Toronto LG Fashion Week SS’12: There’s No Place Like Holts, Arthur Mendonça, Starspotting & Trendspotting

Jenn in a snakeskin print dress, black belt, and tights from H&M. Blacked wedge booties from ALDO and dark red “Sephora Rouge” lipstick from Sephora.

Monday, October 18th, 2011 was the opening of Toronto’s very own LG Fashion Week, dedicated to showcasing talent dominating today’s Canadian fashion scene from all over the nation.

In my opinion, this year’s venue, David Pecaut Square, was a beautiful spot to hold LG Fashion Week and was an upgrade from last year. Holt Renfrew set the bar high, opening the night with “There’s No Place Like Holts”; a show featuring the designs of top Canadian fashion designers Lida Baday, Jeremy Laing, Denis Gagnon, Dennis Merotto, Naked & Famous, Smythe, Twentycluny, and Wings + Horns.

Models weaving in and out of the ‘HOLTS’ large block letters down the runway @ LG Fashion Week in Toronto

Later in the night, Arthur Mendonça lit up the runway with his highlighter neon and metallic suits – my personal favourite designer of the night! His SS12 collection was inspired from Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra and was displayed in his Aztec metallics, tweed dresses, and bold jewelry. The show was a major success!

While seated during the show, I was playing a bit of “I spy with my little eye”, scoping out the front 3 rows for familiar faces. The nights’ “Spotted List” include Stacey McKenzie, Jeanne Beker, Keisha Chante, Fefe Dobson, Lisa Tant, Glen Baxter, Tommy Ton, Jay Manuel, Yasmin Warsame and Arlene Dickinson. A highlight of the night for myself, and certainly the rest of the crowd, was a special appearance from male model, Andrej Pejic.

Stacey McKenzie in IZMA fur and Fefe Dobson

“The biggest trend of the night would have to be fur. Many fashionistas sported this look throughout the night, varying from vests and scarves, to coats and dresses.”

The environment was crazed with trendy people all over the place. This made it much easier to pick out outfits and certain people that stand out amongst the rest. It also made fall trends more distinguishable. The biggest trend of the night would have to be fur. Many fashionistas sported this look throughout the night, varying from vests and scarves, to coats and dresses. International model and judge of Canada’s Next Top Model, Stacey McKenzie, wore a stunning, floor length, fur dress from homegrown designer, Izma.

The early glitches of the evening were promptly sorted out by the end of the night. The Fashion Design Council of Canada (FDCC) did a great job trying to communicate between the craziness and hopefully generated a system that works better for them in time for tomorrow. Although it has only been the first day, the experience of attending fashion week under media access has been amazing; however, my seating could be a little better – One day I’ll join Jeanne (Beker) in the front row…I can’t wait to see what the rest of this week brings!

This year’s fashion week theme “Canada Cool” was certainly revealed during the SS ’12 shows, reminding us of just how “cool” Canada really is!

photo Pink Tartan spring 2012 via SNP @ Toronto Standard

Well, as a stay-at-home (working) mom, I am living fashionably vicariously through others these days. While I recall happy memories burning the candle at both ends during fashion week in Toronto (the parties, the shows, the socializing!!), I’m busier doing other things – BUT do however take a moment here and there to catch up on some of what I’m missing.

My Favorite Places to Get the Lowdown on Toronto’s LG Fashion Week Spring 2012 Collections:

Nathalie Atkinson @ The National Post

Nathalie has this way of writing about fashion shows that gives the reader a detailed, visual glimpse into the scene. She not only presents an anecdotal account of her experience; she also describes color, cuts and textures, making her reviews my fave. Definitely one of the better writers (if not the best) on the fashion scene.

Sarah Nicole Prickett @ The Toronto Standard

With a reputation of being slightly harsh at times or just telling it like it is (so unTorontonian!), SNP documents the good, the bad and the “undeserving” as the Toronto Standard’s Style Critic this fashion season. She’s street schooled in current global fashion so I always welcome the chance to learn a thing or two…

Various Writers @ Toronto Life Daily Style

I’m a Toronto Life Magazine fan (mostly) so love that the blog is so diverse and easy to browse. But to tell you the truth, I don’t really read the blog all that much – just look at all the photos!

Paul Aguirre @ Blog TO

Almost gave this blog an Honorable Mention until I actually scrolled through the coverage. A little bit of fashion shows, some trendspotting, profiles…Not a lot by very impressive this season anyways (who is this Paul?!) Written with unbiased, open eyes…And great photos too. Oh, and there’s even a profile on Daniel Wilson – ex TSFer who is now the Social Media Coordinator for LGFW!

Amy Lu and Kevin Gonsalves @ Peroni Moda Files
So easy to read and look at!

