For our readers who missed them, the most popular stories from The Goods this week:
• Sarah Jessica Parker makes a cameo at The Bay
• Nada’s 3-D fashion show premieres at Scotiabank Theatre
• Just Opened: Evan Biddell’s Oz Studio Boutique
Up-to-the-minute coverage of store openings and fashion gossip. Plus, daily finds for deal seekers
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Shop Talk
Highlights and lowlights from the Vancouver 2010 auction
Team Canada's winning puck
Two weeks have passed since the closing ceremonies, but the country’s wallets still believe in Team Canada. Ebay has been auctioning off memorabilia from this year’s Games for a while, but no item has drawn more attention than the puck used during the overtime period of the men’s gold medal hockey game. With seven days left, the slightly scuffed puck has already surpassed the $8,100 mark, with 52 bids. To compare, a puck from the women’s bronze medal game is going for $31.
But the gold medal puck isn’t getting the highest bidders. The most sought after item appears to be the Team Canada jersey worn by Sidney Crosby when he faced team Switzerland. With 47 bids, it’s currently going for $10,000.
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Rogue Fashion Week
Nada’s 3-D fashion show premieres at Scotiabank Theatre
An image from Nada's fall look book
This season, Nada Shepherd, eponymous designer of the Toronto-based womenswear line Nada, skipped the fashion week brouhaha and instead presented a seven-minute 3-D fashion film. Shown to a packed house at the Scotiabank Theatre, the show could be described as Kill Bill meets Street Fighter in a post-apocalyptic world. With 3-D glasses (in black plastic Wayfarer style, natch), viewers watched a “Fembot” choose an outfit, background setting and weapon (claws, katanas or lead pipes), and face off against another female antagonist. The production values are of the kind typically reserved for Hollywood blockbusters—wire work, wind machines and green screens—though Shepherd did quell rumours that the film cost $2 million: “It was less than that.”
While a bit gimmicky, the 3-D film was cool and a refreshing way to see clothes, but the film gives an entirely too brief glimpse of the pieces. This season, Nada used such interesting materials as metallic python, a snake-patterned chiffon and reptilian print–embossed leather, so it would have been nice to get a closer look at the handiwork.
For viewers who saved their 3-D glasses from Avatar; the movie is available on-line at nada3d.com.
Shop Talk
Just Opened: Evan Biddell’s Oz Studio Boutique
The interior of Oz retains a raw edge (Image: Glynnis Mapp)
From the outside, Oz looks like another one of Ossington’s trendy watering holes, but inside it’s clear that’s not the case. Instead, this new showroom-meets-art space will be home to live model photo shoots, new media installations, art shows and jam sessions.
“I wanted something different from just a flagship store. I wasn’t done being an artist,” says Evan Biddell, part owner and curator of the space, which opened on Tuesday. After being crowned the winner of Project Runway Canada’s first season, the Toronto-based designer has been prodded by fans for a store where they could find his clothes.
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Telling Tales
Sarah Jessica Parker makes a cameo at The Bay
A dress from the Halston Heritage line
In the competition for celeb endorsements, The Bay scored a serious victory against Holts last night when Sarah Jessica Parker—gracious, gorgeous and, yes, incredibly tiny—glided into the Yonge and Queen store in her four-inch Ferragamo heels.
She was there as the newly minted chief creative officer of Halston, the American design house that made its name in the gaudy glam ’70s. The usual mass of Toronto fashion media and socialites (and a surprising appearance by Laureen Harper) huddled around her as she smiled warmly. With all the hubbub, it’s hard to say how long she stayed, but by our estimate, it was about 20 minutes, just long enough to pose for pictures in her minuscule purple tube dress (Halston, of course) and leave an overall impression of effortless effervescence.
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Trend Alert
Spring trends: anything goes—no, really
Fashion tends to move at breakneck speed. Sometimes it’s hard to keep up with the latest trends, which is why shoppers often turn to the media for guidance, but sometimes we can be guilty of further confusing things. To wit, this spring trends guide from the New York Times.
