Joe Fresh/Flare Revenge Party Pics

The entrance to the Queen/Portland Joe Fresh store where the Revenge party took place.  LOOOVE this store! 

Revenge star Christa B. Allen chats with a similarly-attired Kimberley Newport-Mimran (Joe Mimran's Pink Tartan designer wifey)

Joe Mimran (THE Joe Fresh) was my bestie (for 15 seconds, anyway) and graciously indulged my celebrity stalker side.  I could not possibly hide the goofy grin.

James, my husband and fave +1, looks on in bemusement.  I'm sure he's thinking, "Wow. She's such a famewhore" 

A pretty party-goer rocks shades of white and a cool graphic tee.

Revenge's Christa B. Allen also graciously obliged a pic.  Did you know she played Jen Garner's young self in '13 Going on 30'? Google it.  

 

Nobody ever takes pics of the paps.  These guys were working the room all night long.

The Joe Fresh Gift Bag that each of us took home at the end of the night (this pic by Ryan Emberley)  I'm giving mine away to one lucky winner; Read below for how you can take it home.

When you get an invite from Joe Fresh and Flare Magazine, the RSVP is always, "I'll be there +1"  And so it was that my willing-and-ready husband and I boarded the train and headed to Toronto for the season finale screening of Revenge at Joe Fresh's Queen & Portland store.  

We mingled, hors d'oeuvred (not a word but I like it), and shopped our way through the night with my man-crush, Joe Mimran, Christa B. Allen and Toronto's fashionable set and then, watched the nail-biting season finale of Revenge.  All in all, a supremely fun night and though I quite honestly hadn't watched Revenge before, I'm now hopelessly addicted. Arg.  There goes another night.  Thanks to Joe Fresh and Flare for the invite! xo

PS - Leave a comment below for your chance to win my Joe Fresh gift bag.  I'll accept entries until tomorrow at noon! For more party pics, click on the thumbnails below: 

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Joe Fresh Spring 2012 - Brave Brights & Manly Delights

Joe Mimran, the man behind Joe Fresh, is calm, cool and always collected before his big show. The reason?  He wears bad-ass skull slippers.  Yargh!  (Photos:  Sarah Francis)

I wish I could find fault with Joe Mimran;  I wish I saw his collection and thought, 'Yawn', or could be snooty about the fact that his line is sold at grocery stores.  I've heard all the hater talk:  that they're expanding too quickly and that maybe we should knock Joe Fresh down a few pegs before they get too big for their chinos; that the really great runway looks never actually make it past the big city stand-alone shops, leaving the rest of us with the basics. 

But when it comes right down to it, none of those things bother me because I'm a true Joe Fresh fan.  In only 5 years, Joe Mimran has created a bit of a fashion empire, in a country known for its talent, but not for its bulldozing rule-breakers.  His collections are always sharp, sweet and refreshing, his models are always at the top of their game (this season, every one was Canadian) and for a girl like me who lives in a little town, his affordable clothes are my everyday fashion lifeline.

The Spring 2012 show proved that Joe Fresh just keeps getting better.  The collection was full of no holds barred saturated brights which popped beautifully against crisp, bright whites.  Juicy orange blazers (for him and her), went right to my mental must-have list, as did a pretty low-backed striped tank dress.  A white shirt with a crisp yellow collar and an assymetrical colour-blocked yellow sleeve was far from average and a pair of floral-printed aqua pants looked anything but budget. 

The real showstoppers came, most surprisingly, in menswear.  Where once the Joe Fresh men's collection seemed a little bit like an afterthought (both on the runway and off), Spring brought the boys to the forefront.  Checked pants worn with a navy trench and covetable blazers galore in super fun prints were a huge departure from seasons past.  This new collection (assuming it comes to stores) should push some Canadian boys out of their comfort zone a little and since it's Joe Fresh, every guy will finally be able to afford to take some fashion risks.

Check out the collection below.  It's not even winter yet, but I'm already yearning for spring.  Thoughts?

Photo Credit: George Pimentel, courtesy Joe Fresh

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