TFW S/S12 Day 5: Lauren Bagliore- what a knotty girl

After giggling over the Cydelic by Choryin toothy whaley bag, (previous blog post) I ran over to the runway room and snagged a great spot at the front of the runway and waited for the Lauren Bagliore ( or Lulu B) show to begin. Keep in mind I was a volunteer and um....should have been doing volunteer things....but wasn't. *COUGH*

Anywayyy, the Lauren Bagliore collection was all about long cotton spandex dresses with low backs and exposed knots. She definitely got the maxi skirt and the badass layered looks down. As the models strutted theses black, white, and gray, edgy but laid-back wrap and knot dresses down the catwalk, I couldn't help but think - American Apparel....urgh..

While the monochromatic collection looked great as a whole on the runway I don't think it really did anything spectacular. I personally didn't have any "ohhh amazing!" moments. She did show great metal cuffs that looked kind of like a modern/hardcore version of Wonder Woman's wrist guards. Those were kinda different.. Otherwise, the show consisted of  the usual suspects; black harum pants, black and white wrap pencil dresses, one-shoulder dresses, asymmetrical hemlines, draped cardigans, etc. Urgh she also put out this unfortunate 60's inspire black and white checkered mini wrap dress - something you would have seen on Twiggy. It was short and awkward and it made me cringe.

However, I do want to give her thumbs up for the low back and length on some of the dresses, they looked great on the models and I would definitely consider buying one for myself.

black and white asymmetrical hemline one-shoulder dress with metal cuffs

another one-shoulder dress in black 

pencil wrap dress in black - so AA... 

black harum pants  

more harum pants and draped cardigan in silver 

super unfortunate Twiggy mini dress

white bag dress - front

white bag dress- low back

white wrap dress

TFW S/S12 Day 5: Cydelic by Choryin - little purse creatures!

Day 5 - the big finale of Toronto Fashion Week and one of the most exciting nights (in my opinion). The FDCC definitely tried to save the best for last. I can't say whether or not it was the best night of Fashion Week because I couldn't make it to all the shows, but the one thing I can say is that it was definitely the most artsy and creative. When I started my shift the Cydelic by Choryin studio runway show had just ended. I managed to run back stage, pretend to have been one of the dressers, and snap a few photos of the collection's amazing bags. They were literally pieces of art. Each purse had the same seashell-like shape but were all  decorated differently- making each one incredibly unique. The purses were exploding with crazy things like shells, huge feathers, rocks, colour animal hides, patent leather, tree bark, etc. They all had these really great chain straps with either; a horn, or stick of bamboo, as a handle.

Cydelic by Choryin bags backstage - just as they were being packed up

gray wool purse with shells and a horn handle

the mossy purse- millions of teeny feathers trimmed with green moss and a bamboo handle

the cow purse - black and white cow hide,  two brown horns,  and a horn handle

 Some of the purses looked like little Japanese cartoons! My favourite one was the little whale bag. It looked like something you would find at a Hello Kitty store or on one of Gwen Stefani's Harajuku girls. The clothes were also really creative and somewhat futuristic looking. I didn't actually get to see them on the runway but I did get a chance to quickly look through the rack as the assistants were packing up. Choryin showed a lot of whiteish pieces with large protruding plastic angles (shoulders, hips, etc). I just looked up the title of the show... and you will never guess what it was...Alien. How fitting. Phew! I totally get it now. Ha!

the whale bag!! - (I have no idea what it's made of) with a black horn handle

the butterfly bag- made of feathers, wood, and creepy insect legs

TFW Day 5: uhhhh..... (postponed for mental health reasons)

I have tons to say about the last day of fashion week and most importantly the Denis Gagnon show but I am unfortunately a victim of the terrible and brutally abusive mid-term crunch. I have feature drafts due, workshops to hold, scheduled interviews and meeting with more then 17 people....life is tough when you're a journalism student but have no fear I will manage. I always do.

All this to say that I apologize for the lateness of my TFW Day 5 posts. They will be up before the weekend along with tons of ACTUAL photos (none of this Blackberry camera garbage).  In the meantime here a lame photo of what I wore that day... YAY FASHION TO DISTRACT PEOPLE!!

oversized green Zara jacket,
black scarf,
black belted H&M figure skater dress,
black nylons,
black combat boots 

Big knits to fight the cold - we're not the only ones who need them

October's almost over, which means the winter chill is on its way. Luckily for us fashion followers that means big chunky knits are also on their way. Big knits are number one on this seasons must-have list thanks to designers like Rag & Bone, Marc Jacobs, Celine, Chloe, etc. If you haven't gotten yourself an oversized chunky knit sweater yet, I have the following questions for you : where the hell have you been, are you blind, and have you heard of a magazine? Anyway, if you are one of these late and secluded people you better hurry on over to Zara or H&M because the knits are going fast and in some cases probably already gone. 

Vince chunky knit wool blend sweater in light sand
net-a-porter.com

Preen Line oversized knit cardigan in gray
net-a-porter.com

As it turns out, we are not the only members of the animal kingdom who need a chunky knit sweater to fight the cold...

