Toronto's World MasterCard Fashion Week F/W 2013 - Street styling

With Toronto Fashion Week comes the inevitable hoard of fashion bloggers and street style photographers, all of whom scour the tents and front steps of David Pecaut Square for interesting outfits, people and celebrities. As annoying as Toronto's fashion people want to pretend these bloggers/photographers are, the reality is we all secretly love them and are almost never actually annoyed when they want to take our photograph. Pfff saying no to free press? I don't think so. Possible new readers/followers? Come on now. That's just stupid. So here are some photos of me taken by some of Canada's fashion blogs and magazines such as shedoesthecity.com, Indecent Xposure, MTV Flora, FASHION, FAJO, and FLARE Magazine.

Here's a shot from style and fashion blog shedoesthecity.com taken at the Holt Renfrew after party on Day 1 of WMCFW.  Just hanging with some of my big-time Toronto fashion media friends. You know, just chillin. The party was great! Wanna read more about it? Click here.

long-sleeved leopard print tail dress from Forever 21,
black faux-fur shrug and black leather Western belt from H&M
Photo: shedoesthecity

Day 2 was a blur... I think I was working on the Laura Siegel behind-the-scenes feature I wrote for the National Post that day so I didn't spend much time at the tents. The feature turned out really well (after all my bloody hard work....) and I got a chance to hang out backstage and catch all the last minute, heat-of-the-moment runway action. I even snagged a little video of our girl Laura when it was all over. Check it out here!

Day 3 was a fun day of live blogging for the National Post. I basically had to run around from show to show speed tweeting and posting ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING. It was mad. But I quickly got the hang of things and started posting some pretty witty stuff. (I'm not a Twitter person.. like AT ALL... so I was pretty proud of myself when I got email props from my editors back at the Post) Anyway, while running around like a frantic fashion chicken sans tête I posed for FAJO Magazine and once again for shedoesthecity.com.

yellow Chanel-inspired jacket from Zara, white American Apparel fitted crop top
orange satchel clutch from Aldo, patterned high-low skirt (tail skirt) from H&M
black leather and wood boots from Urban Outfitters
photo: shedoesthecity.com  

photo: FAJO Magazine

On Day 4 I caught the attention of several street style photographers with my "Bitch don't kill my vibe" tank from Brandy Melville. Thanks to Montreal's Indecent Xposure and FASHION magazine for the free press!

Levy's leather jacket, Brandy Melville tank over white and black striped H&M blouse
paired with vintage velvet bellbottom pants
photo: Indecent Xposure

photo: Indecent Xposure

photo: FASHION Magazine

hehe a little shout-out to my statement tee ;)

Look MOM! My name is in a FASHION Magazine article!!
screenshot: fashionmagazine.com

Day 5 was a blessing (YES IT WAS OVER! I COULD BREATHE AGAIN!) and a curse (NOOOO IT'S OVER WAHHHH! I HATE REAL LIFE). It was the last day of Toronto's World MasterCard Fashion week F/W 2013 and my entire wardrobe was sprawled out on the floor of my apartment. Sorry, but when your job is to get your Fash'On and strut around Fashion Week trying to look important, there is NO TIME for cleaning or putting away clothes. On Day 5 I was running out of outfit options... so I went with this one. MTV thought it was cute and grabbed a photo of me on my way to the Travis Taddeo show. They also asked me to be a part of their "Favourite Street-styler's mixtape". Pretty cool stuff.

looking a little fat faced in my leather-sleeved Zara cropped navy military jacket,
vintage blouse in navy silk, black disco pants from American Apparel
and my trusty black suede Lita boots by Jeffery Campbell
photo: MTV FLORA

Check out the playlist! It's actually really cool.
screenshot: MTV FLORA

A feature story about fashion muses

The last feature story I wrote for the National Post was a full-page fashion feature about some of history's most famous (and in some cases totally eccentric and amazing) fashion muses. It was published in the Weekend Post back in April and I totally forgot to blog about it...oops. It never made it on to the website, which is kinda weird because everything normally goes straight to the web these days and little is ever actually filtered out. The story must have just been overlooked (sad face). But whatever. My story made it to print in one of Canada's biggest national newspaper, if not the biggest (nice job Layne.) So I don't feel too bad about it. Since there isn't an online link, I guess everyone will just have to enjoy the lovely photos I took of the article in the paper. If you're feeling adventurous you can try and zoom in/piece the paragraphs together. Bahaha have fun!