David Pekaut’s love affair with Toronto left us with Luminato and a sense of ourselves as Citizens of Cool, as opposed to mere “taxpayers”. His eponymous square is a fitting place for the Fashion Design Council of Canada’s (FDCC) 25th runway season  #Canada Cool.

Crowds crush to get inside, but even those lucky enough to have a ticket to the Holt Renfrew show find themselves unable to fight their way into the runway room. A harried, but compassionate gentleman whisks me through the mob and I’m herded to the only seat left in house.  Flare and Fab magazine editors lend a hand as I climb up bleacher seating in five inch Carvalhos, and face the cold realization my emergency vodka shot is not in my purse.

Liza in a floor-length kimono, snapped by Erin Simkin via Toronto Life

The frenzy subsides as we are teased with Holt’s offerings for spring.  Splash out on Smythe -   Andrea Lenczner and Christie Smythe’s  knife sharp tailoring and ultra-luxurious wools make their jackets essential for those who are serious about style.  Naked and Famous steers us around all the right curves with fitted menswear, and Denis Gagnon’s trippy chintz is accessorized with matching patent clutches.

Opening night is a bit of a celebrity brawl – I mean ball (!), with Jeanne Beker looking gorgeous as usual, and cameras whirring like a plague of locusts on the likes of  Krisha Chante, Susan Boyd, Julie Black and Stacey McKenzie.   Dragon Diva Arlene Dickinson reminds us that Toronto ladies never sacrifice sensuality or femininity to play ball with the Bay Street boys, and wears her power beautifully.

The rest of the week looks promising with stars like David Dixon and Baby Steinberg, and inspiring new talent including TSF darling Adrian Wu.

If a person (Cdn designer) has interned, worked and honed their skills abroad – does that still make them a “Canadian” designer? Technically yes, but…sort of, not really… Anyhow, such is the case with new T.O fave Calla Haynes who is a Torontonian at heart, but has lived in Paris for the past eight years working with big names like Olivier Theyskens and Nina Ricci. Now she has her own (french) line, Calla, which was presented at The ShOws two-day event this past week.

All that geographical hubbub is why it’s almost no surprise that fashion media are praising Haynes who not only designs seasonal key pieces but also conceptualizes and prints her own fabrics, the signature of her label. (the same can be said for the other three fashion designers who’ve made their claim to fame abroad,  Todd Lynn, Jean-Pierre Braganza, Thomas Tait, all presenting at The ShOWs, part of Rogue Fashion Week in Toronto or the week before the official LG Fashion Week begins).

Back to Calla and oh so refreshing prints from her Spring 2012 collection:

images Image: Jenna Marie Wakani via >

LG Fashion Week in Toronto

Day 3 | March 30, 2011:
MICALLA | Duy | KRANE Design | LOVAS | Comrags | ATTITUDE Jay Manuel | David Dixon

After Lucian Matis‘ gracious (of-site) hospitality at the Design Exchange, the clamour of the main site is a little overwhelming. The crowds are out in full force and it takes the strength of a fashion journalist to struggle through the masses to get to the media office (there is no lounging this year!).

Fashion Week volunteers are like lifeguards, spotting media and pulling us into the runway room. With their help I arrive in time for the Comrags show. Judy Cornish and Joyce Gunhouse are true stalwarts of style, having served Canadian women for a quarter of a century. Signature blacks accented with prints and drab plaid continue to be used in their 2011 collection of sleek and simple classics.

The crowd for Jay Manuels’ Sears show makes the Pakistan-India cricket match look poorly attended, and the collection delivers serious style with enough attitude to shatter the glass ceiling.

Just before the last show, I realize I’ve lost my brand new camera! Fortunately, one of the volunteers – a wonderful young man named Rob, spots it, and crawls under the bleachers to retrieve my camera and good mood in time for David Dixon‘s celebration of “Sweet Sixteen” years as a designer of distinct elegance, and we are treated to a retrospective of his work before the new fall collection is revealed. The inspiration for the show is deeply personal and moving, and his work plays with Indonesian Ikat batik patterns, cadmium reds and his trademark use of laser cut fabrics to create textures that are distinctly Dixon.

My only regret is that I missed the Micalla show – which featured astonishingly gorgeous jewelery – one of the few designers who source their gems and metals from ethical and sustainable mines. I return home for a four hour sleep trying to remember the name of the L’Oreal product that eliminates bags from under one’s eyes.

This is super cool – and totally a step forward for Canadian fashion when one of our leading shoe manufacturer/retailers – ALDO – provides an opportunity for some of our best fashion designers – Greta Constantine and DUY – to self design the footwear for their show and then have them made! Unfortunately the shoes are NOT available for purchase – but are available for editorial.

Of course this happens all over the world for many international designers, but as we all know, it’s been a struggle year after year to get mega sponsorship dollars for fashion in Canada (although Greta Constantine seems to be doing quite well!).

