You know what’s better than partying? Partying for a good cause, especially when the party itself is the ultimate of the season.

On Saturday May 14th, Heart of Fashion brought together nearly 700 socialites and philanthropists in support of North York General Foundation and its plan to develop a new IR Suite for the hospital.

The Bridle Path served as a scenic background for this glamorous gala hosted by the one and only Jeanne Beker and presented by returning title sponsor BMO Financial Group.

For this special occasion, the guests got to enjoy delicious cocktails, tasty food catered by Pusateri’s Fine Food, and feel good music brought by BELLOSOUND Inc. The evening also included a surprise performance by Alan Frew, lead singer of Canadian iconic band Glass Tiger, a live auction with prizes such as tickets to the 2016 Victoria Secret’s fashion show or the Raptors vs. Miami Heat game and a TNT curated fashion show produced by the talented team behind Monarch Events Group.

The sold out event was a huge success raising $1.2 million in total. ”I am thrilled that we were able to raise more than our goal of $1 million”, says Terry Pursell, President & CEO of North York General Foundation. “With the $1.2 million that we raised through sponsorship, ticket sales, donations, auction and raffle, we will be able to make a real difference in the lives of our patients.”

The funds raised will go towards the development of a cutting edge IR Suite. Thanks to high-resolution imaging, IR procedures minimize incisions, reduce risk of infections, shorten hospital stays, speed recovery times and reduce long-term cost and health outcomes. It will significantly improve the experience of patients, their level of care and wait times at North York General.

In 2013, Heart of Fashion raised funds towards Phillips House, which is being turned into an outpatient mental health facility for women, youth and children’s mental health services. In 2014, it also raised funds for radioactive seed localisation in their BMO Breast Diagnostic Centre.

This year, in an effort to reach out to a new audience, Heart of Fashion introduced the Fabricland Scrubs Design Challenge, which gave five emerging designers the opportunity to share their work on the runway alongside high-end brands like TNT and Via Cavour. Following the show, the winner, Yanis Allen, had his gorgeous design displayed in the windows of TNT.

Visit www.heartoffashion.ca to learn more about Heart of Fashion and the amazing work North York General Foundation is doing to provide the best care for their patients. You can still donate at – https://www.heartoffashion.ca/heart-of-fashion-donation

The post North York General Foundation’s Heart of Fashion Raises $1.2 million appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

The third season of INLAND kicked off yesterday and to mark the occasion we’ve interviewed Sarah Power the owner, founder and creative director behind the event. Here, Power shares her thoughts on “Made in Canada”, the changes she hopes to make through her efforts with INLAND, as well as juicy details about this season.

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What is INLAND and how did you come up with the idea of creating this event?

S.P: INLAND is a Canadian designer shopping event, a platform for designers and brands to sell their collections directly to shoppers. Curated pop-ups and other unique consumer settings are the future of retail. I wanted to harness that as a way to promote and propel the business of Canadian fashion and design.

What makes INLAND different from other Canadian multi brand fashion pop ups (One of A Kind show, etc.)?

S.P: INLAND is unique because we feature exclusively fashion, apparel, and accessories. There are no crafts or lifestyle products at INLAND. This allows us to attract and host very sophisticated collections. It’s very curated (less than 100 designers each show) and has a stylish, contemporary – but very accessible and relaxed feel.

Why is it important for you to support Canadian fashion design and how do you think a platform like INLAND can help develop startup brands?

S.P: It’s important for us to support and promote Canadian fashion and design because it’s a direct reflection of our identity as a thriving culture, both creatively and economically. We have a lot of diverse personalities here in Canada and I think it’s important to value that. INLAND is another avenue for designers to promote their collection, to generate sales, to stay connected as a community, and most importantly (and something they don’t receive from selling on-line or whole-selling) to connect directly with customers. Understanding the consumers’ wants and needs is critical to operating a strong business.

How do you select the designers showing at the event?

S.P: Designers who are featured at INLAND are selected for their overall business sense and brand presentation including; style, innovative technique and material choices, production quality, market awareness and customer engagement. We look for the story behind the brand and the quality that comes through as a result.

