Just as we begin to tire of loungewear dressing and WFH uniforms, Copenhagen Fashion Week SS21 is delivering a healthy serving of street style to inspire us out of our fashion rut. As the Danish capital returns to a partially traditional fashion week format of in-person shows, the street style spectacle is as good as ever. The crowd didn’t disappoint with effortless looks that have one foot in summer and another in fall – breezy shorts and skin-baring looks paired with grounded, heavy boots give us reason to splurge on a new pair of lug soles before leaves even hit the ground.
Despite some shows returning to traditional formats, there’s no doubt the fashion industry is experiencing change beyond masks as a new street style accessory. Popular Danish brand Ganni moved its slot in the schedule to the first day, showcasing an exhibit that brought together artists of multiple disciplines and that will stay open for the general public to visit. The brand also debuted a collaboration with Levi’s that will be available in the US and Europe through Ganni Repeat, the brand’s rental business that explores new ways to appease our fashion appetite.
With Copenhagen as our starting point for SS21 ready-to-wear, we’re getting a taste of the new normal. Click through the gallery below to see the best street style looks spotted at Copenhagen Fashion Week:
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
Photography via IMaxTree
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Copenhagen Fashion Week Street Style SS21
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Copenhagen Fashion Week Street Style SS21
Read more on what’s happening to street style post-Covid-19 here.
Today, the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) announced the appointment of their new president. It’s a milestone moment in the organization’s history since CaSandra Diggs is the first woman and the first person of colour named president since the CFDA was founded in 1962.
Diggs, who previously held the role of CFDA’s chief administrative and financial officer, has been a member of the organization since 2001. As President, she will expand her leadership role and be charged with developing strategy to help the CFDA in its mission to champion and support its membership and the fashion industry.
Diggs will report to Steven Kolb, who was previously president and remains CEO of the organization. “Expanding her role will provide the CFDA with more opportunity to meet the needs of the membership in a broad and diverse way,” said Kolb in a press release announcing the appointment. “It is a critical time for our industry, and she is the right person with the right ideas to help lead CFDA into the future.”
This announcement comes in the wake of criticism that the CFDA has faced from newly formed organizations advocating for equality in the industry, such as the Black in Fashion Council, the Black Fashion and Beauty Collective, and the Kelly Initiative. In June, the CFDA announced its plans and initiatives for fighting systemic racism in the fashion industry with a statement that Pyer Moss designer Kerby Jean-Raymond described as “watered-down.”
The CFDA has since announced a partnership with the Black in Fashion Council, which aims “to represent and secure the advancement of Black individuals in the fashion and beauty industry.”
“The CFDA is proud to partner with the Black in Fashion Council on its mission for equality in the industry,” read the organization’s official statement. Stay tuned for how Diggs, in her new role as President, will help the CFDA on its journey to building a fairer and more equitable fashion landscape.
The careers and personal paths of fashion photographer Porus Vimadalal and stylist Prayag Menon-Vimadalal have truly been one of a kind.
Partners in both life and profession, the husband-and-husband team met 14 years ago in their home country of India. Porus was nearing the end of his studies in fashion design when the pair’s personal relationship blossomed. But unsure that design was the right career path, Porus, who was inspired by his pilot father, enrolled in flight school in Texas to obtain his Commercial Pilot License—and Prayag happily joined him. “I thought it would be a great escape for the both of us: to be in a different country and just be together,” recalls Porus from his and Prayag’s downtown-Toronto condo one Monday afternoon. The two are sipping on homemade masala chai (a regular ritual in their household) and enjoying a delicious spread of sweet mawa cakes and savoury methi para, two popular Indian tea-time snacks.
The duo were excited to relocate to a country that is known to be far more accepting of homosexuality than their home turf (India only decriminalized same-sex relationships in 2018), but they were unaware of Texas’s right-leaning culture. “It was our first time visiting North America, and I thought: ‘Oh! It’ll be so much more open than India in terms of the two of us,’” recounts Prayag, who was 19 at the time. “I didn’t realize that Texas is very conservative. For certain instructors at our school, it was a shock to see two boys from India who were together.”
