Kimberley Jev, Director of Calgary Fashion Media and leading fashion website CalgaryFashion.ca announce the launch of the Calgary Fashion Industry Awards. We kick off the first installment of the Calgary Fashion Industry Awards for 2011 with the Calgary Fashion Industry (Honorary) Awards.

As ambassadors of the industry, Calgary Fashion would like to honor and reward Calgary’s foundation of fashion professionals who have stood through the test of time with hard work and a steady dedication to their craft. We will also be hosting a unique online event that spans over the remaining days of December where our readers will get the chance to vote and reward Calgary’s up and coming members of the fashion industry today.

Up close and personal with a steady hand in the scene, Calgary Fashion has interacted for 4 solid years with the industries top boutiques, designers, bloggers, journalists and stylists as well as covered some of the hottest fashion events to date in the city. The Calgary Fashion Industry Awards  aims to celebrate the cities finest.

“Calgary is on the verge of exploding as a top city in Canada,” says Jev,  ”if we do not recognize the individuals who have put in the leg work for the up and coming, it will always seem as though we have had no real fashion in the city. The first installment of the awards, the Calgary Fashion Industry “Honorary” Awards is about recognizing the people who have maintained fashion careers in the city, honed their craft in the city and worked diligently and professionally with others locally and internationally. It’s time for us to celebrate the professionals who have given us a reason to exist as a fashion publication in Calgary.”

CALGARY FASHION INDUSTRY (HONORARY) AWARDS 2011 

HONORARY 
FASHION BLOGGER 

 KD Faustino (The Girl With The Messy Hair)

HONORARY
FASHION JOURNALIST 

 Malwina Gudowska

Stay tuned as we get ready to release the Calgary Fashion Industry (Readers Choice) Awards; where our readers vote for the best of Calgary Fashion for  2011!

- Award Illustration by Garrett Naccarato 

Paul Spenard, Linda Sui Lem, Ivanka Tanafranca, Miranda Botto & myself. 

On August 26 – after what seemed like a fairly long summer hiatus for the Calgary Fashion team – it was with great pleasure to be among the fashion crowd once again at PARK‘s PARKLUXE – a fundraising initiative featuring local fashion designers.

The fashion event was everything anyone could ask for: the venue of choice – Winter Garden at Jamieson Place – was a ravishingly beautiful open space perfect for a runway show, the fashion show which featured Anne B. Accessories, Lara Presber, Bridget Bergman and Caitlin Power was to die for, and the overall ambiance felt just right – thanks to Kara Chomistek’s great professional and organized PARK team.

PARKLUXE’s official promo shoot. Photography by Jason Eng

Fashion bloggers KD Faustino (The Girl with the Messy Hair), Ashley Pettigrew (Lions Lace Lattes), Miranda Botto & Corinne McKetiak (Twenty Something Online), Vincent Law (Binzento Vincente), Rupi Sood (The Diva Lounge) & creative director at Bano & eeMee, Aleem Arif, – among many more – were spotted in VIP seats thoroughly enjoying the runway show and made for a fun group of people to mingle at Jamieson Place and  at the official closing reception at Ki Modern Japanese + Bar.  It was also nice seeing familiar faces: shout out to D.W designer Daryl White, Jacqueline Tyler & Domingo Lumanog of Eveline Charles Academy and Ania B‘s Ania Boniecka (technically, Ania and I have never formally met, but she’s just everywhere and is hard to miss!). 

Corinne McKetiak, Karolina Ciupinska, Ashley Pettigrew, KD Faustino & Miranda Botto

Ania Boniecka & Vincent Law

PARKLUXE  introduced me to new faces and, surprisingly, old ones too. The most interesting encounter was running into a former junior high classmate of mine who is a recent new hire at Live Cosmo (shout out to Live Cosmo!). 

For someone like me who tends to be on the timid side, PARKLUXE was a great success, not only in terms of its great fashion show, but also in terms of finally feeling a little bit more at ease within the Calgary fashion scene. 

Stay tuned for individual PARKLUXE designer reviews to come within the week! In the meantime, check out our photo gallery on our  Facebook page!

PARK  is a non-profit organization that stands for “Promoting Artists, Redefining Kulture”. It is an organized group of young Calgarian artists who promote and support emerging artists in the city. Check out ourparkonline.com for upcoming events. 

Words by Claire Miglionico

Photography by Claire Miglionico & Linda Sui Lem 

Main photo courtesy of Miranda Botto

Ladies & Gents!

Summer is swiftly approaching and what better than celebrate its arrival with jolly good times?

The coming up weeks are jam-packed with all sorts of events that will tickle your fancy – and in some cases – your wallets, as certain events will be free of charge! Now, how about that?

See you all around!

June 17-19

• The one, the only William Shatner – best known as Captain James T. Kirk from the original Star Trek series – will be in town for the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo as the Expo’s Sci-Fi guest of honor!

• Espy – our favourite Inglewood clothing boutique – is having a “bye-bye black sale” this weekend only. Anything black in the store will be 25 % off.

Saturday June 18

• There will be a Designer Sample Sale at the Gerry Thomas Gallery,  11-5. Score pretty new things from designers Paul Hardy, Caitlin Power, Jalu Clothing, Anne B. Accessories and Lara Presber.

• Can’t afford designer? Cat’s Eye Vintage is having a clearance sale 1o to 6. Retro, vintage, jeans from Rock and Republic and 7 For All Mankind will  be up for grabs. Great stampede wear can be found at this sale too. Do not miss out!

• CJSW Summer Concert Series #2 is bringing us some rockin’ tunes at the Olympic Plaza 7 to 10 and it is completely free. Check out the cool line up here and come down for a bit or stay awhile.