Suzy Menkes details what’s hot, like this season’s silhouette, which should be linear and slim or oval and hourglass. Skirts should be long and slim or short and A-line, but women can also go with a blanket wrap or a full 1950s-style number. Colours, she says, are also in, especially camel, toffee, gray, pine green, purple, orange and black. Knitwear looks good plain and minimalist or oversized and fluffy. In hosiery, go for patterns or shiny leggings or thick and matte stockings.
Well, it’s good to know that virtually every shape, length and colour is in style now. So now when we parade around in our purple hourglass coat with the short orange A-line skirt and fluffy, oversized pine green sweater, we can tell people, “No, we’re not crazy. This is in fashion. Don’t you read the Times?”
Good Stuff Cheap
Sales roundup: Monique Lhuillier trunk show, 50 per cent off Virginia Johnson, IKEA Kitchen Event
FASHION
BANANA REPUBLIC, GAP, OLD NAVY
It’s friends and family time at these three stores. Print out this coupon and receive 30 per cent off in-store. March 18 to 21.
GOTSTYLE
The menswear store is offering 20 per cent off already reduced items. Look for 50 to 70 per cent off outerwear from Spiewak, Sand and Drykorn, and shirts from Maison St. Pierre and Full Circle. 489 King St. W., 416-260-9696, gsmen.com.
HATLEY
No one does cuter Canadiana-themed kidswear than Hatley, and right now a selection of children’s clothes and accessories (rainboots, umbrellas) is 50 per cent off. 2648 Yonge St., 416-486-4141, hatleystore.com.
LINEA INTIMA Read the rest of this entry »
The Bayview Village location of this lingerie boutique is under renovation and closed until March 27. In the meantime, save 10 per cent off all purchases at the other store locations. Until March 31. 1925 Avenue Rd., 416-780-1726, lineaintima.com.
Gossipmonger
Miss J. finds Toronto’s next top runway model
Ciara Hunt's winning walk (Image: Karon Liu)
“Would our first model please come out?” cooed Miss J., the statuesque America’s Next Top Model runway coach, in the Bloor Street Holt Renfrew this weekend for a “celebrity walk-off” slash promotion for his new book, Follow the Model.
Breakfast Television’s Dina Pugliese was first up. “Girl, I think if the shoe fits, wear it,” critiques Miss J. “If the shoe is a little too small, sweetie, you have to make it work.” Pugliese took off her stilettos for her second attempt. “I’ll have to take off a point ’cause she took off her shoe,” he told the panel of judges: gossip king Shinan Govani, MTV sweetheart Jessi Cruickshank and Canada’s answer to Tim Gunn, model agent Elmer Olsen.
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Rogue Fashion Week
Nada Shepherd to present Canada’s first 3-D fashion show
From Nada's spring 2010 show (Image: Jenna Marie Wakani)
Like several other designers, Nada Shepherd is skipping Toronto’s official fashion week in order to do something more creative. This Wednesday, Shepherd will present her fall-winter collection with a 3-D film at the Scotiabank Theatre.
“I’m making a statement here. So much of fashion has become about celebrity, about being in the front row and getting there first,” she says. “We’ve lost the meaning behind shows, and we’re ignoring the clothing.” While this might be the case in New York, Toronto’s fashion week is hardly overrun with A-listers. Blame it on Avatar, then. Shepherd pitched the concept, a Canadian first—though Burberry did the same in London, streaming the video on-line—to the FDCC, which was excited about the idea but then decided to take her show out of the regular fashion week lineup. She didn’t want to have attendees crowding to see it.
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Required Reading
On The Goods this week: fashion week venue drama, Philip Sparks’ show, Pistachio closing at Yorkdale, Type Books moving
For our readers who missed them, the most popular stories from The Goods this week:
• Toronto fashion week gets a new venue (for the second time in a month)
• Philip Sparks show begins rogue fashion week
• Jeanne Beker wears Hudson’s Bay coat to Paris fashion week
• Roots’ unintentionally un-PC sale
• Coco Rocha appears in “diverse” Louis Vuitton show
• Tavi Gevinson’s gig on Fashion Television: less chat, more hat
• Heather Reisman not invincible: Pistachio’s Yorkdale mall location to close
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