We’re gearing up for Toronto Fashion Week. Photo by: ImaxTree.

With the fashion weeks of New York, London, Milan and Paris behind us, all eyes are on Toronto as the city preps for its most exciting fashion event of the year. When it comes to World MasterCard Fashion Week (a.k.a Toronto Fashion Week), ELLE Canada has got you covered from designer names to show locations and times.

Beginning with The shOws—an ultra-fashionable presentation of Canadian designers—and ending with World MasterCard Fashion Week’s iconic Canadian runway shows, we have your official guide to all things Toronto fashion. And stay tuned for daily coverage from the shows, as our editors blog about their favourite shows, looks and behind-the-scenes scoop!

The shOws

What: The shOws is an event orchestrated to highlight Canadian designers, hair experts, makeup artists and models to showcase the talents of the Canadian fashion industry.

Who: Comrags, Jean Pierre Braganaza, Tanya Tayloer, Steven Tai, Jeremy Laing.

Where: Andrew Richard Designs, 571 Adelaide St. E., M5A 1N8

Can you go? This event is invite only. But don’t worry, there are still many shows you can attend during Toronto Fashion Week!

Wednesday, March 13

6 p.m. Comrags

7 p.m. Jean Pierre Braganza

Thursday, March 14

6 p.m. Tanya Taylor

7 p.m. Steven Tai

8 p.m. Jeremy Laing

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Model Dani takes the runway at Rachel Sin.

Here are some things I liked on Day 4 of Toronto Fashion Week

Coral draping at Rachel Sin. The designer showed a clean, ladylike collection featuring peplums, tailored blazers and leggings with lace inserts, but it was this LCD that really caught my eye.

 Click through for more of our favourite looks from Day 4 of Toronto Fashion Week

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The finale gown from Lucian Matis.

Here is my Instagram Diary from Day 3 of Toronto Fashion Week:

The finale gown at the Lucian Matis show was so cool—a massive, leather number with a deep v down the front and peplum detailing. I’m not sure how anyone would actually ever be able to wear it (could you sit down? Would it make you sweat?) but it was fun to look at nonetheless.

Click through for more of our favourite fashion week moments from Day 3…

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A look from the Ashtiani show at Toronto Fashion Week.

Here are some of my favourite things from Day 2 of Toronto Fashion Week:

1) The Ashtiani Spring/Summer 2013 collection was gorgeous—think clean lines, a feminine, ’60s inspired vibe, geometric shapes and pretty pastels.

Click through to the next page to see more of our favourite looks from Day 2 of Toronto Fashion Week…

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 Tara Gill in Tom Ford at the Holt Renfrew show.

Here are some of my favourite things from Day 1 of Fashion Week:

1) Gwyneth Paltrow’s Oscar dress by Tom Ford at the Holt Renfrew show. Do you think I could get away with wearing it as a wedding gown when I get married next June?

                        Click through for more of our favourite Toronto Fashion Week moments…

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Last-minute prep before the Laura Siegel show.

Laura Siegel and Label—two of Toronto’s most talked about Toronto lines—showed Tuesday night at The Burroughes building as part of The Collections. We were there to catch all the action!

Click through for our pics & commentary before, during and after the shows.

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Holt Renfrew’s Hot at Holts Mobile Tour at the Holts Hot in the City Street Party tonight. 

The hottest night out for fashion is coming to Canada for the first time tonight and the chicest retailers in the country are opening their doors to show it a good time. For your who, what and where to be seen at tonight’s inaugural soirée, we’ve mapped out your itinerary for hitting up the best events in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal.

Fashion’s Night Out in Toronto

6PM—HEAD START: Set the evening’s haute tone with cocktails and complimentary make-up applications from Maybelline and Redken at MasterCard’s Stylicity Lounge (Shops at Hazelton Lanes, 87 Avenue Road, Oval Square, Lower Level). If that didn’t entice you, how about the chance to win MasterCard gift card to keep this red-carpet treatment going?

7PM— SWEET RIDE: Catch a glimpse of the hottest wheels in town with a sneak peek of the Hot at Holts mobile tour at Holt Renfrew (50 Bloor Street West). A host of stylish events are taking place in-store (to also celebrate its 175th anniversary), while its distinct hot pink exterior screens a public film premiere outside at 8PM as part of luxe retailer’s Hot in the City street party. The store is open until 11PM and is offering giveaways, shopping treats and a taste of Holts 175 Diet Coke. With DJ Brendan Fallis spinning tracks outside all night, this may be your haute one-stop shop for the night, folks.