Hi byline! I miss you and love you. You're really pretty <333

 Fun tidbits from the piece I found floating around in my notes:

"In the 1960s, the best example of a more modern muse was Andy Warhal’s Edie Sedgewick who became not only the artist’s source of inspiration but a living logo of the time period. 

Along with with the job of provoking creativity, an official muse often also provided her designer with feedback and criticism. Together they formed a collaborative relationship and produced work that was true to both their artistic visions. Fashion’s muses were people who were consistent in their personal style and were not influenced by trend."

....

"Back in the 90s and early 2000s Isabelle Blow, British socialite and magazine editor, was a famous muse to both hat designer Philip Treacy and fashion designer Alexander McQueen. By making Treacy’s extravagant hats part of her everyday flamboyant outfits, she single-handedly propelled the otherwise unknown milliner into designer stardom. Since his collaboration with Blow, Treacy has designed hats for several Haute Couture collections like Chanel, Givenchy, etc, as well as for celebrities like Lady Gaga and Sarah Jessica Parker. He also designed 36 hats for members of the royal family, all of which were worn on the day of the Royal Wedding. The most notable being the large pink bow-like hat worn by Princess Beatrice of York. Like Treacy, late designer Alexander McQueen also used Blow as a source of creative inspiration. Not only was Blow the first person to show undying support of his work by purchasing his entire Central Saint Martins graduation collection in 1995, together Blow and McQueen created the label’s outlandish aesthetic.

Like Blow, Lady Amanda Harlech was a muse to two of the fashion world’s biggest names in the 1990s, John Galliano and Karl Lagerfeld. The then young British socialite and fashion writer first worked with Galliano in the days where the young designer was just starting out and had to rely on Harlech no only for inspiration but for financial support. Together they designed the garments that won Galliano the coveted position as  head designer at Dior. Soon after her designer had moved up in the world, Harlech fell upon another man in need of a muse, Chanel’s Karl Lagerfeld. Harlech and Lagerfeld became inseparable and worked together for years designing fashion masterpieces for the French label. He received international fame and fortune, while she, his creative consultant and muse remained his silent partner." 

.....

Toronto Fashion Week - Fall runway trend report F/W 2013

Can't remember all the great fall trends from the Toronto Fashion Week F/W 2013 runways? Have no fear! I have them all noted down for you in the Fall Trend report I wrote for the National Post last season.

After the fashion packed week of Toronto's World MasterCard Fashion Week, after all the runway reviews, makeup reviews, hair reviews, designer profiles, trend profile, bla bla bla, no sleep no sleep, I was asked to put it all together to create this ULTIMATE FALL TREND LOW DOWN!

Here are the trends!

(check out the full article on the National Post website.)

Winter Whites

Furs

Dark Lips

Biker Jackets

Floral Patterns

Leather Panelling

Capes and Burgundy

Photos: National Post

Fall Fashion Flashbacks - Mackage, VAWK and Caitlin Power F/W 2013 shows at Toronto Fashion Week

Guess what tomorrow is everyone!
It's October, which means fall fashion is here! YAY! Layering! Fall colours! Fall fabrics, patterns and actual clothing! Yes, yes, yesssss, don't get me wrong, I love the summer and its trends. I even wrote a fun summer trend report a few months back for the Post. You can check it out here! It's all about the crazy music festival attire we all love to flaunt around in during the hot days of summer.
Actually, it's a good read for right now. Think of it as a checklist of the things you should be putting away to make room for all the fall loveliness! Bye crochet denim mini shorts... see you next festival season :(

Coachella
Photo: National Post

I love the heat and the tans and the shorts and sun dresses, and the lazy relaxation of it all but lets be honest... summer fashion is fine, fun and okay. Fall fashion, however is EXCITING AND WILD AND GIVES YOU SO MUCH MORE TO WORK WITH! (Can you sense my excitement?...I'll try to tone it down not to offend my booty-short and side-boob loving readers. I feel you guys. Don't worry.)

Here are a few articles I wrote on the Mackage, Vawk, and Caitlin Power F/W 2013 shows for the National Post. Flashbacks, if you will, of the trends of last season's Toronto Fashion Week runways to get everyone as excited as I am for all the wonderfulness that is fall fashion.

Fall Flashback: Mackage F/W 2013 (full article)

Designers Elisa Dahan and Eran Elfassy took full advantage of the animal kingdom with a fur-and-leather heavy, street style-inspired line. The biker grunge collection went beyond the usual fur-trimmings we've been seeing so far on the F/W 2013 runways of Toronto Fashion Week.

