The season’s trends pay homage to classic styles dating back as early as the 1920’s, but updated for some seriously modern wardrobe play. The Wide-Leg Trade in your skinnies, there’s a new trouser in town. Popularized by Coco Chanel in the 1920’s, wide-leg pants are making a comeback as one of the most wearable trends this year. Labels BCBG MAXAZRIA, Trina Turk and Alice + Olivia perfected the pant in loud prints, billowy fabrics and high waisted versions to elongate the tricky silhouette. Cropped Cher Horowitz would be, like, so stoked to see this 90’s fashion staple dominating spring/summer 2014 runways. This season’s modern crop top has been classed up in well-tailored versions and mature palettes. See 3.1 Phillip Lim’s elegant lavender fabric and BCBG’S boxy white sportswear take on the trend. Candy Store It’s no surprise sugary sweet pastels are trending for spring, nor Pantone’s “Colour of the Year,” Radiant Orchid. What is surprising are these soft hues matched head to toe as seen on Burberry, Armani and Jason Wu runways—a bold statement that can earn you serious street style points. Great Lengths Characterized by its calf-grazing hemline, the midi-skirt dates back to the 1940’s post-war era. Fashion has recycled the style over the years, always staying true to its origins as a sophisticated and elegant piece, à la Grace Kelly. The skirt swished onto runways last spring and is coming back even stronger for 2014. Editor favourites included the playful plaid House of Holland and Marchesa lace pencil midis. Bombs Away Labels Suka Clothing and Marc by Marc Jacobs are putting a feminine spin on the traditionally sporty bomber jacket with accents like floral sleeves and satin sheen. Paired with a pencil skirt, the garment looks extra chic.

Picture this: You pull into work ready to start your day, reach into your pocket to check your cell phone…and it’s not there. What do you do? Panic? Go through your day feeling like you’ve lost a limb, not knowing if someone is trying to reach you? Emerging designer Zebina Masse explores this attachment we as a society have to our electronic devices in her latest collection: a thesis project that explores the outward, tangible expression of the human soul. “I imagine our souls as being housed in our electronics,” said Masse. “It’s like a part of us is living in that object and when we’re separated from it, we almost feel physical pain from it.” Masse is an Apparel Design major in her final year at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). Interestingly, Masse didn’t always know she was going to pursue fashion. Prior to RISD, she received an associates degree in liberal arts with a concentration in visual arts from Cape Cod Community College. It was there that personality tests kept pointing her in one of two directions: a math teacher or an artist. While technically good at math, art was a path that “just made sense” for Masse. “I was always one of those weird, quirky, artistic types,” she said. “I’ve been making clothes since I was pretty young, just as a hobby.” Well, that hobby is starting to turn some heads. For her final thesis project, Masse is creating a collection of six looks with matching handmade shoes that keep with her clean aesthetic. The looks feature lots of natural, nude colours and a combination of delicate knit-work and resin. “I let the knitting machine guide me,” said Masse, who prefers to be hands-on in her design process. “I don’t like to just concoct things in my head. I like to work with materials; I’m very moved by fabrics.” The collection is inspired by the book His Dark Materials, particularly the concept that people’s souls are housed inside animal demons that morph with them as they grow older and change and eventually mature. “I really love animals, and I love the idea that you have this animal character that’s connected to you so strongly like that,” explained Masse. “I love the idea that the soul is housed outside of the body too.” Masse built on that core concept, exploring the idea that our souls “live” in our electronic devices. The resin in her pieces—a synthetic material—represents that digital and plastic place our soul resides in the digital world. “When we lose our phones, it’s almost painful,” she said. “I saw these intense connections to my concept.” For more work from Zebina Masse, visit her website at zebinamasse.squarespace.com.  

From ultra feminine pink, to the plaids of 90’s grunge, this season leaves plenty of options for wardrobe play. Grunge Goddess Leather, plaid, studs and ripped jeans galore. This trend actually encourages you to return to your angsty teen wardrobe and rep rebellion. Saint Laurent demonstrated the grunge trend in its most ready-to-wear version with leather pants, schoolgirl plaid dresses, and multi-zipper embellished miniskirts. All styled with fishnet stockings and buckled, black biker boots. The key to executing this trend on the sidewalks? Leather, plaid and looking like you didn’t try at all. The It-Pant Comfort has been crowned queen of fall fashion, appearing in relaxed silhouettes from top to bottom. The loose-fitted trouser is an autumn must-have and looks absolutely chic paired with heels and a more tailored top. On our most wanted list are the perfect slouchy pants from sister superstars Mary Kate and Ashley’s, The Row. The fall collection showed the trend in its most wearable form – simple, black, classic. Coat Room The world’s runways made it very clear - bigger is better when it comes to fall coats. Cocoon shapes and dropped-shoulders draped models in shows from Carven to Marc Jacobs, Chloe to Acne. Wool, mohair and leather were the star fabrics for this effortless, but exaggerated silhouette, but pattern and colour had no limits. Go for a sleek and traditional grey topcoat as seen by Emporio Armani, or flaunt the trend in all its glory with an elegant pattern such as Rochas floral silk opera coat. Think Pink To the surprise of us all, this feminine hue might be the colour of fall/winter 2013. Pink starred in many designer collections and is the focus of some of the season’s most illustrious fashion editorials, including the September issue of British Vogue starring it-model Cara Delevingne. The cotton candy shade stood out in a season of more androgynous trends imagined mostly in outerwear. Prada executed the colour on sophisticated plaid trenches, while Miu Miu paired it with playful polka dots in floor length jackets. Carven prescribed the trend in a double-dose: a show stopping, oversized, boiled wool coat in bubblegum pink. Let the lusting begin.

