VFW Backstage Beauty: Bronze Minimalism

File this one under "warm weather beauty inspiration." Makeup director Yasmin Morshedian created heaps of avant garde runway looks for the latest season of Vancouver Fashion Week. But this look—for Brazilian designer Martins Paulo's VFW debut—wins for subtle allure and sheer wearability.

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Vancouver Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2012: Other Highlights

I spent most of my Saturday at Vancouver Fashion Week in the second row, craning my neck and raising my camera between two people's heads to get a clear shot of the runway, working against the light, and shooting extremely wide-angle frames hoping I could crop out people's heads afterward. Needless to say, those photos turned out terribly, which is why I had to rely on the images that photographer Eugenio Flores posted on the VFW Facebook page. I did manage to see a couple of shows from the front row and take some decent photos towards the end though. Here are my favourite photos from Farida Lalji and Teresa Rosati.

A model in the Farida Lalji fall/winter 2012 show exhibited dancer-like grace while highlighting the fluidity of Lalji's Indian-inspired creations.

Bright colours and animal prints galore in the Farida Lalji show

This Teresa Rosati gown featured a black-and-white Marilyn Monroe print.

P.S. My Givenchy beauty giveaway is still on. Enter now!

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Vancouver Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2012: VAWK & VAWKKIN

VAWK designer Sunny Fong has come a long way since his days as a winning contestant on Project Runway Canada. His attention to detail and immaculate designs for his luxury women's wear label have earned him devoted fans and accolades from some of Canada's top fashion publications. I had the privilege of seeing his fall/winter 2012 collection firsthand at Vancouver Fashion Week this season.

For VAWK's latest collection, Fong turned to Japanese culture and science fiction, particularly the idea of the sci-fi samurai. According to Fong's vision, the VAWK woman, it seems, is elegant enough to attend a gala but carries herself with enough attitude and grit to hold her own amongst warriors and cyborgs. His inspiration translated into kimono sleeves and wide obi-style belts. Leather and fox-trimmed coats, jackets, and blazers juxtaposed sharp tailored lines and sleek silhouettes with soft draped collars. Leather tattoo koi graced a backless gown. Models sported leather helmets and topknots. The colour palette was simple: mostly black with some rich plum in the form of silk dresses. A touch of gold in the form of leather trim and sequinned pieces conveyed the same hard-edged beauty a samurai sword might hold.

This season also marked the debut of a new sister line called VAWKKIN. Inspired by the modern working woman's need for a seamless wardrobe that transitions from work to play, VAWKKIN incorporated menswear influences into very wearable (and feminine) separates. Think the sharpness and refined detail of VAWK, but done in fabrications and styles that work for the office or cocktail hour. The minimalist colour palette of black-and-white patterns, solid black, grey and teal allowed focus to shift to compelling design details like a bow on the shoulder of a blouse, or a ruffle along the bottom of a coat.

Both shows marked the first time Fong has ventured westward and shown his work in Vancouver. Considering how impressive I found his work to be, I can only hope he visits us more often in the future.

Photos from the Vancouver Fashion Week Facebook page by Eugenio Flores.

P.S. My Givenchy beauty giveaway is still on. Enter now!

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Vancouver Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2012: Xsenia & Olya

Vancouver Fashion Week's fall/winter 2012 season just took place last week. While I wasn't able to go to the opening gala or the weekday shows, I did manage to catch Saturday's shows, including the one I'm recapping here: Xsenia & Olya. The London-based design duo, Xsenia Runa and Olya Shishkina, first met as students at Central St. Martins. They had already debuted their spring/summer and autumn/winter 2012 collections in London and Paris before coming to Vancouver.

Their spring/summer 2012 collection, titled "Staircase Wit," drew inspiration from Madeleine Vionnet and photos of jellyfish at the Vancouver aquarium. The result was a breezy collection of bias-cut maxi dresses with thigh-high slits. Streamer skirts and tunics fluttered with movement. The digitized prints--in a South Beach palette of cobalt blue, teal and orange--were eerie yet elegant. Floaty dresses in red, purple and mustard rounded out the collection.

Their fall/winter 2012 collection also featured rich cobalt blue prints on maxi gowns and tunics, this time paired with reversible outerwear by Olya Shishkina. My favourite piece was a classic-cut belted brown leather trench with fur panels and lapels (not shown here, unfortunately). Their intriguing designs, combined with their zero-waste pattern-cutting techniques, are a testament to Xsenia & Olya's skill. I'm eager to see where their aesthetic goes from here.

Photos from the Vancouver Fashion Week Facebook page by Eugenio Flores.

P.S. My Givenchy beauty giveaway is still on. Enter now!