After yet another oil-spill in New Zealand, a local yarn store is asking for a donation of teeny penguin-sized sweaters to help keep the sad little birdies warm until their oil-soaked feathers can be properly cleaned by wildlife volunteers. So ask your grammas to get to work! These guys need help and are most definitely too cute to ignore.

photo: www.cbc.ca

For more information about penguin sweaters:

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2011/10/new-zealand-penguins-in-need-of-sweaters/

http://www.skeinz.com/

http://www.cbc.ca/strombo/alt-news/calling-all-crafters-penguins-need-sweaters.html

TFW S/S12 Day 3: Joe Fresh loves NEON

I love the word neon and if it were up to me it would always be capitalized. NEON is in your face, bright, bold and out there and that was exactly what the Joe Fresh s/s collection was going for. The collection was all about the NEON leather cropped pants in orange, yellow, bright green, and baby blue. The 70's-inspired designs were modern, simple, clean and fresh (haha....). There were long flared pants, white turtle necks and lots of bright colours. The models wore amazing white platform sandals - right out of the 70s.

Fred from Scooby Doo- white turtle neck and neon orange trousers

neon leather cropped pants (also shown in neon green)

TFW S/S12 Day 3: Pink Tartan - hot day out at sea

The Pink Tartan S/S 2012 show was one of Fashion Week's most anticipated and I snuck into the front row! (the only perk of being a volunteer). The collection featured a nautical theme, with creme and navy striped tube dresses, navy mesh tops paired with satin cigarette pants (a look that was also shown in red and in black), and white trench coats.

nautical tube dress

navy satin cigarette pants

bright RED satin cigarette pants with mesh top

white trench dress

There were great 60's- inspired silhouettes- shift dresses and a-line skirts - in hot colours like red and bright orange. My favourite piece of the collection was the red satin shift dress with the exposed gold zipper down the back. It's simple but elegant and the colour was gorgeous. Too bad my crappy blackberry made it look pink....

red mesh top paired with high-waisted satin a-line skirt

bright orange satin a-line dress with white leather high-waisted belt

gorgeous red satin shift with exposed gold zipper along back (also shown in bright orange and black)

TFW S/S12 Day 3: KORHANI carpets as costumes

Backstage at the KORHANI Show was like being backstage at three different broadway musicals. Costumes, costumes, costumes, made of carpet! How the teeny models managed to walk the runway wearing garments that probably weighed more than them is beyond me. Imagine picking up the carpet on your floor, draping it over yourself, strapping on some stilts, and finally strutting down a runway in front of Canada's most important fashion people. Got to hand it to those models, they managed to make it look like a piece of cake. I would never be able to do it. I think I broke a sweat lifting one of the jackets off the hanger to put on the beach boy model I dressed on my first shift. Anyway, back to my idea of theatre. The line was divided into three very obvious themes: arabian nights (with a little aviator mixed in), 80's rocker/beach, and Alice in Wonderland.

The arabian nights theme opened the show. When I think carpet or rug the first thing I associate it with is Morocco or Persia (Iran now a days but you get my point) and that was obviously what Kirsten Korhani, Creative Director of KORHANI home, had in mind. The models were decked out in bright coloured turbans and carpet robes.

In this photo you can also see the Aviator idea. There were three models wearing aviator-inspired coats and trousers in khaki, brown, and camel. Note the cap, probably the most obvious of hints. The model was also given goggles to wear on the runway.

The second part of the show was all about 80's rock and Hawaii Five-0-style swimwear (made of carpet lets not forget) There were huge shoulders, bright colours, big hair, bangles, high weist belts, mesh gloves, and studs.

For the big finale, KORHANI brought out the big costumes. Literally. The Alice in Wonderland part of the show was elaborate, dramatic, and fun. The audience loved it. The costumes were incredible and the models looked great. Especially the models dressed as Alice, the Mad Hatter, and the Queen of Hearts.

Overall, the KORHANI home show was super entertaining with its elaborate carpet garments. It's crazy to think that a home decor company could produce such inspiring piece of clothing based on their rug designs. Putting your patterns and rugs on the runway has to be the best way to showcase something as lame as carpets and rugs. Good job KORHANI home for being creative! 

Backstage at Toronto Fashion Week- Spring Summer 2012

In late September I applied for a volunteer position at Toronto Fashion Week. I thought it would be a great way to get myself into the Canadian fashion scene and find something worthwhile to write about for this blog. I was hired as a backstage hand and dresser. Even though I was bossed around by almost everyone, I had the opportunity to see, touch, photograph, and analyze some of Fashion Week's most important lines. On my first shift, day 3 of FW, I dressed models for Korhani Home, snuck into the Pink Tartan show, and dressed models for Joe Fresh. It was a great experience. I have so much to stay about the lines and I have really crappy Blackberry photos of my favourite pieces. So stay tuned, they should be up as soon as I figure out how to do so.

Korhani models- 80's rocker and Malibu beach inspired designs