenue, Arta Ghanbari and our very own fashion intern, Corinne Perez-Abergel! Peep the stylish folks now!

View the photo gallery »

With 16 years worth of shows at Toronto fashion week under his belt, David Dixon has reason to celebrate. In honour of this milestone, his Fall 2011 show was preceded by a “Sweet Sixteen” retrospective of design highlights from his career. Set to a slideshow of family photos and monologues that served as inspiration for his past collections, this intro served as a reminder why Dixon remains one of the most celebrated designers in Canada. The main collection opened to the sounds of a bustling airplane, signaling that we were en route to Indonesia for an “Escape to Jakarta,” the designer’s theme for this season. “My love for the exotic and the South Pacific became my mental escape while designing this collection,” said Dixon. Flowing maxi dresses in vibrant animal and tribal prints swooshed down the runway alongside a dreamy selection of LBDs, while poppy red dresses in Italian matte jersey provided a fiery alternative to basic black. Leather polka dot georgette and diamond appliqué gowns were red carpet ready and a laser-cut clover bolero was the perfect cover-up for a cool evening breeze. We can’t wait to see where Dixon’s creations take us next year, and for another 16 after that.

View the David Dixon photo gallery »

At the Lucian Matis show on Wednesday evening, the first word that came to mind was big: big shoulders, big knits, big hair, big embellishments. And yes, there was even a big marquee sign that spelled out “Lucian Matis” in bright lights, should you happen to forget where you were. Held off-site at the Design Exchange in Toronto’s financial district, the show continued in the vein of Matis’s signature ornate style. Black bodysuits with oversized shoulders and exquisite bronze beading held their own against bulbous chunky knit sweaters. Stunning beading adorned Balmain-style, pointy-shouldered blazers and bedazzled the derrières of a few onesies. Matis’s streamlined gowns stole the show, including one with a floor-length skirt covered in ombré tassels, as well as a gold teacup dress with black beaded shoulders. While the collection was at once exquisite, extravagant and elegant, its saturated looks could have used a bit more of one thing: editing.

View the Lucian Matis photo gallery »

See the Lucian Matis backstage beauty »

By Corinne Perez-Abergel

Montreal based jewelry designer Camilla Jorgensen said, “we are thinking about our future and our past” when describing her latest Micalla collection. Seventies Hollywood glamour set the stage for Jorgensen’s collection as models strutted down the runway to Jazz music in sexy LBDs with their hair tousled in short blonde bobs pinned at the side.  The perfect palette for the jewelry to shine, and did it ever.  The models were draped in jewels, everything from bold statement necklaces to Swarovski encrusted chokers with chains oozing from them. The most memorable by far were the fringe-like crystal harnesses. I was inspired by Camilla’s ability to make the jewellery the entire focus of the outfit, at times resembling actual pieces of clothing. And really, who doesn’t want to be draped crystals?