After finishing their flight training, the two returned to Mumbai and began applying for pilot jobs. Around that same time, Porus lost his father and began feeling increasingly unsettled about his career path. “At that point, something switched,” he shares. “I couldn’t concentrate on flying.” He moved to Vancouver, where he enrolled at Vancouver Institute of Media Arts to study photography, his longtime hobby. Prayag stayed behind and continued job hunting.
Post-graduation, the newly minted image taker returned to Mumbai and began shooting smaller projects for old fashion-school friends. And he wrangled Prayag, who has long had a keen sartorial eye, to help with styling.
With Porus behind the camera and Prayag in charge of clothing, their combined skill set created a potent combination, and the duo caught the eye of the editor of Harper’s Bazaar India. “She wrote and said, ‘I really want you, Porus and your vision.’ She invited me to become a contributing editor,” shares Prayag. “I think the fact that we’re a couple and working together also sparked people’s interest. It was very unheard of,” adds Porus.
This was back in 2016, when same-sex relationships in India were still punishable by law. Despite the possible legal sanctions, Porus and Prayag never hid their love. “We were very open about our relationship,” notes Porus. “I would always introduce Prayag as my partner.”
That same year, the couple had an impromptu wedding during a trip to New York. “One night over dinner, our friend said, ‘You know that you can get married in New York, right?’” recounts Prayag. “It made sense: We already had some of our close friends around.” A couple of days later, the pair exchanged vows at New York’s City Hall, followed by celebratory ramen, champagne and shopping.
What came next was a total surprise. “The next thing we knew, our wedding was in the papers in India,” says Prayag. The headlines were uplifting in contrast to those about the devastating Orlando shooting that appeared at the same time. (Forty-nine people were killed at a packed gay nightclub.) “The stories started by talking about how it’s a dark time but then a ray of hope is that photographer Porus Vimadalal and stylish Prayag Menon were officially married in New York,” remembers Porus. “It was quite beautiful.”
Returning home to Mumbai as newlyweds, the couple were hopeful that things would be different. But even though attitudes toward gay people appeared to have softened, challenges still persisted. “We realized that we should get equal rights and equal benefits from our government,” says Prayag. “It’s like we were being treated as second-class citizens.”
Since settling in Toronto in 2018, Porus and Prayag, who regularly jetted back to Mumbai for family and work prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, have successfully managed to make their mark in the Canadian fashion industry. (Porus is a regular FASHION contributor.) As for finally being recognized as legally wed? “It definitely feels good!” smiles Prayag. “We did the right thing.”
Top Shelf
Porus and Prayag are just as in sync in their grooming as they are on work gigs, with personal routines steeped in Indian skincare traditions: The duo have an affinity for DIYing weekly face masks by mixing household ingredients like rice flour, milk and almond oil. They’re also advocates of a coconut oil-laced head massage. “Since we were children, our mothers or aunts would warm cold-pressed coconut oil and massage our scalp because it’s nourishing for your hair and helps with dry, flaky skin,” reveals Prayag. Below, the couple unpacks the product heroes that line their medicine cabinet, from personal go-tos to the formulas they both share.
“We use concealer if we want to hide a spot or blemish or to even out the skin, like under the eyes,” says Porus. “Fenty Beauty Match Stix is very light and natural looking and blends well. I use the ‘Honey’ shade, and Prayag uses ‘Suede.’”
“This brand is from India, and it has really nice products, like body oils. We stock up when we go back home,” says Porus.
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“We share toners mostly,” says Porus. “I use them at night after I cleanse my face. I use The Ordinary, which contains glycolic acid, three times a week. The rest of the nights, Thayers works just fine; it’s really mild.” The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution, $9, and Thayers Facial Toner Witch Hazel Aloe Vera Formula, $25
Prepare your wallets, people, because Hugo Boss has just announced the launch of its new Canadian e-commerce platform, meaning it’s never been easier to get your hands on the brand’s pieces in Canada.
Launching today, the new site offers customers across Canada access to the full suite of Boss brands. Endre Pech, the managing director for Hugo Boss Canada, said in a release, “We are excited to offer Canadians a new way to shop the BOSS and HUGO brands. [The website] will showcase the largest assortment from both brands and will complement the shopping experience in our brick and mortar stores.” He added that Canada was “a priority to launch” for the business.
