Holt Renfrew makes a splash with all-Canadian lineup on opening night of Toronto Fashion Week

Holt Renfrew makes a splash with all-Canadian lineup on opening night of Toronto Fashion Week

Holt Renfrew presents Canadian fashion (Image: Jenna Marie Wakani)

Holt Renfrew’s opening night show is one of the more anticipated events of the season, because many Canadian designers are represented (not all good—we’re looking at you, Twenty Cluny), and it’s Holt’s, so they’ve got the money to make a spectacle. After opening their projection with the theme song to Hinterland’s Who’s Who (’twas a brief snippet, but awesome nonetheless), guests like Alexandra Weston, Zoomer’s Moses Znaimer and Suzanne Boyd, society Barbie Sylvia Mantella and dynamic duo Kimberley Newport-Mimran and Joe Freezy enjoyed a presentation by a fantastic tap dancer whose legs moved faster than any model’s will this week. After the dancer sauntered off, the show began, complete with swirling intro text graphics to introduce designers Smythe, Judith and Charles, Lida Baday, Mackage, Dennis Merotto, Line, Twenty Cluny and Jeremy Laing. Check out our review after the jump.

Check out Holt Renfrew’s entire fall/winter 2012 showcase »

Kate Middleton wore Smythe in 2011, and royalists far and wide have likely sought out the brand since. Our observation: its fall lineup offered some pieces that will continue to fuel the brand’s popularity, like an apple-green houndstooth jacket, a tuxedo jacket with tails and a double-breasted wool trench that would flatter Pippa Middleton’s legendary buttocks (just saying). Judith and Charles sent down a very striking, scarlet femme fatale dress that fit the model’s curves and accentuated her breasts—it was very sexy. Then there was Lida Baday, who sent an elegant arrangement of sophisticate mom wear down the runway, including a dual-zip jersey jacket with a jersey skirt, a pre-wrinkled plaid Sunday dress, and, our favourite, a monochromatic purple wool dress. We really dug the details on Dennis Merotto’s pieces, including the distressed placket on a slouchy sheer crimson blouse, speckled bleach stains on black pants, two-tone cigarette pants and a flounce on the front of a dress—every look had some detail, whether subtle or overt, that made us look twice. Line showed what they show best: a collection of slouchy knits, our favourite being a colourful boxy jacket with long sleeves, while Twenty Cluny continued showing unflattering sequin mini-dresses, with one iteration bunching at the breasts in a way that wouldn’t suit any woman, no matter how thin (the model was thin, obviously). And you know how we feel about Jeremy Laing—he stole the show with his bleached velvet car coat, and we were itching to see his entire collection all over again. Leave it to Holt’s to kick off the season with a banging display of Canadian fashion.