All posts tagged: Spring 2011

LGFW SS11: Holt Renfrew Presents Spring Summer 2011

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So it’s LG Fashion Week once again. Toronto now has its own kick at the Spring Summer 2011 collections. The venue has changed to Heritage Court at Exhibition Place. It’s a lot roomier and there are lots of bathrooms. Getting into the runway room is alway a chore and that hasn’t changed. I love the exposed brick but I wish it was on both sides of the building. The non brick side could have used some extended curtains but I’m getting a little nitpicky here. Overall, decent except for the bad sun glare at the end of the night. Monday night saw Holt Renfrew bring its traditional media cocktail party to the runway. We saw some of the best of Canadian fashion in one runway show. Denis Gagnon, Jeremy Laing, Lida Baday, Line RUNWAY, Mikhael Kale, Pink Tartan, Smythe, Wayne Clark and Wings + Horns all presented several looks from their spring summer 2011 collections. This show was also a sneak peek at the upcoming Pink Tartan and Line Knitwear shows. The runway show didn’t have …

What does Barbara think? Spring Summer 2011 Edition

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I love it when the WWD asks the buyers their opinions of the collections. I’m always interested in what the buyers/retailers think of the collections. For the last few seasons I’ve been posting about Barbara Atkin’s feelings on the show. Spring Summer 2011 is no exception. New York “The consumer is still celebrity-obsessed. The designer is becoming that celebrity as well. We’ve got to move away from turning [fashion week] into a circus.” – Barbara Atkin, vice president and fashion director, Holt Renfrew Trendspotting: “The big story was American sportswear and the whole idea of the timeless classics, easy toppers, trenches and beautiful, easy pants. In a way, another trend is New York producing a whole new wave of young designers with more democratic price points, such as Alexander Wang, Phillip Lim and Theyskens’ Theory.” Sound off: “Everyone’s taking pictures of everyone else. Everybody has a blog and some site they wanted to drive you to. We’re being swallowed up by social media. People are adapting a look and seeing how to wear it immediately …

Complexgeometries Spring Summer 2011

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My fashion favourite Complexgeometries was in New York showing off the Spring Summer 2011 collection. I’m still very excited about this and I’m glad Clayton is moving on up as they say. The show got a lot of pre and post press from sites like Nymag.com, WWD and Fashionologie. Yay Clayton! Diane, A Shaded View on Fashion has some more photos of the collection. There are men’s looks that I didn’t include here as I focused on the women’s looks I liked.  Yup, I’m planning my Spring Summer 2011 Complexgeometries purchase. Jason Last was around with his trusty camera to grab a bit of video of the presentation. images: zimbio.com, nymag.com

Calla Spring Summer 2011

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Toronto native and Paris resident Calla Haynes held a presentation for her Spring Summer 2011 collection under her namesake label Calla. She created Kaleidoscope prints for Jeremy Laing’s fall 2008 – 2009 collection (video). For spring summer 2011 she produced a video invitation instead of a traditional one. Calla is a print genius. Spring summer 2011 is really beautiful.  I like the geometric aspect to some prints and the others that are more liquid. Barb at Phreshly Squeezed checked out the CALLA Spring-Summer 2011 presentation in Paris. Vogue Italy also has some other photos. Calla is found in Canada at: The Room The Hudson’s Bay 176 Yonge Street Toronto, Ontario Reborn 231 rue Saint Paul Ouest Montreal, Quebec

Celine Spring Summer 2011

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Celine is another designer line that didn’t have my undying love right from the photos.  I had to see some video evidence first.  The videos brought me back to the Celine reality: beautiful clothing that I want to wear. It’s a looser fitting collection that is missing some of the Celine sleekness from previous seasons.  There are rich colours and vibrant prints to keep the collection from being completely white or ivory.  This season I’m loving the tunics (even the japanese denim one) and white shirts. I’m usually all over the shoes but the ones from the collection are pretty but boring. I’ll have to wait until the website is up to see what else is out there. I love Vogue.it. It lists the fabrics used in the show: denim, canvas, cotton poplin, silk, silk cady, parachute silk, nappa and silk crêpe. This is the Celine bag that I will be talking about till fall 2011. Love the shape and colour. This video features Tim Blanks from style.com talking about the collection. This is a …