8PM— STYLISH GLIMPSE: If Fashion’s Night Out can only be a short pit stop for you, make your rounds at eLUXE (355 Adelaide Street West, Ground Level), which will debut the exclusive Smythe for eLUXE blazer tonight. The e-retailer also host a Rebekah Price trunk show, sweets from Megan Wappel designs and six giveaways. Get photo-ready, friends, on-site photogs from Photostar will be snapping stylish guests all night.

9PM—RED CARPET READY: Toast the city’s two fabulous launches tonight—FNO and TIFF—at INTERMIX (130 Bloor Street West) with champagne and sweets while hobnobbing around the shop as the DJ spins the latest tracks. ILIA Beauty will also be on-site to offer your celeb-worthy beauty fix. Your next move is finding an equally luxe after-party.

10PM— NIGHT CAPPER: The fashionable shops brought together for The Bazaar by RAC Boutique (The Burroughes Building, 6th Floor 639 Queen Street West) are not like the others. But that’s just what we expect in a fashionable night out with Chloe Comme Parris, Drake General Store, Magic Pony—among a slew of the city’s hottest shops coming together for the event. On-site eats include cupcakes by Short & Sweet Cupcakes and complimentary cocktails by Banff Ice Vodka. End your night on an haute note (literally) with a chance to win a pair of Porter Airlines tickets to any one of its sleek locales.

Click through for FNO details for Vancouver and Montreal!

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Dean and Dan Caten, designers of DSquared2. Image courtesy of DSquared2.

There are few things more exciting – or, ahem, Canadian – than gathering around a television to watch our national men’s hockey team earn the gold medal during the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. And it’s funny how these iconic moments of collectively rallying around hometown sporting heroes – not to mention the uniforms the athletes wore while underneath the international spotlight – tend to live on with us, almost more so than the final medal tally (almost). We’ve asked a few of our favourite Canadian designers – both expats and local – to share their favourite Olympic memories with us. Here are the moments that win gold in their minds and what they’re looking forward to most for the coming Summer Olympic games in London.

Dean and Dan Caten, designers of DSquared2

Gold medal fashion moment: “When we dressed the talents for the opening and closing ceremonies for Winter 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver. And then Whitney Houston’s performance of ‘One Moment in Time’ at the Summer 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul.”

Fave Olympic spectator sport: “Naturally, swimming and diving…for the hot hunks in trunks!”

Read on for more fashionable Olympic moments from some of your fave Canadian designers!

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MTV host Aliya-Jasmine Sovani and Hiba Allam going over designs for the MMVA dress. Photography by Ima Ortega.

When MTV host Aliya-Jasmine Sovani walks the red carpet at the MuchMusic Video Awards this Sunday night in a one-of a-kind sparkly purple number, she’ll be making dreams come true – those of the 14-year-old dressmaker who’s long aspired to be a designer to the stars.

In just seven days, Hiba Allam, the designer and grade eight-student diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia last July, brought to life one of the the many sketches she made during long and sometimes lonely hospital visits, along with the help of Ottawa-based designer Richard Robinson, to create Sovani’s red carpet look.

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Brother-sister duo Jordin and Tamara Mimran (of the Mimran family fashion dynasty) at a preppy-beach themed party.

With their summer collections in stores (and the Fall/Winter 2012-13 runway shows behind them), Canadian designers are taking some much-needed beach recovery time and bringing along their favourite summer reads and playlists to help then unwind. We caught up with a few of our favourite homegrown designers behind some of Canada’s hottest labels to find out what fashionable books and summer tunes—would you expect any less?— they’ll be relaxing with under the sun this season.

MOON, designers Tamara and Jordin Mimran
Based in: Toronto

Summer read: Tamara, The Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy by E L James
Beach playlist: Tamara and Jordin:
1. Dragonette, “Let it go.”
2. Ellie Goulding, “Lights.”
3. Calvin Harris, “Feel so Close.”
4. Young Galaxy, “We Have Everything.”
5. Vacationer, “Good As New.”
6. M83, “Mightlight City.”
7. Recloose, “Can it Be.”

Read on for more beach reads and summer tracks from Canadian designers…

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