Greta Constantine

“Inspired by their constantly evolving world, Greta Constantine’s FW 2011 collection by Kirk Pickersgill and Stephen Wong opens up a universe without any time and space constraints.

To create the FW 2011 ALDO collection for  GRETA CONSTANTINE, Kirk and Stephen drew their inspiration from the Russian Ballet Company and its rich Asian heritage. This invitation to travel features a collection of cosmopolitan and colourful shoes and boots, daring prints and elaborate ornaments. Wedge heel shoes, boots and ankle boots make up this deep-coloured collection (in shades of slate, anthracite, purple, cobalt blue, aubergine and black), highlighted by intricate ornaments (leather, knit, fur and melton). An opulent and precious collection, which emphasizes the talent of its designers.”

DUY

Daphne Guiness: couture collector and muse

“Titled «Long Live Daphne», Duy Nguyen’s Fall-Winter 2011 collection is a tribute to this aristocratic world figure of fashion and her eclectic and refined tastes.

This collection of elegant and slightly rebel shoes and accessories pays homage to his Muse, her sophistication and distinctive sense of aesthetics. Faithful to her vision, the various pieces of this collection integrate the elements that made Daphne Guinness famous: leather, textured materials (python, lace), prints (leopard) and fur (pony), caramel hues and dark shades (grey and black). The FW 2011 ALDO collection of shoes and accessories for DUY is an stunning blend of radical chic, flexibility and accessibility. A collection which truly combines modernism, sophistication and elegance.”

LG Fashion Week in Toronto
Day 2 | March 29, 2011:
Denis Gagnon | LABEL | SHAN | Chloe comme Parris | Korhani Home Rug Runway Show | Pink Tartan |
Joe Fresh Style | BUSTLE

It’s the second day of fashion week, and the crowds have thinned considerably as we start off with Montreal legend Denis Gagnon, whose genius never fails to astonish. A sea of dystopian black is punctuated with vibrant pink, tangerine and cerulean.

Next, we move through a dark hallway gleaming with blue lights to the “studio”, a cramped space to preview the LABEL collection – “reinvented basics” perfect for those days when you need to roll out of bed, throw on your jeans and t-shirt and drag yourself out of the house.

The SHAN show is magnificent (memories of sun, beach and tanned bodies); the runway is book-ended by two models in lifeguard chairs, and the collection reminds us that winter is also a time to head south. Big floppy hats worthy of Cannes top off smart and sensual beachwear.

The crowds arrive with the masses, leaving breathing room only for Pink Tartan and Joe Fresh. Ms. Newport-Mimran marries olive drab, and desert ochre with ballerina tulle – kind of Desert Storm meets Swan Lake, simple, a little melancholy, but elegant. Husband Joe Mimran goes for broke with metallic interpretations of flapper fringe in adorable miniskirts.

The Bustle show starts with a sleek black and white video of a gentleman of the city driving up north for a day of dogsledding, and audience members are treated to a gift certificate to the spa at Deerhurst. The collection is much more casual than usual for Shawn Hewson and Ruth Promislow, but their trademark plaid on jackets and trousers accessorized with glasses of brandy add elegance to simplicity. The runway is outfitted with dogsleds and the sound of barking and howling huskies almost make me feel sad to say goodbye to winter. Almost.

(OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPHER for LG Fashion Week: GEORGE PIMENTEL – More photos by Kevin Gonsalves via http://peronimodafiles.com)

When Canadian fashion designer Denis Gagnon premiered his fall collection in 2008, we were stunned by his luscious use of leather and oversized sweaters. But I admit, I wondered if this was a designer who would join the ranks of Gaultier, Lacroix and McQueen, or if I was witnessing a one-hit-wonder go supernova. Would he be able to sustain such an intense level of creativity, or would this star die out in a brief burst of glory?

After countless profiles in leading magazines, and his line being carried by premiere retailer Holt Renfrew, Gagnon had been given the rare honour of being profiled at the Montreal Museum of Fine Art.

A quick look at his newest collection leaves no doubt that Gagnon is breaking new ground in Canadian fashion. His fearless approach to colour, layering and impeccable virtuosity in tailoring is nothing short of genius. His interpretations of old styles makes the original look pathetic – while countless designers accessorize with leather gloves, Gagnon uses opera length leather mittens. Cringe-worthy Uggs make girls look like they’re expressing a rare Sasquatch gene, but Gagnon finely tailors false fur to the wedge heel, or up the back of the boot like a delicious perversion of a seamed stocking. He understands a girl’s heart yearns for summer dresses in the middle of winter, and generously accents black with bubblegum pink, fushia and cerulean blue – tulip kisses for the frozen winter.

The Fashion Design Council of Canada must have a lot of confidence in both Gagnon and the quality of the other collections to put the likes of Gagnon at the beginning of the week and right after lunch – I for one, would not want to follow a show like that.

(Images: Jenna Marie Wakani for Toronto Life)