While we are talking about swimwear, Real Style Network wanted to bring you the latest in fashion shows from Mercedes-Benz Miami Fashion Week Swim 2011. Miami Fashion Week brings together the hottest swimwear designers to show off next year’s collections and swimwear fashion trends. Swimwear designers including Beach Bunny, Ed Hardy, True Religion and Mara Hoffman all held fashion shows this week. Here are some of the trends we are seeing from the Miami Fashion Week swimwear fashion shows:
The colour palette is across the board. The only real rule is to keep it bright and bold. Patterns of all sorts are popular in swimwear. If you can’t have a print on your bathing suit, get it in your cover up. Coverups being shown are loose and flowing. Tribal and retro prints on maxi dresses and tunics were the style of choice in the fashion shows.
Swimwear trends are still the smaller the better. Many of the suits shown in the fashion shows had plunging necklines and cutouts. Some swimwear designers chose to add more delicate details like lace, ruffles and intricate cutouts.
The accessory of choice in the fashion shows is gold. Whether your swimsuit has gold hardwear or you accessorize with gold jewelry, gold is the colour of next season.
Here are some fashion show videos of the stand out shows:
The fashion shows of haute couture fashion week continue in Paris with fashion shows from some of the world’s top designers. Today three of the most recognizable names in fashion all put on extravagant fashion shows for haute couture week: Armani, Givenchy and Chanel.
Giorgio Armani Prive
Unlike some haute couture fashion shows, the Giorgio Armani Prive garments were very wearable. With a neutral colour palette of mainly shades of beige, the Giorgio Armani Prive fashion show had an air of elegance about it. The looks were many tailored suits with short jackets and oversized sparkling hardware. The collection had a professional air about it with knee length flared skirts and flowing overcoats.
Evening wear was all sequins and sparkle. Long gowns in the same muted nude and brown shades sparkled with sequins of all sizes. We are sure to see a few of these gowns on the red carpet this fall.
See the Giorgio Armani Prive fashion show video here:
Givenchy
The Givenchy haute couture fashion show had intricate and detailed elements in all the garments shown. Givenchy designer Riccardo Tisci put an incredible amount of detail into each of the 10 garments displayed in the fashion show. One crystal dress took 1,600 hours to create! That is dedication to your job.
There was a coat made of thin strips of leather, a dress detailed with delicate ostrich feathers, hand jeweled and embroidered gowns on display. With an inspiration from the Mexican Day of The Dead and religion the Givenchy haute couture fashion show is one to be viewed up close.
Chanel
Chanel closed the day of haute couture fashion shows with a celebration of the luxurious and rich. Real Style Network followed Canadian fashion icon Jeanne Beker as she tweeted live from the Chanel show. Jeanne described the Chanel haute couture collection as having “rich reds,” “exquisite embroidery” and “crystal encrusted coats.”
With a large gold lion in the centre of the stage and male models in lion heads, Karl Lagerfeld’s Chanel collection dazzled the fashion show critics once again.
Canada Style is Real Style Network’s special feature profiling fashion and style events in Canada. At the Haider Ackermann fashion show at the Royal Ontario Museum on Tuesday evening, the crowd was elated. This was the first time the Parisian based fashion designer has ever shown in Canada or even North America. 119 Corbo the boutique selling Haider Ackermann fashion exclusively in Toronto were the organizers behind the successful event.
The Colombian born, Belgian educated and now Paris based fashion designer is known for his precision cut leathers and artful draping. The Haider Ackermann fall/winter 2010 collection consisted of mostly dark coloured jersey and lace dresses, structured wool and leather suits and wool coats. You can see more of the collection photos here.
During the fashion show at the Royal Ontario Museum,the models walked slowly to a dramatic soundtrack in a dim room illuminated only by a few spotlights. This did not stop the fashion crowd from closely observing the intricate detailing and styling of each outfit. Take a look at the video:
Fashion can be a serious business. This week celebrities and fashion came together for a fun night to let their hair down and celebrate a traditional fashion statement: the kilt.
Sean Connery hosted the star-studded Dressed To Kilt event in New York. The fashion show’s theme was Mad For Scotland. The celebrities did not disappoint as they strutted their stuff on the catwalk in kilts. The kilts shown in the fashion show ranged from traditional kilts or some haute couture kilt garments.
Canadian Mike Myers opened the show in a traditional kilt (paired with some sneakers). Other celebrities including Al Roker, Joan Jett, American Idol’s Kellie Pickler, and America’s Next Top Model judge Nigel Barker all modelled kilts on the runway.
The fashion show was not only to raise awareness of Scottish fashion, but also raised money for Wounded Warrior Project, Paralyzed Veterans of America and the Erskine Hospital of Scotland.
