Toronto Fashion Week

Whether or not you’re interested in fashion, inevitably you face it on a daily basis while glimpsing into the closet to choose something to wear for the day.

Now in its seventh year, L’Oreal Toronto Fashion Week (March 17-22) brings together a coterie of designers, models, hair and makeup people, photographers, media, fashionistas and fabulistias to the city where they’ll watch a week’s worth of runway shows - most being held in the tents of Nathan Phillips Square.

Toronto may not be as well-known as some of the more established capitals of fashion (Paris, Milan, New York), but its youthful spirit allows prevails in the highly-competitive world of design.

It’s not as if there isn’t any established talent exhibiting their collections on the runways. People like David Dixon and Joeffer Caoc have helped put Toronto on the map as a destination of Canadian style. Additionally, there are always new designers trying to make a name for themselves on these runways.

Fortunately, fashion fiends who want to take part in the festivities but fears the exclusive nature of the industry won’t allow them to enter the tents, can take part in the festivities. A single show ticket is available for $20 (while full-day general passes are $50) and allows any style aficionado to see what the cognoscenti will be drooling over.

For more information, visit www.fdcc.com.

Arthur Erickson

Vancouver-born and world-renowned architect, Arthur Erickson, recently took a hit when his 1962 Graham house was demolished in West Vancouver. Modernists raged against the developer who made the decision, saying it was an atrocity to tear down a house that is one of the few remaining pieces of modern, Canadian design.

Apparently, the truth of the matter was that the house had become a Frankenstein-esque home, with features (like an elevator) being added over the years, taking over the magic of the original design. Even so, the site was historic and it begs the question of when private property should be preserved for its heritage.

Erickson’s other houses have sprung up around North America, including New York’s Fire Island House.

To see more of Erickson’s work, check out his website before that, too, gets torn down.

For more information, visit www.arthurerickson.com.