Luc Kieffer in Toronto

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Luc Kieffer, a jewellery designer from Paris, visited Toronto for the first time during TIFF. A press preview party was held in his honour and I got a closer look at some of his fall winter 2010 – 2011 and spring summer 2011 collections. Luc has worked with many fashion houses like YSL, Balenciaga, Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Sonia Rykiel. It was interesting to her Luc talk about the time he met Yves Saint Laurent in person in 1996. Luc collaborated with Yves on his final collection. The Luc Kieffer line was launched in 2006. Luc Kieffer jewellery specializes in high-polished resin with Swarovski crystals. Luc is a chemist by trade and that totally attracted the geek in me. That’s right people chemist = swoon in my books. Chemist turned jewellery maker is off the charts. I was told that Luc was a charmer. I wished I could speak french, it would have been nice to chat in his mother tongue. He worked with Yves Saint Laurent on his final collection in 1996, and has …

Proenza Schouler Spring Summer 2011

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Proenza Schouler used a lot of shibori techniques in the Spring Summer 2011 collection. Shibori is several methods of dyeing cloth to create a pattern by binding, stitching, folding, twisting, compressing it, or capping the fabric. “We wanted it to be a little more polished,” Jack McCollough said backstage, before Lazaro Hernandez jumped in: “So we took all these feminine codes—the embroideries, the flowers—and mixed them up in our own way. We wanted to do something without any obvious references.”(Source). I was very happy to see that Proenza Schouler was using neon this spring summer 2011 season.  The prints are beautiful. You’ll want to check out Tommy Ton’s behind the scenes at Proenza Schouler Spring Summer 2011 photo post on Jak & Jil. He’s got some really great shots. Watch the full Proenza Schouler Spring Summer 2011 fashion show images: style.com

Darcel at the Spring Summer 2011 Fashion Weeks

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I came across these wonderful cartoons of famous fashion personalities and fixtures on nowness.com. Freaking too adorable for words. Darcel at New York Fashion Week Craig Redman’s Cult Character Turns Style-Savvy Reporter for NOWNESS. Following his hazy, rather drunken night at the grand opening of Louis Vuitton’s London Maison this summer, Darcel—the one-eyed, bespectacled egg-person who is daily overcome by the modern world on Craig Redman’s hugely popular blog, Darcel Disappoints—has got the fashion bug. Yes, Darcel sets off today on an intercontinental trip to cover the spring 2011 catwalks exclusively for NOWNESS.(source) You can see the complete set of Darcel posts on Nowness.com. Darcel at London Fashion Week Darcel at Milan Fashion Week Darcel at Paris Fashion Week

Chanel Spring Summer 2011

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The Chanel Spring Summer 2011 fashion show blew me away. I watched the video late Wednesday night and it almost brought a tear to my eye. There was an 80-piece orchestra who played a mix of music from Björk, the Verve and John “007” Barry. Take said orchestra and put them in the Grand Palais with a set inspired by the movie, Last Year at Marienbad. Chanel usually shows at the Grand Palais but this season they made use of the entire space for this incredibly expansive set. Karl tops himself again and again. Amazingly enough the clothes lived up to the set. This is a season of Chanel I approve of. Can we talk about the boots? I’m dying over them. Things I didn’t like: the sandals and the makeup. I’ve embedded the fashion show video for you all to see. It’s a spectacle, a wonderful fashion spectacle. It makes me giddy. With the talk of the fashion show going the way of the dodo, I’m glad to see that Karl Lagerfeld and Chanel’s …

Balenciaga Spring Summer 2011

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I’m usually a solid Balenciaga fan but the spring summer 2011 collection made me think. There was no immediate reaction of adoration for the clothing. I wasn’t a big fan of the first half of the collection but liked the second. It’s taken me a bit of time to absorb what I’ve seen. This rockabilly version of Balenciaga has me loving classic things like pants and that printed denim.  They look so roomy and comfortable. There are also some sweet little jackets in the collection.  I’ll take a red leather Balenciaga coat please. Balenciaga also introduced watches this season which were inspired by an antique clock in the atelier. I did have an immediate reaction to the shoes and that was love. It’s apparently the first time Ghesquière has show flats at Balenciaga. Shoes like this remind me of my first pair of Dr. Martens. They were low cut, pointy toe, black patent leather creeper like shoes. I loved them to pieces. I love the visual of the shoes and that crazy floral denim. The …