Pat-McDonagh-runway

A fall 2012 look from Pat McDonagh. Image courtesy of patmcdonagh.com.

Fashion star Pat McDonagh passed away on Saturday at the age of 80. The designer—who started her fashion career as a model in her native Manchester—moved to Canada in the mid-1960s and soon opened a destination shop in downtown Toronto. McDonagh’s clothes were distinguished by their superlative cut and playful glamour. She dressed everyone from Twiggy to Diana Rigg to former Governor General Michaëlle Jean, who wore a military-inspired Pat McDonagh coat to welcome Barack Obama to Canada in 2009. McDonagh was committed to helping grow Canadian fashion: In 1999, she co-founded the Fashion Design Council of Canada (FDCC), which went on to create seasonal fashion weeks in Toronto. The Canadian fashion world will miss McDonagh. Our thoughts are with her family.
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