The event was dedicated to late Scottish designer Alexander McQueen, who was known to use tartan in his designs.
See some of the looks in this fashion show video from Dressed To Kilt:
In some of the week’s top fashion news, Canadian fashion designer Erdem won the first BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund. For winning this award designer Erdem Moralioglu takes home 200,000 pounds.
Erdem beat British designer favourites Christopher Kane, Marios Schwab and Nicholas Kirkwood for the prize. Erdem will also get a high profile mentor to assist him in taking his fashion brand global.
Erdem Moralioglu was born in Montreal, but studied, lived and now works in London. He is known for his feminine collections that feature ruffles and floral prints. He has created fans in Michelle Obama, Keira Knightly and Chloe Sevingy.
The BFC/Vogue Award was created to enhance the reputation and assist in developing some of London’s brightest design stars.
We send our congratulations to Canadian Erdem for taking the prize across the pond.
Watch Erdem’s fall fashion show video here to see why he won.
Real Style Network is following LG Fashion Week here in Toronto. Here is a review of some of the recent shows for Preloved and Lovas.
Monday night Preloved showed their flirty Fall/Winter 2010 collection on the runways of LG Fashion Week. Preloved take old clothes and recycle them to make new, fashionable clothing. Their fall collection had a librarian chic look to it. There were a multitude of patterns and plaids mixed and matched in their garments. The models were accessorized with funky cat’s eye shape glasses. Sheath and tunic style dresses and high-waisted pants, shorts and skirts dominated the show. The colour palette stuck to darker shades like black, brown and navy. Hot pink and white accent colours brightened things up. A black leather jacket and matching leather skirt wowed the crowd. The majority of the looks were knit and tweed giving the garments a cozy look. Thigh high knit leg warmers were worn with almost all of the shorts, skirts and capris. Watch full show here.
Lovas Wesley Badanjak showed a sophisticated fashion line on Tuesday night at Toronto Fashion Week. The Lovas fall/winter collection was made up of modern day looks that would be suitable for the office, flirty weekend wear and sparkling eveningwear. This was a clothing line that was suitable for the average woman’s daily life. Separates of well tailored pants, pencils skirts and pea coats would make a fine addition to any closet. Bright jewel tones of purple and pink were offset by grey and black jackets and pants. Beautiful watercolour prints on light chiffon dresses and shirts were cute and girly. As we have seen in a number of other collections fur was prevalent. Fur jackets and stoles in red and black looked warm on the runway. Other looks were accessorized with fur arm bands. Evening wear was mainly black and sequined with exposed zippers running down the back of dresses.
[Preloved images courtesy of Preloved and photographer George Pimentel]
Two of the most anticipated shows of LG Toronto Fashion Week: Pink Tartan and Joe Fresh did not disappoint. The designers, Pink’s Kim Newport Mimran and Joe’s Joe Mimran are not only married, they also form the powerhouse of fashion and retail savvy in Canada behind these two uber-successful lines.
Pink Tartan is an upscale line aimed at the sophisticated woman. As Kim Newport told Real Style Network previously, she is a woman designer who designs the clothes that she would wear herself. The mostly black, gray, taupe and cream Fall 2010 collection featured Kim’s unmistakable tailoring and in keeping with the fur trend we have seen on all the European runways, lots of fur trimmed garments. Pink Tartan’s skirt lengths remained on the short side with A lines shapes and shorter bubble silhouette. The shoulders were exaggerated and often accented with fur, feathers or sequins. There were also some outstanding dresses and skirts with fur trims (big trend) and her signature sequin tops and skirts.
Joe Fresh Style delivered a collection that was not only lots of fun, youthful and” Fresh,” the designer also managed to blur the lines between upscale and affordable of ‘ fast’ fashion. The hip, urban line featured lots of right on trend looks with military styles, tweeds, pea coats, matching plaid jackets and scarfs. Joe Mimran also offered an alternative to fur in his many choices of cute faux fur toppers, gloves,purses, stand alone collars, vests and even a bow tie. Plus size model Crystal Renn opened Joe’s show to audience delight.
Affordable, stylish clothes? Who knows, with Joe Fresh Style and Joe Mimran at the helm, we just might have our own homegrown Canadian H&M or Target in the making.
Lots of media types and celebs in the audience of the Pink Tartan and Joe Fresh Style fashion shows. We caught up backstage with the super sweet actress,Kelly Carlson formerly of Nip/Tuck. Now a brunette, the lady is very much still a stunner. She spends her time between Toronto (where she is dating former hockey heavyweight Tie Domi) and Los Angeles.
