Pink Tartan shows a more expensive Joe Fresh at Toronto Fashion Week

Pink Tartan shows a more expensive Joe Fresh at Toronto Fashion Week

Pink Tartan, Kimberley Newport-Mimran’s label, showed separately from her husband Joe Mimran’s for the first time ever last night (Joe Fresh showed on Wednesday night). Two nights out in a row didn’t prove too much for the socialite crowd, since guests like The Bay’s Nicholas Mellamphy, Dealuxe fashion director Susie Sheffman, philanthropists Catherine and David Nugent, Alexandra Weston, plastic surgeon Trevor Born, Greta Constantine designers Stephen Wong and Kirk Pickersgill, PR professional Suzanne Cohon and her CFL commissioner husband Mark were all there to show support. When pre-seating began, Ms. Cohon had a spot of trouble with an overzealous volunteer who insisted only media were allowed in. Cleared for entry, the society doyenne took it all in stride, laughing to us, “I’m not mad, she’s just doing her job. They can’t know everyone, can they?” There was another model mayhem moment when one lost her shoes on the runway, which was met with loud hoots and hollers from the crowd. Though the audience always seems to get a huge kick out of this, not everyone was on board: we spotted Mellamphy rolling his eyes to someone across the runway (we suspect his eye rolling was about the commotion, not the model’s walking). The show started with a video, and somehow a film of a woman preparing eggs and straightening her apartment counts as interesting, according to Newport-Mimran. Thankfully, the clothes were much more exciting.

Click here to see Pink Tartan’s fall/winter 2012 collection »

We heard the styling was done by Flare’s Liz Cabral, which was most evident in the way models draped jackets over their shoulders, like Cabral’s oft-photographed street style look. One editor joked, “She must want to wear a cape every day.” Some of Newport-Mimran’s best pieces used vivid colours: a kelly-green jumpsuit with a peplum; a Manic Panic–like green fur vest; a pink fur jacket; and a long, shocking red Herve Leger–style gown. Her work with fur was decadently over the top, like a long-haired jacket in a pattern that looked like a snow leopard (we can’t believe the PETA protesters didn’t show up for this one)—we saw the same fabrication on coat shoulders and sleeves (our favourite iteration was on a navy wool peacoat) and on furry fringed heels.

The designer also experimented with different textures, like sheer fabric in pleated skirts, high-gloss fabric on the shoulders and sleeves of a wool blazer and feather skirts. Perhaps since husband Joe showed first, we couldn’t help but notice the similarities between the two collections (likely the whole purpose of moving them to separate days), like a houndstooth dress, bold colours, fur on jacket shoulders and peplums (though we saw that pretty much everywhere this season). But if the worst we can fault Newport-Mimran for is clothing that looks like stuff we love (albeit much, much more expensive), then she’s done a pretty good job.