- Photographs by Tracy Grabowski - Styled by Sandra Sing Fernandes - Hair by Alexander Daniel, Chantal Girard, James Abu-Ulba for Davines - Makeup by Sylvie Desroches for Jane Iredale - Sofia / Wylie at Next Models Paris

  - Photographs by Roberto Magliozzi - Styled by Sandra Sing Fernandes - Hair by Chantal Girard for Davines - Makeup by Valentina Lordanova for MUD Studio Milano, Olga Bordoni - Loredana Next Models Milan

- Photographs by Tracy Grabowski - Styled by Sandra Sing Fernandes - Hair by Sarah Cameron for Davines - Makeup by Sylvie Desroches for Jane Iredale - Natasha at Next Models Paris

Women's Footwear Trends The trend for fall/winter 2013 women’s footwear is all about nostalgia and time capsules. The 90’s continue to inspire this season’s hottest looks. Grunge returns, this time mixed with a twist of 70’s punk. The boot continues as a staple of the season, from ankle to over the knee. Chunky heels, heavy metal hardware, exotic animal prints and fur embel lishments giving them varying looks. A resurgence of 40’s style mary janes and T- strap pumps decorated embossed with fur porn poms. Modern touches, such as exposed zips, pointed toes, chunky heels, straps and buckles. Colours ran the gamut from classic black and brown, the surprise of white to a range of this season ‘s hottest hues such as teal, forest green, and oxblood. Men's Footwear Trends Mens footwear continued its evolution Classic shapes such as the lace up dress shoes the casual high top sneak and the workboot are updated with novel fabrics and colours. Metal hardware and patent finish embossed leathers added interest. Even the classic evening slipper was brought forward with animal print finishes and vivid hue, usually paired up with evening attire or a favorite smoking jacket, the modern fashion avatar will mate them his fave denim. Metal hardware and patent finish embossed leathers added interest.

Brazilian beachwear label Blue Man unveiled its Spring/Summer 2014 collection in the lush and luxurious surroundings of Palácio São Clemente in the Botafogo neighbourhood of Rio de Janeiro during Fashion Rio on 16 April 2013. The venue for the runway show, a palace that was built in the eighteenth century as the residency of a Portuguese aristocratic family and now houses the Portuguese consulate, is a veritable majestic example of the Tropical Baroque aesthetic and a most adroit setting for Blue Man’s seductive collection. Under the creative direction of Thomaz and Sharon Azulay (whose father David Azulay founded the label in the early 1970s by selling the original – and now iconic – side-tied bikini), the collection explored the combination of typically Brazilian fauna and flora with Baroque ornaments found in Portuguese tiles and palace architecture as a reflection of the historical period when the Portuguese court settled in Brazil to escape the Napoleonic invasions and made Rio de Janeiro the capital of the empire. The result achieved by Blue Man was an exciting range of swimwear, beachwear, footwear and accessories in bright colours and detailed patterns that, while combining Rio urban beach culture and historical references, will undoubtedly prove to become popular when they hit the stores later in the year. For Spring/Summer 2014, Blue Man promises fluid pieces in transparent silk for lounging on the beach or by the pool that contrast with structured shoulder and waist lines in bathing suits, shirts and dresses. The influence of Hawaiian surf prints and the brand’s seminal relaxed approach to swimwear can be noticed in frayed denim bikinis and in bodysuits with vivid colours and patterns. And to anchor the lighter fabrics and cheerful designs, Lycra, denim and neoprene provide a successful balance to a collection that had the audience delirious and looking forward to another hot Rio Summer.

Fur: A vintage feel—but with a modern edge Coats are a winter mainstay, this season many of them are oversized with full voluminous cuffs. It’s all part of a trend toward architectural cuts in clothing. Fur coats and jackets made the biggest comeback this year. Many of the silhouettes featured flared skirts and wide belts reminiscent of couture favorites from bygone eras. Paring down the silhouette using coarse furs for elegant wear was often associated with Fendi in the past. Fendi is to fur as Ferrari is to cars. Yet given current concerns about animal rights, the brand has moved from the lavish fur coats that were all the rage in the 1980s to a more discreet way of interpreting fur. Fur appeared as inserts in skirts or dresses, or sheared and fashioned into cozy, understated jackets. Long haired furs, such as goat, also appeared on other runways during Milan’s preview showings. DSquared2 Both the masculine and feminine sides of the DSquared2 label were shouting other for attention. Pencil skirts paired with belted jackets, one with layered, architectural lapels. But for evening, the mood was more speak-easy slinky with silky dresses with an asymmetrical, trailing feather boa hemline or a fur stole. Many designers featured fur at this season of preview shows, including Roberto Cavalli who used it mainly to trim the hoods of his winter parkas. That was enough to draw the wrath of a small group of animal rights activists who disrupted the show holding up signs in Italian saying, “Your fashion is our death,” until they were forcibly removed. Prada Long luxurious mink coats had ample collars and cuffs like the ones Hollywood royalty wore during the 1950s. Coats have extra wide cuffs and are often belted at the waist and flared toward the bottom.

Designer Profile - Photographs by Bokehccino Project at Western Canada Fashion Week