All posts under ‘David Dixon’


Fashion » At the shows

TFW diary: Did David Dixon deliver for Spring 2012?

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David Dixon Spring 2012

Photography by Jenna Marie Wakani

View the photo gallery »

Having an end-of-week time slot on the LG Fashion Week calendar is a good thing and a bad thing. Good because by this point, we’ve all honed our lenses to focus on important trends and notable details, but bad too, because the week’s shiny lustre has mostly worn off, and having seen a week’s worth of summer wares, we’re looking for newness to keep our sensory-overload interest alive. Did David Dixon deliver? Sort of. Staying true to his design sensibility, he showed a black, white, and lemon-curd yellow collection that was heavy on the springtime imagery—fluttery flower appliques, silver paisley lamé, and butterfly prints. While the stiff ‘50s cocktail dresses didn’t look particularly new, it was the seamed jersey dresses (the floor-length ones in particular) that looked most modern, and gave a defined body shape without veering into tricky body-con territory.
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Scene

Bringing a whole new meaning to “Ikea art”

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When you say “Ikea art,” I think of generic, upper-middle-class “art” by the truckload: Warhol portraits, or Breakfast at Tiffany’s stills, or stock-like glossy photography of hothouse flowers. But the Wednesday-night opening of exhibitIKEA, a Toronto pop-up at the corner of King and Peter streets, smashed that perception to bits.

Four Canadian creators were called in to work their particular tricks with IKEA’s wares. Dressmaker populaire David Dixon turned bolts of standard-issue IKEA fabric into sweet frocks. George Whiteside snapped Instagram-style still-lifes of vases and such (not so dissimilar to paintings by B.C.’s Joseph Plaskett). Sculptor/stacker Bruno Billio made a curvilinear tower of alternating black-and-white chairs—a bit ’70s-conceptual, as is the trend, and cool. And the piece de resistance was by one-time enfant terrible, now established art dude Thrush Holmes. He assembled a small wreck of a house out of not only IKEA products but also their packaging, adding his own improv’d scrawls of paint and neon. It reminded me a) of one of the most fun exhibits I’ve seen, “FischGratenMelkStand” in Berlin last summer and b) not to take any of this too seriously. After all, these good artists are only doing what good college students and yupsters do every September: reassemble IKEA’s clean, straightforward, easy-for-everybody goods into something personal.

exhibitIKEA runs through Sunday August 21, 2011.

View photos of the exhibit »
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Shopping

The stylish new super saver: Rent frock Repeat

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Kristy Wieber (at left) and Lisa Delorme (at right).

By Allyssia Alleyne

Has one too many H&M shopping sprees left you broke and with nary a hanger for your favourite cocktail dress? Kristy Wieber and Lisa Delorme of Rent frock Repeat (rentfrockrepeat.com) are here to help.
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Fashion » At the shows

TFW diary: Sixteen sweet years of David Dixon

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David Dixon Fall 2011

Photography by Jenna Marie Wakani

With 16 years worth of shows at Toronto fashion week under his belt, David Dixon has reason to celebrate. In honour of this milestone, his Fall 2011 show was preceded by a “Sweet Sixteen” retrospective of design highlights from his career. Set to a slideshow of family photos and monologues that served as inspiration for his past collections, this intro served as a reminder why Dixon remains one of the most celebrated designers in Canada. The main collection opened to the sounds of a bustling airplane, signaling that we were en route to Indonesia for an “Escape to Jakarta,” the designer’s theme for this season. “My love for the exotic and the South Pacific became my mental escape while designing this collection,” said Dixon. Flowing maxi dresses in vibrant animal and tribal prints swooshed down the runway alongside a dreamy selection of LBDs, while poppy red dresses in Italian matte jersey provided a fiery alternative to basic black. Leather polka dot georgette and diamond appliqué gowns were red carpet ready and a laser-cut clover bolero was the perfect cover-up for a cool evening breeze. We can’t wait to see where Dixon’s creations take us next year, and for another 16 after that.

View the David Dixon photo gallery »

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Fashion » At the shows

Video: David Dixon tells us about his new diffusion line

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David Dixon presented his new diffusion line to Montreal Fashion Week on Monday night. In this video he talks to Ashley Joseph about his inspiration and presenting his first MFW show.

See looks more video from Montreal Fashion Week»

See our full coverage of Montreal Fashion Week»


Fashion » At the shows

Montreal Fashion Week: Sailor girls at Eve Gravel, noisy dresses at Helmer, and more

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EVE GRAVEL SPRING 2011. Photo courtesy of Sensation Mode

By Ashley Joseph

Montreal Fashion Week opened with an off-site event at MFW veteran Marie Saint Pierre’s St-Henri studio, where editors, bloggers, photogs and fans filed in for a behind-the-scenes look at where the magic happens. The ever so classic collection, punctuated by Saint Pierre’s signature ruffled and crinkled fabrics, was presented showroom-style as seamstresses continued to work in the back room.

Next, the crowds shuffled to restaurant-turned-runway Vallier to take in Eve Gravel. Buyers from across the globe sat front row to take in Gravel’s girlie looks (Galeries Lafayette’s Berlin rep happened to be perched next to me), which echoed with a retro nautical aesthetic that was punctuated by pretty florals. Read more »


Beauty » Backstage Beauty

Backstage beauty: Big smiles and bigger curls at Comrags

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Backstage at Comrags Fall 2010. Photography by Angela Y. Martin

Comrags always puts on one of the most genuinely fun shows at Toronto Fashion Week. This season, the models were sporting big smiles (due, we’re sure, to the totally reasonable footwear–fur-trimmed flat boots) and big, bobbed masses of kinks and curls.  Photographer Angela Y. Martin went backstage to take model portraits before the show. Enjoy!

See the Comrags show on the runway.

Click the images below to see the photos. Get full coverage of Toronto Fashion Week at fashionmagazine.com/attheshows.


Fashion » At the shows

Toronto Fashion Week: David Dixon stirs the melting pot

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DAVID DIXON Fall 2010.Photography by Jenna Marie Wakani

We always knew that David Dixon was a popular guy, but the massive crush at the door (we even had to kick a few brazen imposters out of our seats!) was a true testament to his reputation as an established Canadian designer.  The collection was safe, shape-wise, and Dixon focused his lens on blending cultural references for his new “Global Tribe.” This meant showcasing swaths of Spanish woven raffia on cocktail dresses, Japanese print jackets, Canadian wild fur stoles and Indian mosaic tile mirrored dresses to deliver his melting-pot message. But it wouldn’t be a Dixon collection without a little romance, so his finale dresses featured red carpet-ready, fluttering, feather-like appliqués.

See the full collection after the jump. Read more »


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