Photo: National Post

Fall Flashback: VAWK F/W 2013 (full article)

Be it through fur trims and details, leather accents, feathered accessories, or animal graphic sweaters, designer Sonny Fong's collection played tribute to the nature of the north.

Photo: Elayne 

Photo: Elayne

Fall Flashback: Caitlin Power F/W 2013 (full article)

Designer Caitlin Power's muse of fall 2013 was the professional Parisian of the future. the sexy silhouette and high-gloss patent leather detailing in metallic silver, navy, bronze and burgundy makes you feel as though you've time-travelled to Paris and it's the year 2025.

Photos: Elayne
National Post 

Backstage with Laura Siegel and a little bit of Sid

Yes, I know. I suck at pumping out blog posts. And yes, I realize that blogging about Fashion Week almost two months after the fact takes away from the newsiness of it all but come on people, I'm a busy girl. With the constant running around and hours and hours of fashion writing for the Post, I just haven't had the chance to pay attention to my lovely little blog. Fear not! I now have some free time and I will use it to bring my readers up-to-date on all my fashion adventures! Yaaayyyy I'M EXCITED!

First things first, remember that National Post feature I wrote about the behind-the-scenes of the Laura Siegel runway show? Well if you don't, scroll down a bit.. it's all there. During the commotion and last minute fixes backstage I managed to record a little video of all the fun. Check it out! (Please excuse the terrible quality.. I have zero knowledge of techie things like how to upload a video...pffffff I'm an idiot I guess)

Isn't backstage stressful? Who knew, right? And ISN'T LAURA ADORABLE THOUGH! Congratulations girl! Everything worked out in the end and all was amazing.

Day 2 of Fashion Week was definitely super fun. Not only did I get to run around backstage with the Laura Siegel crew, I had a pretty amazing view of the Sid Neigum show from my front seat. I wrote a review of Sid's crazy Matrix-meets-Samurai fall collection for the National Post. If interested, give it a read.

Toronto Fashion Week - Day 2 - Laura Siegel behind-the-scenes

It was my first feature for the National Post and it took two days of documenting to complete - my behind-the-scenes story about the young and talent designer Laura Siegel. It was published in this weekend's paper and seeing it in print made me want to cry. Yeah, you'd think seeing your published work would get old but I'm still such a noob that seeing my byline in black ink on paper still makes my heart fall to my stomach.

yeah sorry it's kinda blurry.. I was really excited.
National Post Weekend Edition. March 23 2013

Anyway, the point of this post is to fill you in on all the behind-the-scene stuff from behind-the-scenes. Funny, isn't it. There's a behind-the-scenes of a behind-the-scenes pieces? Yes sir. You bet your ass there is. If you haven't had a chance to read my fly-on-the-wall piece about Laura Siegel and her makeup and hair team you can find it on the National Post website (or in print wooohooo! that is, if you still have a copy of this weekend's Post lying around the house)

The first part of the story took place a week before fashion week at the Maybelline and Redken hair and makeup trials. Basically what happens is the lead makeup artist and lead hair stylist for Toronto fashion week schedule a meeting with each designer to decide on the hair and makeup for their runway show. Laura Siegel's trial day was Monday March 11 and I was there being a nosey journalist. Here are some photos from that day at the studio.

Redken hair pros doing what they do best at the Queen West studio space

Laura ready for her National Post close up

Maybelline's Grace Lee and the inicial makeup idea

lots of hair spray

Long curly extensions.

Make look take two. 

The Laura Siegel F/W 2013 lipstick colour and my new favourite possession.
(thanks Grace xx)

My toughest interview subject. He was so difficult to work with.
Just look at that death stare. He's got me beat.. 

Part two of my piece took place backstage at the Laura Siegel runway show at fashion week. Basically what happened was at 3ish I showed up backstage and everyone on the Laura team was running around like crazy getting all the models ready for the show, which was to start at 4p.m. I continued my nosy journalist-ness and ran around trying to catch some great frantic quotes from people. And oh boy did I get some. (Didn't use most of them due to word count restrictions..too bad) For your enjoyment - some shots of fashion craziness!

Models backstage. Makeup done, hair half-done and waiting to be dressed

Maybelline heaven. Makeup for dayssss

the finalized make up looks

Laura Siegel and the final runway plans

runway walk, walk-through

the head scarf issue... the scarves won't stay on. 

final makeup touch ups

teeny Laura (the model is standing on the ground ... i know right, shes huge..)
adjusting a model's outfit

double-sided tape, tons of hairspray and millions of pins later
poor girl...

Laura insisted on styling each head scarf before the models took to the runway

another use for hairspray