The launch of the localized website is particularly good news for HUGO fans, given that the brand is now available to shop within Canada for the first time via the website. At present, the brand has seven regular stores and six outlet stores across Canada but no freestanding HUGO stores.
Canada is one of 24 additional countries to receive localized shopping capabilities, which includes localized pricing, shipping options and free returns.
It’s perfect timing for the brand to expand its online offering, particularly in the wake of increased online shopping activity as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. “With more people than ever making their fashion purchases online, it is important for us to give our customers the option to shop from home,” said Pech.
Discover some of our top picks from the site below…
Today, a group of Black Canadian creatives will join forces for a panel discussion called Black Canadian Style: Here’s The Thing… on the importance of Black Canadian identities in fashion, design, culture and media.
Hosted by not-for-profit initiative MODECANADAROCKS and MELANI Beauty, the event will be hosted by lawyer and trademark agent Anjli Patel, and the panelist lineup includes FASHION’s own beauty director Natasha Bruno, as well as Judy Inc.’s Richard Campbell, ELLE Canada’s Vanessa Craft, creative director Charmaine Goodman, MODECANADAROCKS founder Len D. Henry, supermodel and founder of Ogilvie Skincare, Lana Ogilvie, entrepreneur Sabaa Quao, photographer Steve Carty, Milan’s Show division president Celia Sears, former FASHION cover star Aleece Wilson and footwear designer and creator of the Black Designers of Canada index, George Sully.
According to the official release, the panelists will “share their own personal experiences, creative identities and successes” as well as touch on the “complexities that exist being Black in Canada’s creative landscape.” Additionally, the panel will also discuss ways in which brands need to adjust their branding, imaging and marketing to reflect the important cultural shifts happening in society today. The ultimate goal of today’s discussion is “to bring about positive change, engage with fresh creative perspectives, and generate new business opportunities for generations to come.”
Speaking of the panel, Bruno says, “I’m excited to be part of this incredible panel of strong, Canadian Black voices — many of whom I’ve looked up to myself for years. I think this type of local discourse is really important to have because the idea of ‘Black Canadian identity’ is truly a mosaic of different perspectives and lived experiences, and I believe we all — no matter our race — can take something away from that. I hope today is a big moment of education for those tuning in — myself included.”
The Black Canadian Style: Here’s The Thing… panel kicks off at 4pm today. Click here to watch it live.
It’s no secret that the Duchess of Cambridge wields an enormous amount of sartorial influence – pieces worn by the royal over the years have very often sold out within hours of being identified, as fans of the royal’s style seek to emulate her effortless elegance. And in case anyone was wondering just how far the Kate Middleton influence could go, it turns out that the most recent spike in searches she caused was thanks to a floral face mask.
Last week, Middleton stepped out to visit the Baby Basics charity in South Yorkshire and opted to re-wear a white midi dress by Suzannah London for the occasion (she had previously sported the piece at Wimbledon last year), which she teamed with a pretty floral print face mask from childrenswear brand Amaia.
Photo by Chris Jackson – WPA Pool/Getty Images
And whilst we have no doubt that royal style watchers everywhere would have been searching for the dress (or her snake print Tabitha Simmons pumps for that matter), it was the face mask that seemingly piqued the most interest. Online fashion aggregator Lyst – whose most recent Q2 trend report shed light on how lockdown has affected our shopping habits – reported a 185 per cent increase in searches for “floral”, “ditsy print” and “Liberty print” masks within the 24 hours that followed.
Naturally, the Amaia masks sold out almost immediately though a restock is currently underway. If you want to add a little royal-approved flair to your face mask line-up, you can order yours now for delivery in the coming month here.
To shop face masks made by Canadian fashion brands, click here for our round-up.
Ratatouille Baked Chicken takes a classic French dish and turns it into a family-friendly comfort food dish loaded with veggies.
Ratatouille Baked Chicken
This one pot baked chicken and vegetable dish is a great way to utilize eggplants now that they are in your garden or at farmers’ markets. Ratatouille is typically a vegetarian dish, but I love how it’s combined with chicken here. If you want to go strictly meatless, you make want to try my Baked Ratatouille with Havarti or these Grilled Veggie Stacks with Mozzarella. You can also see more chicken recipes here.
