Posts Tagged ‘SS10’

We’re a little late on writing about FAT, but bear with us! It’s such a great event, it couldn’t go without mentioning.

Evan Biddell, Cherry Dewar and Avendano were but a few amazingly talented designers who showed at April’s Alternative Fashion Week. I’ve been attending this annual event for several years and must admit that the caliber of talent and the event itself keeps improving. I especially love the integration of performance art breaking up the many runway shows, keeping the audience captive with a taste of diversity and sometimes obscurity.

What’s truly unique about this week is the lack of pretentiousness that can often be felt during other fashion events… less discrimination and more of a shared appreciation for art and fashion in general. This event also offers designers the opportunity to showcase their collections to potential buyers as well as sell goods directly to the consumer – making this a much more financially viable endeavor for those participating.

Kudos to Vanja Vasik and her team for pulling together such a fantastic event… excited to see what 2011 will look like!

Not only are you reducing your fashion footprint with this all vegan and eco-conscious line, but you will look damn good too! Combining cutting edge design and social responsibility, this hugely successful fashion house began 15 years ago when co-owner Inder Bedi was challenged by a mahatma to go vegetarian for 30 days. It was during this period that Inder devised his business plan for an eco-vegan fashion house. This plan was originally written as a university project and in 1995 eventually became Matt & Nat.

Recently Matt & Nat launched their 21 water bottle initiative where all linings are made from recycled plastic water bottles. A message inside each bag or accessory will indicate how many bottles were used to create the lining of the product. Matt & Nat push the eco-commitment even further by creating some styles that incorporate plastic water bottles on the outer shell of the bags and wallets. In fact, up to 55% of the outer shell of certain designs is made using recycled plastic water bottles. Awesome!

Matt & Nat is now available at Shopgirls and online! Grab one of these amazing pieces before they’re scooped up!

Photos are worth a thousand words, and in this case, it is especially true!

Check out Véronique Milijkovitch’s new Spring 2010 collection, available in the shop in the next week or two.

A veteran designer from Quebec, Véronique’s design aesthetic uses bias cuts to draw out the natural beauty of the feminine form. Asymmetrical lines and richly layered silks inspire this bold yet whimsical collection.

I first came across Stacey Zhang while perusing Quebec’s Sensation Mode newsletter last fall. I fell in love with an adorable asymmetrical plaid cocktail dress featured on the centre of the page. All I could think was, “Please let this be a Canadian design because I want this designer in my shop!” My prayers were answered! Not only was this creation from a Montreal designer, but her entire collection had the same impact! I simply wanted one of each style in every colour! Needless to say, my wardrobe has grown steadily since Stacey became part of Shopgirls.

The “I cannot live without” saga continues with Stacey’s new 2010 Spring collection. As always, this Montreal designer never ceases to amaze and delight with her flirty, feminine yet original designs. Her ability to create interesting yet wearable pieces truly distinguishes Stacey’s collection. We are proud to be one of the few Toronto boutiques to feature her work. To my husband’s dismay, my closet will continue to grow as Stacey’s new spring pieces begin to arrive in-store in early March and miraculously end up in my wardrobe. (Looks like I’ll also need to stock up on hangers for my closet!)

OK, so we’re a little late in writing about this one. Better late than never and we couldn’t resist plugging our friend, even late in the game.

In our opinion, it is Toronto blogger Danielle Meder who’s mastered the art of the fashion tribute. Well-known as a talented fashion illustrator, Meder endeavored to create in miniature the SS10 collections of designers presented year fall at LG Fashion Week. Hence, the Paper Dolls.

Months of work resulted in “Paper Dolls: Toronto SS10 Collections”. While the SS10 collections are about to hit shops, Danielle has already moved on from those dolls and is planning on a new set based on FW10, though perhaps not endeavoring to adapt so many collection to the paper doll.

Shopgirls is so proud to sponsor Danielle’s blog, and we are absolutely enamored with the Paper Dolls! Keep an eye out for the FW Dolls, and some in-store items, perhaps… books? Limited edition prints? We’re working on it.

In the meantime, check out all the adapted SS10 collections on Danielle’s Flickr, and click here to download a mini-version of the book, here to contact Danielle to buy a PDF for cutting out and playing, or here for a copy of the book. According to Shopgirls, it’s already a collector’s item; for anyone interested in fashion, and especially Canadian designers, this is a beautiful tribute and a work of art. Kudos Danielle!