Among the designers who will be showing this year, which ones are you most excited about?

S.P: I adore every designer. They each bring such a unique dynamic in both design and personality. I’m pretty excited for SOM KONG. He and his team are installing an entire fashion-art structure as part of their booth. It’s going to be amazing. I’m also looking forward to having HAYLEY ELSAESSER. I fell in love with her collection at World Mastercard Fashion Week and have really enjoyed working with her. She’s full of life and works really hard to get her work out there. Lastly, I’d have to say TRAVIS TADDEO. Again, he works really hard, his style is so forward and he is just such a delightful human.

What could the attendees expect from this year’s show? What would be different from last year’s show?

S.P: The show has been scaled down and curated more carefully. We want to be sure the line-up is fresh with new designers attending each show. We have 7 designers who have presented at World MasterCard Fashion Week, 12 labels from Montreal and 2 from Halifax. We continue to be diverse in that some designers are very new, like SOM KONG from Toronto, and others have been in business for 25 years, like Ça va de soi from Montreal. This season, designers are getting very creative with their booth displays. The entire show is just really finding its stride.

What are the changes you would like to see in the local fashion industry?

S.P: More accessibility to Canadian fashion for the masses. This really depends on awareness which leans on getting the media to talk more about Canadian fashion, not just as a novelty though – simply because it’s amazing. I’d also like to see some of the big players and organizations who are meant to leverage the local industry be a bit more connected and inclusive of the average consumer and start-up business. We could make a much greater international impact by working together.

A growing number of shoppers around the world want to know where the products they buy are made and in what conditions. More and more are choosing quality and craftsmanship over mass produced designs. Do you think locally made labels are benefitting from this trend?

S.P: Absolutely. People are attracted to quality and personality in products. Life is too short and moments are too precious to be consumed and surrounded by mediocre experiences and cheap “stuff”. Canadian design is bursting with both personality and quality. Locally made is very “trendy” (a term that can be very fleeting), but it’s also just really amazing so I see a long-term shift and plenty of attention being gained by Canadian brands.

How do you think INLAND can positively impact the way Canadians perceive and consume fashion?

S.P: Our message that “Made In Canada Matters” is getting out there as far as we can shout it. It’s all about awareness. People don’t need to be told why buying local is better. It’s obvious. The average shoppers just need to know that Canadian designers exist and where they can access them. We’re trying to do that the best we can with the shows and on social. We talk about Canadian design all day, everyday (follow our Instagram @made_inland for year-round daily posts of Canadian designers) and look forward to a time when everyone has a few Canadian labels in their closet.

Do you have any upcoming projects you are excited about?

S.P: Nothing set in stone, but I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about taking INLAND to other cities (within Canada and internationally) and maybe starting an on-line shop. I’m also trying to develop an on-line resource list of Canadian designers and Canadian-carrying boutiques. So much to do yet!

INLAND is taking place this weekend at The Glass Factory (99 Sudbury St). Make sure you drop in and check out some of the best fashion labels Canada has to offer.

For more information, and future events visit their website.

The post A Chat with INLAND Founder Sarah Power about the Canadian designer shopping event appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

Fashion Art Toronto (better known as FAT) is an annual arts and fashion week that offers an alternative platform for up-and-coming Canadian fashion designers. This year, the festival celebrated its 10th anniversary, paying tribute to “Made in Canada” and what it means to be Canadian.

Every night, the collections presented on the runway responded to a different theme related to Canadian art, design, history, technology, nature, and landscapes such as “Great Wild”, “Cold North” and “Global Village”. It resulted in a mind blowing showcase of creativity, diversity, and innovation that well illustrated what emerging Canadian fashion design is today.

FAT is renown for the importance it has been giving to diversity, and this year’s edition was no exception. The variety of fashion shows included ready-to-wear, haute couture, afro-street style, street-wear, futuristic, minimalist and more. The exhibition in itself was a piece of art, like a mosaic, made up of many different aesthetics, which ended up creating a harmonious whole.

Let’s take a look at some of the most memorable aesthetics seen on the FAT runway last week.