• The Gallery on First Street is launching TOTO RICO – a new line of casual cool summer tanks by Teddy Celebration. Join in the festivities 8 to midnight and tag along to SPACE BABES as kind of a post-launch celebration.

• Soma Advanced Skin & Body Therapy is opening up downtown and you are all invited to its opening soiree 7 to 10! Free massages and skin advice from experts plus up to $1,000 in product giveaways. Enter to win a Soma gift basket here.

Sunday June 19

• Father’s Day: Yes, celebrating Father’s Day is on our list! Add it to yours! Check out Fashion Dad for inspiration.

June 22-25

• Sled Island is next week already! There’s a great line-up of independent artists this year (as per usual),  and collabs with Market Collective and ACAD are keeping things fresh & awesome.

Saturday June 25

• MaNoKin Design presents Cirque du Manique at Social Bar & Grille. Fashion creator, Marsina King, will present her fall collection in a circus-like fashion show. A portion of ticket sales will benefit the Red Cross in their Japanese Tsunami relief efforts. Check out Calgary Fashion’s Behind the Seams with King.

Words by Claire Miglionico

Photo Courtesy of Creative Commons, The Gallery, and Songkick.com

• AZUL COUTURE (914 – 15th Avenue S.W.)
  The Last Big Sale Of The Season
  Take advantage and stock up now on Spring/Summer styles that you can still wear for the next 3 months. The Azul Couture sale has been extended until Saturday, June 11.

• SWAP TILL YOU DROP @ TAKE OFF YOUR CLOTHES – CALGARY’S BIGGEST CLOTHING SWAP

• PARK DESIGNER SAMPLE SALE (THOMAS GERRY GALLERY - 602 11 Ave SW)
  Receive discounts on sample clothing from  designers Paul Hardy, Caitlin Power, JALU Clothing, Anne B Accessories and Lara Presber.

• MaNoKin Design is throwing a big fashion showdown – circus-style, fortune teller and all – to present their new fall 2011 collection on June 25, 2011. A portion of ticket sales will benefit the Red Cross in their Japanese tsunami relief efforts. Get your tickets while they last!

• Alberta Fashion Week is next weekend already (May 19-21)! Local stores Mealan, Apt.22, Bellissima among other local designers like NRT Fashions will be showcasing their collections! Purchase your tickets online here.

• Meet Lara Presber, architect turned fashion designer who draws design inspirations from her former career. Be sure to drop by her shop located in Fashion Central.

• Who wouldn’t want to graduate from Parson’s – famed design school in New York City? Take a look inside Parson’s year end show 2011. Who will we see rise as the next big fashion guru?

• Mr. Karl Lagerfeld just recently presented his resort collection “Chanel Cruise 2012” on the French Riviera in perfect timing with the opening of the Cannes Film Festival. Read in full detail here

Words by Claire Miglionico

Images courtesy of Death By Shoe, Solo Lisa, KissKiss & ModeAvenueParis.

Star blogger and style vixen Kim Flanagan is on a mission.

The mission? “Giving women permission to rock it, no matter what age, no matter the body!”

Kim Flangan is a super hero stylist who donns her cape braving the harshest of insecurities, pushing the message of self love through style and proper attention to fits, body type and more.

Passionate and highly enthusiastic Flangan is 100% honest and her strong sense of self and confident expression has led to several contributions of various blogs as well as magazines locally and nationally.

This style maven also works as a freelance stylist and has worked for the likes of Joe Fresh and Holt Renfrew.

This Fall, Flanagan is inviting ladies of all ages to indulge in the latest Fall fashions through her personalized lookbook.

Featuring various styles and outfits from boutiques such as Zsa Zsa Hats, Azul Couture, Shoe Craze, Mealan, Lara Presber and more, the lookbook is a sweet and concise introduction to Fall.

LINKS

Kim Flanagan FALL 2010 Look Book

Kim Flanagan Official Website

Thursday, October 29th was the intimate launch of the Lara Presber Spring 2010 collection at 100 Wines by David Walker.

Designer and architect, Lara Presber, showed a Spring 2010 collection that dazzled with flattery of the female form, functionality and detail oriented design.”I think that each collection evolves,” said Presber. ”Each season I focus on a building of interest , this one is fantastic because it is the Aqua sky scraper in Chicago. Not only is it cool but I can tell you her story through the clothing…she is a really inspiring woman,” said Presber.

Jeanne Gang is the principle and founder of Studio Gang Architects, the innovative mind behind the Aqua skyscraper. The building is currently the largest project to be awarded to an American firm led by a woman.

“Aqua is beautiful, it is a really slender glass tower that has all these concrete waves that are perpendicular to the glass. Which, creates waves and ruffles so I really wanted to play with the two ideas. Concrete is so matte and glass is so shiny and one is curvy and soft as well as feminine than the other,” said Presber.

The collection captivated, from the movement of the fabric to the tier cut dresses. Models moved with a steady flow, it was reminiscent of a resort collection but functional. The comfort oozing from the models and the flow of material was enough to make anyone dream of beaches and sunsets.

The square cut button pant, which allowed for change from a pump to a flat was definitely an eye pleaser. Button details between dresses and blouses would allow for more flow from outfits, allowing for an instant day to evening look. Presber’s design will be available at the new Lara Presber store set to open at Fashion Central December 1st, 2009.

For more information on Lara Presber please visit:

Lara Presber

Models + Hair + Make – Up : Artists Within

For more on 100 Wines by David Walker please visit:

100 Wines by David Walker

For more on Fashion Central please visit:

Fashion Central

Words by Kimberley Jev

Photos by Faby Martin © 2009