[images courtesy of Joe Fresh and photographer George Pimentel]
At this morning’s Holt Renfrew media event to celebrate Canadian Designers, le tout of Canadian fashion media was there. And no wonder, the event hosted by the two doyennes of Canadian Fashion, Holt Renfew’s own fashion diva Barbara Atkin and Jeanne Beker the long time host of Fashion Television, was a must attend. And of course Real Style Network was there. We loved both of the hostesses’ outfits by Canadian Designers. Barbara Atkin wore Jeremy Laing and Jeanne Beker was in Greta Constantine.
After an introduction by the two hostesses, the event was off to a 3 garment per designer mini fashion show from some of Canada’s most talented fashion designers. Denis Gagnon, Jeremy Laing, Mikhael Kale and the boys from Greta Constantine (Kirk Pickersgill and Stephen Wong). Lida Baday’s lovely and timeless pieces were also on the runway, even though the designer was not able to be there herself.
We saw lots of fringe from Denis Gagnon, fur and leather from Jeremy Laing, leather and innovative design from Mikhael Kale, gorgeous draping from Greta Constantine and structured elegance from Lida Baday. Colors stayed in the black, gray, brown palette.
At fashion events, the crowd is often as interesting as the fashions being showcased. The Holt Renfrew fashion media events always draw the most stylish industry crowd. We caught up with a few.Wendy Natale, fashion editor from Hello Canada, looked classic and modern in her Spring pastels. Nathalie Atkinson, style columnist and contributing fashion editor for the National Post, dressed top to bottom in Canadian fashion. On other fashion media lots of black booties, black clothing and leather made up the rest of the front row.
Jeanne Beker Nathalie Atkinson Wendy Natale
Le Toutes Fashionistas, will be rubbing shoulders all week for LG Fashion Week which is featuring fashions from emerging and established Canadian fashion designers all week. Real Style Network will be bringing you the highlights.
Watch part of the fashion show from Holt Renfrew media event here:
Dolce & Gabbana have been the talk of Milan Fashion Week which wrapped up yesterday.
Dolce & Gabbana’s Fall/Winter 2010 collection was the 50th fashion collection for the design pair. This is also their 25th year showing at Milan Fashion Week and the show celebrated this incredible feat.
The designers stayed true to their traditional looks of black, silk, and lace with a smattering of their signature leopard animal prints. The first part of the collection showed fitted jackets with sexy and very short lacy skirts. Followed with an homage to Chanel with Chanel style suits and continued the lady like fashion trend for fall echoed by other designers with demure fitted over the knee polka dot dresses.
Last season Canadian fashion designer Mark Fast made fashion headlines by using plus-size models in his revealing Spring/Summer 2010 runway show. Yesterday at London Fashion Week, the designer stayed true to his vision and used curvy models in his knitwear show again.
While other runways shows featured tradition size zero models, ABC News reports Mark Fast was adamant about making sure his clothes were modeled on real looking women. He has stood by his vision of celebrating all women through fashion regardless of size.
Mark Fast is getting good reviews for his ideas. The fashion critic from the Telegraph said, “I really enjoyed the show because I think Mark has really developed and evolved as a designer… He’s doing things that ordinary people could wear, as the size 16 models demonstrated.”
Mark Fast’s Fall/Winter 2010 collection is much less revealing than his previous show. This season he added more to his collection than just his trademark knitting. The Mark Fast Fall/Winter 2010 fashion show featured tight fitting and draped dresses with detailing at the neckline, light skirts and cropped capes. The colours spanned from neutrals of black and brown to vibrant jewel tones of red and orange.
Watch Mark Fast’s Fall/Winter 2010 show from London Fashion Week here:
Subscribe
Follow
While we are talking about swimwear, Real Style Network wanted to bring you the latest in fashion shows from Mercedes-Benz Miami Fashion Week Swim 2011. Miami Fashion Week brings together the hottest swimwear designers to show off next year’s collections and swimwear fashion trends. Swimwear designers including Beach Bunny, Ed Hardy, True Religion and Mara Hoffman all held fashion shows this week. Here are some of the trends we are seeing from the Miami Fashion Week swimwear fashion shows:
Giorgio Armani Prive
Givenchy
Chanel
Fashion can be a serious business. This week celebrities and fashion came together for a fun night to let their hair down and celebrate a traditional fashion statement: the kilt.
Lots of media types and celebs in the audience of the Pink Tartan and Joe Fresh Style fashion shows. We caught up backstage with the super sweet actress,Kelly Carlson formerly of Nip/Tuck. Now a brunette, the lady is very much still a stunner. She spends her time between Toronto (where she is dating former hockey heavyweight Tie Domi) and Los Angeles.
At this morning’s 
Dolce & Gabbana have been the talk of 
Last season Canadian fashion designer 