Bold African prints

Keala Kay, TFL Couture and VKEITA were all about bold prints, vibrant colors and enhancing women’s femininity. Keala Kay’s “Glamorously Chic – Bold and Striped” collection mixed bold patterns and vivid colours together to create glamorous diva silhouettes like this tangerine signature full skirt paired with a black and yellow striped cropped top. In the same spirit, VKEITA’s S/S 2015 Collection celebrated women’s beauty and confidence with ultra feminine pieces and colourful patterns. As for TFL Couture, its “Afro-street style” collection was made for the woman who wants to look chic and feel comfortable during the hot summer days. The collection was made up of bright coloured cropped tops, pants, skirts and dresses with vibrant African prints.

Theatrical Gowns

Starkers Corsetry and Gavarcia’s collections were both inspired by classic eras of European fashion. Starkers Corsetry’s line was all about crafted corsets reminiscent of the Edwardian era fashion, but with a modern twist. Diana DiNoble wanted to pay tribute to a time when Canadian fashion was locally made with the attention to shape and detail. Gavarcia’s debut Haute Couture collection at FAT was made up of magnificent gowns that revealed the designer’s unique take on couture women’s wear.

Futuristic

Vandal, Evan Biddell and Sandra all showcased remarkable futuristic fashion collections. Vandal allowed us a glimpse into the future with his Evangelion line showcasing powerful robotic silhouettes and various shades of digital prints as seen on the photo. Canadian Project Runway winner, Evan Biddell showed More Than Human, an awe-inspiring line of invisible UV inked clothes, creating the appearance of glow in the dark alien-like skin. Sandra Al-Dabbagh presented Artematics, a collection that fuses art, science and mathematics. The designer used various technologies such as laser-cutting neoprene, and computer software in order to create and print her futuristic fabrics.

Monochromatic

The use of monochromatic colors in Bianca Charneau, Andrea Montle and Elisa C Rossow’s collections brought the shape of their designs into focus. Bianca Charneau reinvested her knowledge in visual art to create Blanc Sur Blanc, an all white collection of radical geometric forms and juxtaposed materials inspired by K. Malévitch’s White on White. Andrea Montle’s desire to enhance women’s strength and femininity was expressed through a collection of what seemed like pieces of wrapped clothes, in either black or red, creating Superhero –like silhouettes. With Elisa Rossow, it was all about the structure of the clothes. The absence of color in her minimal all-black collection allowed the eye to focus primarily on the way the garments moved and framed the models.

Gender-fluid

Some of the outfits showed at FAT were purposely gender-fluid, allowing men and women to dress however they want and be who ever they like. In MacCalden’s Pandora’s Box inspired show, male models seemed to come from an upside down world, strutting the runway in black laced bermuda shorts, furred crop tops and fierce eye make up. Masha’s Unhuman collection also played with ambiguity by mixing gender representations and interchanging male and female identities in a flip of an outfit. In her Atlantis collection, Wendy NG presented clothes worn by advanced creatures from the sea that are rid of gender representations. Male models wore short leather black skirts and fitted white tank tops while female models looked like aquatic creatures with no particular gender.
It is obviously challenging to perfectly sum up the diversity, creativity and boldness, which characterized the creations of the designers at FAT in just one article. I would just recommend to anyone interested in arts, fashion, design and anything innovative, to go see their visionary works next year. At a time when most fashion brands are moving their production to low-wage countries, it is important to support and encourage the designers who make their products here in Canada. Thank you to the amazing team at FAT for doing just that.
Fashion Art Toronto and its amazing cohort of emerging designers will be back next year with more boundary pushing designs. Don’t miss it!

Pictures by Jonathan Hooper
Montages by me.

The post Fashion Art Toronto 2015: A Mosaic of Canadian Fashion Aesthetics and Talents appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

The trunk sale was a great opportunity to discover the work of Garvin Garcia, a promising designer with talent, bold ideas and a real passion for haute couture. Based out of Toronto, Garvin Garcia has studied fashion design in Seneca College before he decided to unleash his own wild creativity and founded Gavarcia in 2008.

