Photography by Barbora Simek

Melissa Hwang

Wearing: Head piece from Paris, Danier gloves, vest from Hudson’s Bay furier, Marie St.Pierre sweater, vintage necklace, Jimmy Choo glasses, Dolce and Gabbana collared shirt, Topshop shoes, Ferragamo bag

Outfit Inspiration: “I really wanted to go black but be fashion forward at the same time. For me this was a more toned-down relaxed look that I tried to keep a little edgy with the details.”

Fashion philosophy: “Fashion is fun and it should be fun for all of us. I get outraged when I overhear people saying judgemental things about each other’s outfits.”

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So You Think You Can Dance judge/choreographer Stacey Tookey wearing Ines Di Santo.

Story by Caley Skinner.

The Heart Truth Fashion Show—which seeks to promote awareness of the dangers posed by heart disease and strokes—got off to a raucous start last night with a group of choir singers fronted by a brilliant belter,—all, of course, clad in fire hydrant red.

The runway models were Canadian media personalities and heart disease/stroke survivors, all of whom had MAJOR personality. These fierce women skipped and twirled down the runway to their own individual beats—how cool is that?!—wearing designs from top Canadian labels such as Pink Tartan, TOMÉ and Danny de la Venta. My favourite look was Janet Parr wearing an A-line David Dixon gown.

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Canadian models Meghan Collison, Chantal Stafford-Abbot and Heather Marks.

Joe Fresh is famous for bringing in amazing models for its Toronto Fashion Week runway shows. Last night, Canadian model stars Meghan Collison, Chantal Stafford-Abbott and Heather Marks (plus, Amanda Laine and Dauphine) took to the runway wearing short black wigs and Parisienne rocker chic ensembles.

ELLE Quebec’s Denis Desro and I went backstage after the show and snapped the above pic. You HAVE to click through to see my favourite photo from the night, plus some fun runway shots.

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Photography by Barbora Simek

Myles Sexton

Wearing: Vintage fur jacket, American Apparel sheer top, Human Nature skirt, Custom studded heels, M.Sexton ring, skeleton chain necklace and iPhone case

Outfit Inspiration: “I’ve been really into the show Spartacus, and so today the outfit was my interpretation of gladiators and what they would wear to fashion week. I wanted to do a gladiator slit on the side and add the fur for texture and warmth.”

Click through to see more details of this look!

If you’ve checked your Facebook feed this week, you’ve probably seen a certain photograph of two mannequins in the window of Swedish department store Åhléns. In my personal daily roundup of Facebook news it’s only second to St. Paddy’s-inspired temporary tattoos.

Image courtesy of becka.nu

Despite having been taken in 2010 by a Swedish blogger named Rebecka, this image only recently went viral. I’m not interested in the cyclical debate about what’s fat in the fashion industry – I think it’s obvious to all of us why these mannequins stand out. But I do think it’s important that people are bringing this up now – the idea that mannequins can be anything but a size 0 isn’t a new one, but it is a newly popular one. According to The Business of Fashion, when the image was posted on the Women’s Rights News’ Facebook page this year it got “more than 60,000 likes, 18,000 shares and 3,000 comments.”

As a web editorial intern at ELLE Canada, I’ve noticed a distinct tendency among Facebook commenters to broach the subject of weight, especially when it comes to models. Posts focused on runway fashion almost inevitably draw discussions about women needing to eat more hamburgers. It’s as if the ability of models to showcase clothing has turned on itself: the clothing seems only to draw attention to the body, i.e.: “What a gorgeous dress – too bad the model wearing it is so skeletal!”

From SkinnyGossip’s controversial Kate Upton takedown to the slew of “Real women have curves” memes, the Internet is brimming with anonymous commentary about the representation of “real” women in the fashion world. Cady Heron once said, “I thought there was just fat and skinny” – I used to think that, too. But the Internet has created a whole new playing field in which to qualify body image (just look at sites like mybodygallery.com). It’s no longer a question of fat vs. skinny but a question of real vs. fake. The demand for “real women in fashion” begs a complicated question: what qualifies a woman as real?

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The life of an ELLE Canada intern: Fashion sense

Pink Tartan Fall 2013: Our top 20 runway looks

Toronto Fashion Week Canadian designer spotlight: What’s your Fall 2013 fashion inspiration?

Orthorexia: How eating healthy can lead to an eating disorder

Body news: Give your body a spring cleaning

A look from Laura Seigel’s collection

If there’s an art to layering, then Laura Seigel is Picasso. (Her bohemian collections always make me want to run home and wear every single piece of my wardrobe simultaneously!) This season, the designer’s palette was mostly rust and olive, with cream accents, and featured hand-knit pieces as well as super slouchy harem pants. Our verdict? It’s a collection made for Jessa from Girls.

Click through to see more of our favourites from Day 2 of Toronto Fashion Week.

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Photography by Barbora Simek

Joelle Litt

Wearing: Vintage shoes, David Dixon pants, Line Knitwear jacket, & Wilfred tee

About the look: “I have three of these Line Knitwear jackets and only six were made, sometimes I like thinking about who has the other ones.”

Must see TFW show: “I am the biggest fan and ambassador for Line Knitwear so their show is my biggest must see.”

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We love this! Monica Smiley, the amazing Toronto illustrator who contributed her talents to our Spring 2013 trend report, created this adorable illustration of the city’s fashion editors—including the ELLE Canada team, associate editor Ally Dean, editor-in-chief Noreen Flanagan and executive editor Laura deCarufel—to celebrate the kick-off of Toronto Fashion Week.

Happy Fashion Week all!

Dauphine after the Pink Tartan Fall 2013 show.

The ELLE Canada team met Toronto model Dauphine two seasons ago at Toronto Fashion Week, and we’ve been obsessed ever since. Dauphine had a MAJOR Fall 2013 season, walking A-list runways including Calvin Klein and Chanel.  I caught up with her after the (gorgeous) Pink Tartan show, before she headed off to her Mackage fitting.

Congratulations on your amazing Fall 2013 season! 

“Thank you so much! It’s been a total whirlwind. I feel so incredibly lucky. It’s a dream come true.”

What was it like being backstage at Chanel? 

“I was so nervous at first—I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was actually quite relaxed. There was champagne, Karl Lagerfeld was there, walking around and talking to people. It was an amazing experience.”

Did you meet any models that you particularly admire?

“I love Karlie Kloss! She’s so cool, and she was so incredibly nice to me.”

MORE TORONTO FASHION WEEK STORIES

The ShOws Fall 2013: At Tanya Taylor

The ShOws Fall 2013: At Comrags and Jean-Pierre Braganza

Photography by Babora Simek

Tony Pham (left) and Jay Strut (right)

Tony is wearing: Thierry Mugler leather pants, Gareth Pugh shoes and rings, Alexander McQueen clutch and jacket

Jay Strut is wearing: Doc Martens, Balmain runway pants, Monkey Fur coat, Alexander Wang sweater

About Tony’s outfit: “When I saw each of these pieces I had to have them.”

About Jay Strut’s outfit: “I love taking these luxurious runway pants and wearing them so casually

Tony and Jay’s TFW must-see shows: “Pavoni, Chloe Comme Paris, UNTTLD and Sid Neigum.”

Click through to see detailed shots of Jay Strut’s and Tony’s amazing outfits …
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