During Toronto Fashion Week, we brought you along for the ride, stopping in at model go-sees, backstage for the frenetic runway prep with makeup artists and hair stylists, and finally to the front row of the hottest fashion shows in the city. Now we’ve rounded up the top fashion weeks across Canada to share the top homegrown fashion designers and trends from the east and west coasts (and everything in between).


Atlantic Fashion Week
The locale
: Casino Nova Scotia, Halifax

The date: June 4 to 10, 2012

Select hometown designers: Lisa Drader-Murphy of Turbine, Pamela McInnis of Cranky, and fashion designers Veronica MacIsaac, Jade Nohels, Sarah Sowerby—to name a few noted Halifax labels. “We have quite a few applications that we are still going through, as there are many new faces that have applied,” says Angela Campagnoni, director of Atlantic Fashion Week, who founded the annual Halifax-based event in 2008.

Runway beauty: Hair will be styled by artists from AFW’s sponsor, Redken, and models are supplied by City Models, the week’s producer.

Style highlight: “A new event that has been added is that each designer will be creating a ready-to-wear red piece that will be auctioned off at the end of the gala night with 100 per cent of the proceeds

Image from Marie Saint Pierre Fall/Winter 2012 runway courtesy of Jimmy Hamelin.

going to the Heart and Stroke Foundation in Halifax,” says Campagnoni.

Montreal Fashion Week
The locale:
Bonsecours Market

The date: Feb. 6 to 9, 2012

Select hometown designers: Antoine Nasri’s Ça Va de Soi label (think wooly, colour-blocked designs), Duy Nguyen’s ‘50s street culture-inspired line DUY, and UNTITLD, a collab of Montreal fashion designers José Manuel St-Jacques and Simon Bélanger.

Runway beauty: Denis Binet, chief hair stylist for MFW and Pantene/Clairol Quebec consultant, created fringed, black ribbon bangs for the Tavan & Mitto runway show. Immaculate, Photoshopped skin was painted on models for
Marie Saint Pierre’s runway by Cover Girl makeup pro Amelie Ducharme.

Style highlights: Abol’s eco-friendly, handcrafted couture, which fashioned raw organic wool, recycled silk and low-impact dyes into regal, surrealist wedding gowns and dream-like corsets; a cut-up leather jacket by Marie Saint Pierre (made of boiled wool and organza and draped with black feathers) over a collared, lemon yellow dress.


Click here for the Joe Fresh Fall/Winter 2012 collection from Toronto Fashion Week.

For a roundup of fashion designers in central Canada, read on…
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Ottawa Fashion Week
The locale:
The Westin Hotel

The date: Feb. 17 to 19, 2012

Select hometown designers: Isobel Walker and Eiryn Jakob, Canadian duo behind eclectic jewelry label Frash, Jana Hanzel and Emilia Torabi of Ottawa-based Jana & Emilia Fashion Design Studio and DeMoyo by Zimbabwe-born designer Paidemoyo Chideya.

Runway beauty: Sylvie Prud’Homme, lead hair and makeup expert, reimagined Tim Burton’s whimsical playground with
Alice in Wonderland-inspired bouffants for the Sukhoo Sukhoo show. Shawn Hlowatzki, lead makeup artist of Smashbox Cosmetics, masked models in layers of black and white paint for Y!DNA’s runway presentation.

Style highlights: The bright sequins, feather accents and electric pinks and tangerines that defined Ottawa couturier Frank Sukhoo’s label, Sukhoo Sukhoo; Ottawa-based designer Su-Hui Chu’s label, Ella Peru, paid tribute to her Toronto roots with a Fall/Winter 2012 collection entitled “Euclid and Ulster” with 1920s-inspired fur caps and high-waisted shorts in honour of the now-fabled Victorian neighbourhood.

Toronto Fashion Week
The locale
: The Tents, David Pecaut Square

Select hometown designers: TFW runway staple Lucian Matis, headed by the Romanian-born, Toronto-based designer.

Images by Jenna Marie Wakani, jennawakani.com.

Homeboy-done-good Joseph Mimran for his trademark-tangerine label, Joe Fresh.

Runway beauty: Headed up by Grace Lee, Maybelline New York Canada’s lead makeup artist, the TFW backstage team popularized the beauty role reversal—painted-on black pout and muted-out brows— for several runway shows, including Caitlin Power, Pink Tartan and Martin Lim. The return of the
ponytail at Saniya Khan and Joe Fresh: Curled tendrils loosely pulled back for an understated look, led by Jorge Joao, Redken 5th Avenue hair artist and TFW lead stylist.

Style highlights: 1960s-inspired, crimson fur outerwear at Pink Tartan; gilded peplum skirts and matching black and gold blazers at Joeffer Caoc; flowing, feminine prints for sister act
Chloé comme Parris.


Read on as we catch up with the latest fashion trends from the west coast…

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nullWestern Canada Fashion Week
The locale:
TransAlta Arts Barns, Edmonton

The date: March 29 to April 5, 2012

Select hometown designers: “We have quite a few new designers showing this season from Edmonton,” says Sandra Sing Fernandes, WCFW executive and creative director. Local couturiers of note? Ravi Gill of edgy label, Draild; Derek Jagodzinsky (of Luxx) and Malorie Urbanovitch: “both young, solid designers that we have big hopes for,” says Fernandes.

Runway beauty: Local makeup artists and hair stylists along with photographers, fashion stylists and models from the surrounding area collaborate with emerging and established designers to create the looks for the weeklong roster of runway shows.

Style highlights: A New York invasion: designers Angelique Chmielewski and
Phillip Lim (presented by Coup Garment Boutique) will be showcasing their fall designs during WCFW, now in its seventh year.

Vancouver Fashion Week
The locale:
Chinese Cultural Centre

The date: March 20 to 25, 2012

Select hometown designers: A mix of local and international designers took to the catwalk for
Vancouver Fashion Week’s 10th anniversary, including Canadian designer Shelley Klassen, whose flagship store, Blushing Boutique, is based in Vancouver;


Image from Teresa Rosati Fall/Winter 2012 runway courtesy of Vancouver Fashion Week.

Project Runway Canada alum Sunny Fong showcased his Vawk and Vawkkin lines; and from across the pond, London-based label, Xsenia & Olya.

Runway beauty: Blacked-out smoky eyes by Sandra Chung for Mexican label RG Sanchez; “sci-fi samurai” high-top buns styled by Redken artist Jorge Joao.

Style highlights: Electric-patterned jackets and sweeping ethereal knit dresses by Xsenia & Olya; a black and white Marilyn Monroe-printed gown—complete with a fuchsia sash— by Polish designer Teresa Rosati.

Read more:
Spring 2012 fashion trends: Peplum
Experience Toronto Fashion Week like an ELLE editor: Where to dine
Toronto Fashion Week: Adrian Wu, Fall/Winter 2012
Toronto Fashion Week: Lucian Matis, Fall/Winter 2012