Inspired by European couture and the bold aesthetics of Alexander McQueen and John Galliano, Garvin Garcia has been designing custom-fitted garments, wedding gowns, handmade headpieces, and vintage inspired jewelry pieces for private clients. He makes everything by hand from start to finish and his elaborate gowns reveal an extreme attention to detail and the designer’s love for experimentation when it comes to haute couture.

Although Gavarcia is a new brand, it was already covered in some of the most respected fashion magazines such as Vogue Italia, Fashionizing and Lucy’s Magazine. Since award winning Canadian fashion photographer Michelle Aristocrat signed on as Gavarcia’s Creative Director, the brand has indeed gained a lot of international traction. Michelle Aristocrat is the photographer behind “Holiday in Versailles”, the editorial photoshoot for Vogue Italia, which featured Gavarcia’s majestic designs, including his elaborate pink gown with breathtaking gold details.

Gavarcia and Aristocrat’s common appreciation for traditional Victorian lifestyle and aesthetic as well as their passion for haute couture are what brought this powerful creative duo to life. With Gavarcia, they hope to cater to those who love haute couture and are looking for avant-garde yet timeless custom-fitted garments in Toronto. The duo also dreams about one day showcasing their lavish pieces in Paris or New York but for now Gavarcia is working on his upcoming bridal collection and black and white collection.

Check out what Gavarcia is up to on facebook , instagram and twitter. You can also preview and purchase the items from the trunk sale online at www.gavarcia.com. For custom-made garments and wedding dresses, you can contact them directly via their website.

The post Gavarcia, a One-of-a-kind Haute Couture Brand from Toronto appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

Launched by Lululemon’s Shannon Wilson and her son JJ Wilson, the Vancouver-based clothing company Kit and Ace opened its very first Toronto shop in November of 2014. Located in the vibrant neighbourhood of Queen West, the store offers casually luxurious street wear to the active men and women looking for comfortable and functional basics they can live in, as shop director Tonya Papanikolov explained.

Kit and Ace is not your average at leisure label.  It offers premium quality clothing made from the company’s trademark ‘technical cashmere’ (also called qemir), a high-tech fabric that is machine-washable, resistant, and unbelievably soft.  Although their aesthetic is very basic, the quality of their fabric makes their T-shirts, tank tops, turtlenecks, and sweatshirts worth every penny (the prices range from $68-$178).

Based on Michael Jensen’s business ideology that “nothing works without integrity”, the company is committed to making clothes that feel amazing and work well for their customers.  They take a real interest in knowing how people feel in their clothes, and are dedicated to improving their designs in order to meet their customers’ lifestyle and standards.

The Toronto shop is in itself warm and welcoming and customers are greeted by a friendly staff.  The store is filled with natural light, contemporary art, photographs, and furniture by local emerging artists.  Hanging from the ceiling, there are special edition copper lighting fixtures designed by Kei Ng and Jonathan Sabine which give a minimalist and modern feel to the place.  On the wall leading to the fitting rooms, you’ll find cute and positive “love notes” by Justin Broadbent and towards the front of the store, you’ll see a large wooden table and chairs designed by Mischa Couvrette, which are a permanent feature in all Kit and Ace shops.

In an effort to celebrate and support local talent, the shop has launched The Wall, where a new piece from different local artists is featured in the store every three months.  “It is really about giving them a new platform to showcase their work”, Tonya Papanikolov said.  Currently featured on The Wall is “I Have An Idea 01”, a bright and fresh artwork by Toronto-based photographer Jackie Beale.

Every month the store also holds “supper clubs” during which local members of the “creative class” gather to enjoy locally-sourced meals, meet new people and play ‘Real Talk Cards’ with them.  The purpose of this game is to bring the guests together and encourage them to interact with each other, Tonya Papanikolov explained.

Kit and Ace shops are very much focused on their local community and the company plans to maintain this store concept as they develop internationally.  The store at 779 Queen Street West is one of the seven Kit and Ace locations across North America and the company aims at opening between 30 and 50 more stores across the US, Europe and Asia in 2015.

For more information on their products, their rotating exhibit, and upcoming supper clubs visit kitandace.com.

The post Kit and Ace, The Clothing Store on Queen West appeared first on Toronto Guardian.