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by The Backseat Stylers | May 3rd, 2013 
Bianca Venerayan of Kastor & Pollux, Toronto
We’ve been spotting metallic bags everywhere lately, and it’s not surprising given that they complement the current black and white trend so perfectly. Case in point: Bianca‘s fun black leather shortalls (want!) and silver candy wrapper clutch (adore!) combo.
Not to say that metallic accessories don’t go just as well with other colours. We love how Lisa paired a romantic palette of soft pink and white with a lovely rose gold clutch. Perfect for spring!
Jay Strut for Jay Strut, Toronto
Lisa Dengler of Just Another Fashion Blog, Toronto/Zurich
Jen Tam for Her Waise Choice, Vancouver
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by The Backseat Stylers | May 2nd, 2013 
Designer Michael Kors touched down in Toronto yesterday for a meet-and-greet at his swanky Bloor Street boutique. Amidst racks of colourful, summer-ready apparel offerings and display cases of the brand’s wildly popular accessories, Kors chatted up editors, stylists and loyal customers, danced to tunes spun by model/DJ/rock royalty offspring Alexandra Richards, and even autographed a few of his handbags for his fiercest of fans.
Yours truly spent the evening doing what we do best: catching up with some of our favourite fashion folks, including our partner-in-crime Nelia Belkova and the life of every party Stacey McKenzie; ogling outfits, namely those of Jay Strut and Aya McMillan, who both showed up in fabulous black and white jailbird stripes; and shopping, natch. We even had our very own Kors encounter, and a snap with the grinning designer himself to prove it.
Stacey McKenzie
Alexandra Richards and Michael Kors
Samantha, Caillianne and Rana Beckerman
Nelia Belkova and Aya McMillan
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by The Backseat Stylers | April 18th, 2013 
“Nice jacket”: two words that literally made my week, uttered by Viktor Horsting (or was it Rolf Snoeren? It was all such a giddy blur.) to me. The jacket in question? A mustard yellow blazer with contrast black piping designed by Viktor & Rolf themselves. The Amsterdam-based duo was in town earlier this week for a very well-attended meet-and-greet with Toronto’s fashion set at The Room at The Bay.
With HBC President Bonnie Brooks and VP / Buying Director of The Room Nicholas Mellamphy as hosts and DJ Mia Moretti spinning her magic, partygoers that included the inimitable Jeanne Beker, FASHION Magazine’s EIC Bernadette Morra and socialites Stacey Kimel and Suzanne Rogers spent the evening chatting with the charming Dutch guests-of-honour, sipping on champagne and admiring the V&R wares.
Dr. Lisa Airan and PR maven Suzanne Cohon stole the sartorial show with brightly-coloured frocks, the former in an orange Carven dress with cutouts and the latter in a fuchsia Roksanda Ilincic number (last seen on Ginnifer Goodwin!). The usually cool as a cucumber blogger Anita Clarke chose a peplum Roland Mouret to meet her fashion idols, while the effortlessly chic stylist Amy Patel paired her Margiela x H&M bodysuit with denim overalls for the occasion. We would be remiss if we didn’t mention blogger Jay Strut, who showed up in a heavily embellished Balmain jacket that made our jaws drop.
Check out the gallery below for some of our favourite looks from the night.
  
Image Credit: George Pimentel
 
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by The Backseat Stylers | April 16th, 2013 
Rag & Bone designers Marcus Wainwright (left) and David Neville (Image Credit: George Pimentel)
With a slew of international designers scheduled to drop by Toronto this month, Holt Renfrew threw down the gauntlet last week with a shindig in honour of Rag & Bone designers Marcus Wainwright and David Neville. The third floor of the retailer’s Bloor Street flagship, home to its contemporary collections, was transformed into a party space complete with a graffiti wall.
With the design duo’s latest offerings on hand (including an incredible green leather jacket worn by Kate Moss in their Spring 2013 campaign), cotton candy and pretzel stands at the ready, and DJ Fathom spinning all the right tunes for a crowded makeshift dance floor, I had more fun that evening than at my last visit to Holt’s end-of-season sale. And that’s saying a lot, coming from a shopaholic.
It was a great night for street style spotting too – the storm raining down outside didn’t appear to deter anyone from showing up in their best Rag & Bone(-esque) duds. There were summery white frocks (take that, hail storm!), denim rolled and ripped in all the right places, and plenty of that black-and-white trend we keep hearing about. Check out the gallery below for our favourite looks from the Holt Renfrew x Rag & Bone shindig.
(Image Credit: George Pimentel)
   
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by The Backseat Stylers | April 8th, 2013 
On April 5, the Royal Ontario Museum‘s Young Patron’s Circle threw its annual fundraising bash, welcoming hundreds of partygoers to the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal for Ancient PROM. Hosted by MTV’s Aliya-Jasmine Sovani and CP24’s Gurdeep Ahluwalia, this year’s fete featured food and entertainment inspired by the ancient Greek, Egyptian and Roman civilizations.
The dress code followed suit, calling for Grecian glam or Cleopatra chic for the ladies and gladiator garb for the men. PROM guests, including philanthropist Suzanne Rogers, interior designer Glenn Dixon, Toronto Argonaut Mike Bradwell and bloggers Anita Clarke and Jay Strut, arrived in style, dutifully donning head jewels, body armour, or at the very least the traditional high school prom fare.
As they do year after year, ROM PROM-goers showed impressive sartorial commitment to the theme, making it one of the most fun parties of the year.
    