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VFW FW 2010: Drew William

Of his fall/winter 2010 show, Central Saint Martins (London) graduate and designer Drew William said, "I was inspired by the paintings of Eugene Delacroix, specifically Liberty Leading the People and the collection evolved organically from that point." Perhaps it was the tones and colours of Delacroix's paintings and the draping of his subjects' garb that caught William's eye, because apart from those elements I saw little of the famous painter's influence in the collection.




Instead, William's show was equal parts drama and fashion, eerie and memorable. Models with ship-festooned hair and blood-red eye makeup made their way down the runway with the stiff, slow gait of the walking dead. Clothes ranged from preppy classics such as a rugby shirt and a gray peacoat for men, to an avant garde lightweight trouser with pant legs that cocooned around limbs. Women's dresses were asymmetrical and draped.




My favourite piece used feathers trapped between a layer of black mesh and nude material to add volume and movement. This dress was a true show-stopper. The pleated black mesh formed interlocking lines across the bodice and skirt, and the feathers along the hem made it seem heavy and light all at once.



Overall, the show reminded me of horror movies and ghost ships more than French Romantic paintings. But that's okay; sometimes you don't have to understand fashion to appreciate its artistry.

All runway photos by Wayne Mah.

P.S. Don't forget about my Sex and the City tour tickets giveaway! Remember that the tickets don't expire, so even if you're thinking about going to New York you should go for it. Click here for the full rules and to enter. Good luck!

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VFW FW 2010: Retarded Velvet

When I first heard about fledgling label Retarded Velvet and its debut at Vancouver Fashion Week, my reaction was something like "Huh?! That name can't be right." After all, it was hard to reconcile such a name with the design duo behind it. Theresa James ("Holiday") and Roger Prince ("Capital") graduated from Blanche Macdonald with honours and thought-provoking grad collections. She's a former human rights lawyer for the UN, he has a background in home renovation and interior design. I still remember how well-spoken and intelligent Theresa was when I interviewed her for Vancouver Fashion eZine last year.




The name may have been an unexpected shock, but I'm pleased to report that Retarded Velvet's debut collection has Theresa and Roger written all over it. Its aesthetic is thought-provoking,'80s-inspired, eclectic, and exuberant--or "Rick James in Rajasthan, Grace Jones in Goa," as the designers put it.



Drawing on a colour palette of fuchsia, purple, yellow, and black, the clothes were full of unexpected surprises that demonstrated the designers' attention to detail. I loved the risks they took with construction techniques and asymmetry. Pleated puffs usually seen on shoulders graced the hips of skirts and bottoms. Insets in contrasting fabrics appeared on bolero jackets and trousers. Jumpsuits have become trendy and somewhat ubiquitous in the last few seasons, but RV's version looked fresh with its jodphur bottom. My favourites were the sheath dress with black insets, the skinny trouser with ruched insets, and the dress with a floating yoke neckline.





Regarding Theresa's grad collection, I wrote for Vancouver Fashion eZine: "James's graduate collection was inspired by the notion of parallel universes and re-examining the ordinary: 'I wanted to take really conventional fashion elements and use them in an unconventional way.' Thus a pair of yellow pants unexpectedly becomes a halter top, dozens of zippers merge into a voluminous green skirt, and the human torso is deconstructed into a sleeve, a bra top, and a corset which can be worn together or separately." These same deconstructionist tendencies were apparent in the one-sleeve jackets. One particularly stunning number had a black-and-white pattern on top and a yellow lining. One side of the jacket was a typical bolero, while the other side had a full-length ruffle cascading down the torso.





If the pieces presented on the runway are anything to go by, Retarded Velvet was a smart move for Theresa and Roger. Congratulations to the talented pair on a stellar debut collection.

All runway photos by Wayne Mah.

P.S. Don't forget about my Sex and the City tour tickets giveaway! Remember that the tickets don't expire, so even if you're thinking about going to New York you should go for it. Click here for the full rules and to enter. Good luck!

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VFW FW 2010: Red Jade

Some time ago, I read an amusing column in the Globe & Mail about "Streep syndrome." Streep syndrome is when someone performs well so consistently that people come to expect great things from that person all the time; subsequent outstanding work is therefore underappreciated. (The cheeky name that the columnist gave this phenomenon comes from actress Meryl Streep, who has been nominated for an Oscar 16 times and only won twice.)

This is the third Red Jade show I've had the privilege of seeing, and based on my cumulative impressions of designer Margarita Angelatos's chic eco-friendly label, she runs the danger of suffering from Streep syndrome herself. Her collections are just too good.



