It’s just about spring time in the real world but in the fashion world we are springing forward to the looks of fall and winter for Ottawa Fashion Week. The three day runway event took place from March 18th until March 20th in the amazing National Gallery of Canada at 380 Sussex drive. The event kicked off with the launch of Ottawa’s Panache by already established Ottawa designers Jana Hanzel and Emilia Torabi show casing their beautiful women’s wear line for the fashion savvy business woman.
The shows were an eclectic mix of different designers from not only Ottawa but Toronto and France to mention but a couple. This season brought some pretty impressive talent to Ottawa which needs to continue to happen. Some of the stand out designers for the event were Panache, Adib Simon, Anomal Couture and Adrian Wu.
The fabrics and styles through the weekend ranged from tartan materials, monochromatic form fitters, winter wools and flowing gowns. Designer Adrian Wu truly brought a vision to the table with his avant-garde attire, black balloons and dimmed lights. Wu brought an aesthetic and vision that unless you have been to a major fashion week outside of the city you wouldn’t normally see.
The evening also featured some of Ottawa’s top models taking the runways and of course there were some stand outs. Models such as Herieth (Angies), Adele (Angies), Bianca (Barrett Palmer) and Delaney (Barrett Palmer) stuck out, many of which seemed to be in so many shows and all had impeccable walks.
That being said, there are a couple areas of improvement I think that could truly benefit Ottawa’s fashion week. The organization of the debut evening was met with a little bit of confusion; many things were still being set up an hour before the shows were supposed to start with the first show starting over a half hour late. While yes there is the saying “fashionably late” I don’t think this can apply to an emerging market such as Ottawa, not enough demand yet to have people waiting.
The second thing I would truly like to see happen for next season is a shoe sponsor stepping up for the event. It appeared as though several if not all shows had models bringing shoes with them for the show. While it’s a great idea, the problem becomes when the shoes the model brings really have no flow with the ensemble and at times due to flashiness distract away from the designs.
Aside from those two little points, the event was great, some amazing designers and it’s very safe to say that every season Ottawa Fashion Week seems to push just a little bit more.
Christopher Massardo is a writer and fashion-stylist based in Ottawa, Canada. His work has been published in cities such as Toronto, New York, Boston, London U.K. and Vancouver to mention a few. To see more of his work www.christophermassardo.com
