Ottawa Fashion Week: World Class Event

Strike a pose!

There were so many eye popping outfits and generally impressive lines that it is a little difficult to wrap my head around everything I witnessed in those two evenings of runway shows.


Last Friday (Oct. 29, 2010) my main preoccupation was to soak up the environment, people watch (& photog watching too!) and evaluate how the caliber of the event. Not that I'm any kind of expert in Fashion or runway shows, for that matter... this was my first live fashion week of any kind! 


Based on the amateur shows I've seen and on the many Fashion Weekly re-runs and Victoria Secret Christmas shows the tube has provided me, I would say that Ottawa Fashion Week has definitely delivered.


There were plenty of both accomplished and emerging canadian designers showcasing their spring collections. Adrian Wu's collection was a real crowd pleaser - except among the photographers. Wu's idea for ambiance meant terrible lighting conditions for the press. Fortunately, the media coordinator swept in and provided photo ops with Wu's models. Phew!


Naturally, I have my personal favourites. I especially enjoyed the Sugarbum Design, the Birds of North Amercia and Kania Couture collections. They were fun, they were fresh, they were colourful and elegant. Lastly, the show closed on Project Runway Canada winner Jessica Biffi. Her collection was delicious. Or were those the models? In any case, Ottawa showed Biffi lots of love.


The venue couldn't have been more suited for this event: The National Gallery of Canada is in fact, the host of Canada's most prestigious pieces and visual arts forms. Thus, it makes sense to host a fashion event (every day art) in this contemporary & artsy open space.


The logistics seemed to iron out nicely and many vendors were glad to be invited to such a high end shindig. On the final night, there was even a Kerastase sponsored red carpet studio for guests, designers, models and friends.


The floating hors-d'oeuvres and the flowing (but pricey) wine made the crowd friendly and gregarious. Hey, Gilda and I even made friends with other pro photogs!

Ottawa Fashion Week

All I have to do now is look at those shots and see Caleb and I's lovechild: are there some breath taking photos? To be continued... !