Bringing the runway to life this season, over 50 designers featured their latest collections for another fashionable showing at World MasterCard Toronto Fashion Week. Showcasing their creations in a series of events over the course of 5 days, established Canadian designers shared the stage with up-and-coming design talent. Budding designers and start-up brands had the opportunity to share the spotlight through competitions and bursaries such as RED – a showcase for emerging designers.
One of our favourite new designers we are watching is Hayley Elsaesser, whose collection always bring bold, bright and unique prints to the catwalk. In proving leather doesn’t just belong in the colder seasons, we loved the latest collection from Mackage. And always one of our favourite shows, the Pink Tartan collection mixed feminine styling while highlighting leather skirts and some menswear inspired pieces.
Mercedes-Benz Canada continues to show support to the Canadian fashion industry through the Mercedes-Benz Start Up program. This year’s Awarded Designer will receive mentorship from a panel of experts, editorial coverage across leading domestic and international publications, including editorial support from FASHION Magazine, and a fully produced solo runway show at the WMCFW Fall Collections event in March 2016. The Awarded Designer will also receive a $30,000 bursary.
OUR TOP MOMENTS
For its second season, Disney Consumer Products Canada partnered with WMCFW as a sponsor of the Mercedes-Benz Start Up (MBSU) program. Disney hosted a contest for the six MBSU finalists to design and produce one look inspired by the Star Wars™ film series. We attended the event, took a selfie with a Stormtrooper, you can see the winning design here.
Another highlight to this season’s fashion week: we were invited to have lunch on the runway! San Pellegrino, an official sponsor of Toronto fashion week, partnered with Vogue Italia for a limited edition bottle. You can see the photos from inside the private dining experience here.
Outside the runway and studio space, the waiting area had some new things to keep guests entertained.
The Toronto Eaton Centre and Sherway Gardens, both WMCFW’s official shopping destinations, unveiled the CF 360 Fashion Cam. The unique multi-camera photo booth, gave attendees the opportunity to have a photo taken from all angles.
To celebrate the launch of Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book, Microsoft Surface hosted series of tutorials and classes where you could design your own take-home accessory and take a creative class on fashion , art and technology. You can follow along with the hashtag #DoGreatThings on social media.
THE TRENDS
Here is our list of 9 trends we saw during World MasterCard Toronto Fashion Week. One thing not on the list would be sighting of bare shoulders everywhere. While there was still a number of long sleeved designs, bare shoulders dominated the runway this season. Jackets and coats were seen in a many of the Spring/Summer 2016 collection, proving light weight layering can transform your sunny-season wardrobes. Below our top 9 trends:
1. Garden Party
2. Bold Prints
Click next to see more trends from Toronto Fashion Week.
Runway photos by George Pimentel/World MasterCard Toronto Fashion Week
