Parisians have always been known for being at the top of the ladder which is haute couture. This past Friday, Hui Wen and I had the opportunity to attend an exclusive Holt Renfrew fashion show at the Devonian Gardens. The theme was “Lock into Paris,” alluding to the famous bridge where lovers go to place “love locks” as a sign of their undying devotion. Since I (and many others alike) will always hold fashion close to my heart, I felt that this theme was appropriate. There was a fun photo booth, with locks and keys on a chain-linked fence as a backdrop to match the theme.

{We weren’t aware that three consecutive photos were going to be taken on a timer, so these are pretty candid. Go check out Hui Wen’s blog detailing the food and musical aspects of the night!}

The entire night felt pretty surreal to me as everyone in attendance had this air of sophistication, and to be honest it was a bit intimidating. This was my first time going to a fashion show, and it actually surprised me how short the actual fashion portion of it was. Most of the night consisted of mingling and ended with an auction.

{The fabulous hosts: Jason and Aly, or more commonly known as The Style Guys.}

{Chanel donated a necklace with a giant lock pendant (left) to auction off, as well as a pair of matching earrings (right).}

Today, I am going to be focussing mostly on the outfits pieced together by Brenna Hardy and Phaedra Godchild. All of the looks featured include brands you can find at Holt Renfrew, and are not what you would expect from a typical fashion show. Initially, I was expecting suits of tin foil and giant laser hats, but I was quite glad that my expectations were not met. The outfits were toned down, so that you could actually wear these styles on a daily basis, but still unique and fashionable.

I was not able to get a picture of all the outfits as some turned out blurry or I omitted some pictures as they were not good shots. I also apologize for the giant light in the background if it makes some of the photos hard to see. Here are some of the ensembles I was able to snap quality pictures of:

As you can see, many outfits exhibit a high-end-business feel, and others were downright pajama-worthy casual. The stylists and hair dressers did an amazing job making the models look amazing. I had a good time listening to the quartet from the CPO play, as well as enjoying the food samples. The auctions held throughout the night managed to raise a lot of money for the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra; again, you can read all about the CPO and food portions of the night in Hui Wen’s blog. Now, since Holt Renfrew carries very expensive designer labels, I am not suggesting that you go out and try to buy these exact outfits from their outlets. The entire night was in support of the CPO, which I do suggest that you support! Our generation has been accused of not caring about classical music, and I think us youth need to change that. The CPO makes it so easy with their cpossibilities program; if you are between the ages of 14 and 29, you have the opportunity to get tickets for just $15! Go check out the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra’s website for more information.

(Note: I did a sweep, and there seems to only be one brand that is sold at Holt Renfrew which has a history of animal cruelty. The brand is called Canada Goose, and in 2012 there were demonstrations outside a Holt Renfrew store to protest this brand which sells down-filled jackets with fur hoods. The company is said to use wolf fur, but claims that the fur is obtained ethically. If you attempt to Google “Canada Goose animal cruelty,” all the webpages–except for the one I linked–take you back to Canada Goose’s website. I’m not entirely sure if anything has changed since that 2012 article, but Holt Renfrew does in fact still carry this brand. If you do decide to shop at Holt Renfrew, I would advise staying away from Canada Goose.)

FTC: I was provided with free tickets to review this event, but all opinions remain completely genuine. ♥