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by The Backseat Stylers | March 18th, 2013 
Yours truly with Roksanda Ilincic
Roksanda Ilincic made a one-day jaunt to Toronto last week for a fête in her honour at The Room at The Bay. The Serbian-born, London-based womenswear designer brought with her a charming disposition and highly covetable Fall 2013 collection that both won over the city’s fashion set.
Not that she didn’t already have big fans here. Socialite Stacey Kimel, blogger Nelia Belkova and Hudson’s Bay Company’s Fashion Director Suzanne Timmins were all decked out in Ilincic’s unmistakably chic and colourful wares at the invite-only cocktail party. The statuesque designer herself chose a whimsical printed pink gown for the occasion, a design from the Fall runway collection that just debuted in London last month.
Those of us without the pleasure of Ilincic pieces in our closets (yet!) still showed up in our Thursday best: Jenna Naumovich sported the to-die-for, limited edition Giuseppe Zanotti for Kanye West ‘Cruel Summer’ heels, while Jessica Chiu donned a printed Prabal Gurung frock that made our hearts go pitter-patter. Yours truly decided on a LRD by another London-based designer, Mary Katrantzou, while T wore a patterned velvet blazer by Club Monaco.
Merely a day after The Room’s latest shindig, while we were still basking in the glow of meeting the lovely Roksanda, came news of the next: a month from now, on April 16, featuring Viktor & Rolf. Mark your calendars!
Hudson’s Bay Company’s Suzanne Timmins with Stacey Kimel
 
CTV’s Angie Smith and The Room’s Jenna Naumovich
Kimberly Lyn, FLARE Magazine’s Ryan M. Cheung, Nelia Belkova, me and The Genteel’s Irene Kim
Jessica Chiu and The Room’s Steven Baughan
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by The Backseat Stylers | March 15th, 2013 
Ania Boniecka of Ania.B, Victoria
I recently happened across a declaration that black and white was going to be a huge trend for spring, and it appears that our favourite Canadian style bloggers all received that memo and decided to get on that trend, stat.
What’s black, white and striped all over? Samantha, obviously. The Beckerman sister’s cotton candy-hued hair added a pop of colour to her jailhouse chic getup this week. Jen‘s black-and-white ensemble combined many of our favourite things: prints, leather and fur, the ingredients to the perfect cold weather outfit.
Stephanie‘s take on the trend was more white with a dash of black; her no-fail white blazer + white pants + striped top combo is a promising sign that spring is just around the corner. I hope.
Jen Tam of Her Waise Choice, Vancouver
KD Faustino for The Girl With The Messy Hair, Calgary
Samantha Beckerman of Beckerman Bite Plate, Toronto
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by The Backseat Stylers | February 22nd, 2013 
Julia Monson for Lookbook.nu, Toronto
If, like us, you’ve been shying away from the printed pant trend, it’s probably about time you get on board. According to some of our favourite Canadian style bloggers, patterned pants are going nowhere fast.
This week, Krystin sported a teal animal print pair with just the right amount of sheen, Ivy donned a green pair that contrasted perfectly against her sunny yellow jacket, and Nelia chose a black-and-white striped pair she fondly calls her ‘Beetlejuice pants’. In fact, Nelia confesses to owning 20+ pairs of “crazy pants” – now that’s dedication.
Are you a printed pant hoarder like Nelia, or a neophyte like T and me?
Ivy Xu for Lookbook.nu, Vancouver
Nelia Belkova of Style Blog, Toronto
Andrew Eirich of The Realist, Edmonton
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by The Backseat Stylers | January 18th, 2013 
Jay Strut for Jay Strut, Toronto
In the winter months, when our outfits start to match the weather outside, a vibrant pop of color can go a long way. Especially when it’s a bright red, as seen on Anik and Jay this week.
While Anik chose a classic wool coat to top off a head-to-toe black ensemble, Jay unexpectedly paired his white tuxedo jacket with a pair of leather sweatpants. One colour, worn two very different ways. Both styled to perfection.
Samantha Beckerman of Beckerman Bite Plate, Toronto
Vanessa Hong of The Haute Pursuit, Vancouver/Beijing
Krystin Lee of Suburban Faux Pas, Toronto
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by The Backseat Stylers | December 14th, 2012 
Liz Clark for Elizabeth Victoria Clark, Toronto
The winter is always marked by a sartorial sea of black, but just because you give in to wearing the darkest of shades – to match your feelings toward the bitter cold, no doubt – doesn’t mean that you can’t still stand out in the monochromatic crowd.
Looking super chic in a black leather dress with square printed panels, Samantha opted for some intriguing surreal accessories, like a Maison Martin Margiela for H&M hair necklace and bag featuring a glove as the bag strap. From the same collaboration came Elizabeth’s cozy oversized turtleneck, which she wore with an incredible pair of perfectly-fitted over-the-knee boots. I was overcome with envy when I saw Jay’s leather quilted bomber, which I would wear in a heartbeat if it came in my size (I hope Santa is reading this). I’ve been a bit obsessed with quilted jackets recently, and Jay’s is definitely one of the best I’ve seen.
Julia Monson for Lookbook.nu, Toronto
Aliya Akhmedeeva of Click To See More, Montreal
Jay Strut for Jay Strut, Toronto
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THE BACKSEAT STYLERS BY T & S
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