With last season’s addition of the Arsenal, a contemporary art complex as the headquarters Of Montreal Fashion Week, things are starting to look and feel more international in our city’s fashion event scene. Produced by Groupe Sensation Mode, known for its prestigious annual events in collaboration with P&G Beauty & Grooming, the festivities were in full-swing in the industrial art space full of fashion-clad designers, models, style-savvy professionals, media patrons, bloggers and celebrities…. but we will get to that a little later.
The Arsenal was filled with elements to feast your eyes on in every corner, including a manicure station by Cover Girl, a fully stocked bar with a Heineken DJ booth smack dab in the middle of it, a few swings hanging off the ceiling that were constantly occupied for photo snaps, media walls and, of course, street style at every blink. From gothic to classic, Montreal brought out their most creative duds and studs to show off and strut around.
This season seems like it has been the busiest for us here at Notable, and although we wish we attended every show, we focused on the two that really caught our eye. Arriving a little early for the Martin Lim show, we saw that the Fresh Prince of Bel Air was in attendance (front row, of course) for his friend Ralph Leroy’s fashion show alongside Montreal Canadiens darling P.K. Subban and Jeanne Beker, the Fashion TV icon and one of our personal favourites. This show truly created the largest buzz at MFW.
Now on with our show. Besides winning prestigious national and international awards, the husband-wife duo of Danielle Martin and Pao Lim of Martin Lim clearly showed their professionalism and experience they garnered from their work alongside internationally renowned designers.
Their Fall 2013 collection was “modern dreamy,” as we’d like to call it. What occupied their runway? Floating dresses and tops, metallic fringes and sculptural tops. With neutrals and occasional pops of bright tones, the collection flowed seamlessly and made a statement. What we really appreciated was the wear ability of it all. Perhaps a lot of these pieces might be a little “out there” for the everyday dresser, but most of their creations can be worn and made your own if you appreciate fashion.
It is no wonder that Martin Lim is creating such a buzz not only in Montreal, but nationwide. This loving team is clearly heading in the right direction and with their consistency and eye for design, we expect bigger things coming really soon.
Our next stop the following evening was Rachel Sin. We really looked forward to seeing her collection because she designs for the modern young professional woman, the notable woman of today, a want-to-do-it-all lady whose wardrobe is an extension of her confidence, originality and personal style. Having amazing YP women not only featured on Notable but also working for it, we all wanted to take notes on how to refresh and revamp our wardrobe.
Seeing models coming out on the runway, Sin’s architectural background was very evident. Her designs were sculpted around the bodies of her muses with very strong and emphasizing structured lines showcased on beautiful blazers, pants and dresses.
The pieces were designed to transition from day to night, ideal for the working woman of today that might not have the convenience to run home and take hours to prep. These outfits required a special accessory, and your best heels to spice it up to run from your desk to a 5 a 7 downtown – love it!
What captured our eye was the jade green that was quite prominent in her collection. Usually not huge fans of green, we absolutely fell head over “sin” for this hue! Perhaps this is the next “it” colour of Fall 2013?
We really like how MFW is evolving and how it has continuously kept Montreal on the fashion map despite recent criticism that our city is failing miserably when it comes to the garment industry. A little notable news? For the first time, designers participating in MFW were be able to benefit from an international partnership with Russia Fashion Week, which provided visibility in a growing market with MFW content being broadcasted to influencers from the Russian fashion industry. So, thank you, Sensation Mode, for being a platform for Canadian designers to introduce their new collections and allowing us to witness the births of possible future super stars!
For more information on Montreal Fashion Week visit: www.montrealfashionweek.ca