Similar to her previous collection, it was the details of each piece that captivated me. A carefully constructed sleeve puff folded in on itself at the arm opening. Rows of buttons large and small marched up the neck of a turtleneck dress or down the front of a funnel-necked frock. A skinny belt looped through a high-waisted trouser in matching fabric provided just the right amount of contrast.



Other inter-collection consistencies were apparent as well. As always, luxe natural materials such as hemp, organic cotton, silk, and merino wool were used. The clothes struck a fine balance between structured, tailored elegance and flowy draping silhouettes. The colour palette was restricted to gray and black with a touch of blue.



However, it was interesting to see Angelatos experiment with innovative techniques. On a couple of dresses, what appeared to be a typical bubble hem was, upon closer examination, squarish boxy seams reminiscent of the corners of fitted mattress sheets. The effect was one of architectural quirkiness.



On a side note, the clothes were perfectly styled alongside chunky square-link necklaces and carved wood accessories by Lemon Park. Kudos to Red Jade for putting on a great show and proving that eco fashion can be interesting, innovative, and sophisticated. Here's hoping Angelatos enjoys more future successes (minus the Streep syndrome).

All runway photos by Wayne Mah.

P.S. Don't forget about my Sex and the City tour tickets giveaway! Remember that the tickets don't expire, so even if you're thinking about going to New York you should go for it. Click here for the full rules and to enter. Good luck!

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Vancouver Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2010 Coverage Coming

Aside from attending the party at Noir Lash Lounge, last weekend I also went to Vancouver Fashion Week as media on behalf of Vancouver Fashion eZine and Solo Lisa. Although many shows were intriguing for various reasons, I'm only publishing in-depth reviews of my top favourites. Enjoy!

P.S. Don't forget about my Sex and the City tour tickets giveaway! Remember that the tickets don't expire, so even if you're thinking about going to New York you should go for it. Click here for the full rules and to enter. Good luck!

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VFW SS 2010: Kersh

On the second-to-last day of Vancouver Fashion Week, Kersh presented a spring/summer 2010 collection that harkened back to the the carefree seventies. Models sashayed barefoot down the catwalk with tousled centre-parted hair, nude lips, and dark eye makeup reminscent of Cher circa "Sonny and Cher."



Despite the seventies theme, many of the separates had the potential to feel fresh and new if styled differently. The strapless yellow dress with an exposed zipper down the front and the black jersey jumpsuit, for example, are very on-trend with what's happening in fashion right now. Covetable denim pieces included a cropped dark denim jacket and the perfect little dark denim short. Fans of last spring's light wash denim and chambray trends will be pleased to see plenty of both in Kersh.





However, there were times when I felt that Kersh's interpretation of the seventies was a little too literal and the show became a game of "Spot the '70s trend." I spied a tie-dye green skirt, embroidered tunic tops, and a paisley kerchief maxi dress. Sometimes this literal quality worked (the red-and-navy striped tee with the flared denim trouser looked like something Donna Pinciotti from That '70s Show might wear), sometimes it didn't (the crochet pieces which evoked comparisons to couch throws, for example). Overall, though, the collection was fun, exuberant, and very wearable.







All photos by Wayne Mah.

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VFW SS 2010: Paul Hardy

Paul Hardy poses with his models after the show.

"Intellectual purity" is one of the guiding principles that Paul Hardy follows in his designs, and it was certainly in evidence in the spring/summer 2010 collection he presented at Vancouver Fashion Week. Drawing on a palette of white, white, and more white, Hardy's clothes struck a balance between minimalism and richness, simplicity and depth. The singular colour forced the audience's eye to look beyond the deceptively simple surface and focus on the details.




And what details these are. Fabrics in a variety of textures were juxtaposed one against the other--lace, jersey, silk, chiffon, linen, feathery fabrics. An armor jacket with tailored shoulder plates was softened by an empire waist and chiffon panels. Stiff wool was transformed into a figure-hugging floor-length sheath gown, topped by an exaggerated neck ruffle that was dramatic yet light. Large external pockets added visual interest to tailored trousers. Observant audience members also noted the tank tops styled upside-down as dresses.





It's hard to isolate and critique individual pieces in this collection because the white-on-white worked so well together in layered ensembles.







As beautiful as Hardy's clothes are, the higher purpose behind them is even better. Earlier this year, Hardy took a life-changing trip to Uganda which inspired him to found Reversal of Fortune. This project provides safe, socially responsible employment to victimized women in Africa: as members of Hardy's "privately funded 'green' production sewing units," these women produce Hardy's moderately priced women's clothing line. Revenue from the line will be used to create trust funds for orphans so that they, in turn, might "become future leaders of their nations."

Photo of Hardy with models by Tony Tsai. Runway photos by Wayne Mah.

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