My One-on-One with Sunny Fong

Photo credit: George Pimentel Photography

Ask any fashionable Canadian for a Top 3 of her favourite homegrown designers and she’ll inevitably answer "Sunny Fong." The Toronto-born designer’s edgy aesthetic, signature exquisite detail and pretty-yet-bad-ass designs have fired up red carpets, the small screen (Fong won Season 2 of Project Runway Canada) and Canadian streets since the launch of his label, VAWK, in 2004.

I caught up with VAWK designer, Sunny Fong for iVillage.ca and true to rumour he’s not only nice, but smart, funny and disarmingly down-to-earth (read: Sunny, can we please be friends?)...

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My One-On-One with Kimberley Newport-Mimran & A Pink Tartan Giveaway

Pink Tartan's new washable line for The Shopping Channel. Photo via The Shopping Channel.

With its ultra-luxe fabrics, ladylike silhouettes and to-die-for tailoring, Canadian label Pink Tartan has quickly become a sartorial staple for chic women everywhere, including no-last-names-necessary celebs like Gwyneth and Charlize.

Fresh off her turn at Toronto's World MasterCard Fashion Week, and a few days before the launch of her gorgeous new washable collection for The Shopping Channel, I caught up with president and head designer, Kimberley Newport-Mimran, for a quick chat about what makes Pink Tartan tick.

Read the full interview on iVillage.ca...

Now for some exciting Friday news: KNP and the lovely folks at The Shopping Channel have offered RLR readers the chance to win a $100 GC to shop the new Pink Tartan Collection, and you'll need to act fast to win.

CONTEST RULES:

1) Leave a comment below telling me why you would love to put Pink Tartan in your closet.

2) Tweet the following for a bonus entry: "@realliferunway & @theShoppingChan are giving away a @PINK_TARTAN GC to shop the new collection & I want to #win! http://bit.ly/P9a6x3"

3) Contest closes tomorrow (Saturday, March 29th) at 5 p.m. We'll contact the winner via email.

4) Contest open to residents of Canada only.

5) Best of luck, lovelies!

Don't forget to mark your calendars. Pink Tartan launches this Sunday, March 30 on The Shopping Channel. Tune in live at 8 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m., 4 p.m., and 8 p.m. or shop the collection online at theshoppingchannel.com.

See the Pink Tartan Fall '14 Collection from World Mastercard Fashion Week

All photos by George Pimentel Photography

It's officially (though there is absolutely no evidence to support this) spring! While most people are just starting to pack away their coats, gloves and boots, the fashion crowd at World Mastercard Fashion Week in Toronto has already geared up for Fall 2014. Though this move has killed most of my Fashion Week plans, I was lucky to be able to attend some of the hottest ticket shows last night. First up was Pink Tartan, one of my all-time fav Canadian labels. Designer Kimberley Newport-Mimran's luxe designs rarely disappoint and last night was no exception. 

Staying true to winter-ready Canadian Style, Newport-Mimran incorporated a mix of both faux and real bone, leather and fur, with pops of red buffalo check and houndstooth. Inspired by übermodel Verushcka, from the iconic 1966 Vogue shoot "The Great Fur Caravan," the collection was more strong and sexy than sweet. With the exception of a few velvet brocade and lamé fabrics that I'd rather not revisit and some strangely oversized fur oven mitts (why the big paws, KNP?), there were several looks that I can't wait to try out come fall (check out looks 3, 9, 22, 31 and 36), plus some cozy fur hoods that I wish I'd had on hand this winter.

Stay tuned for backstage and runway pics from Joe Fresh and Mackage. Hint: Joe Mimran > Kimberley Newport-Mimran this time around. As they say, all's fair in love and fashion... 

Happy 1st day of Spring! #yay

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Go Green: Canadian Eco-Friendly Fashion

Earth Day is right around the corner so now seems like an extra good time to dress responsibly. From well-known labels like Preloved to up-and-comers like Killigrew, there are a small but mighty group of eco-conscious companies that are cool, Canadian and committed to our planet - proving that looking good while feeling good is indeed a very good thing. 

For the eco-minded brands on my radar right now, read the full article here.

Happy Friday - hope you have the best weekend! xx

Canadian Fashion: 10 Designers to Watch in 2012

Denis Gagnon closes LG Fashion Week Spring 2012 - photo courtesy Jenna Photography/FDCC

When it comes to getting dressed for every day, my uniform is far from haute;  Today, for example, I'm wearing a clearance-priced down puffer from Joe Fresh, a denim shirt from H&M, navy pants from Gap, sparkly silver loafers from ALDO and a bright enamel cuff that I got at the J.Crew outlet.  My splurges are few and far between but when I do decide to part with my hard-earned pennies, it's always with a great deal of care. Lately, I've made a personal commitment to try to add items from Canadian designers to my wardrobe, even if I can only do it once a year.  For a crash course on the ones to watch in 2012, check out my piece in iVillage.ca to get looped in.  Happy Friday, everybody!  Hope you're loving 2012 so far!

xo