On the eve of March 29th Ryerson School of Fashion’s Event Planning class hosted Redux: a sustainable fashion event inspired by nostalgia and movement. The event was an ode to 80’s and 90’s streetwear and in the centre of the room was a stage, where retro dressed hip hop dancers showed off their moves to 90’s beats. This added a spark to a room filled with Ryerson’s most fashionable students who came out to participate and watch the show. Redux was sponsored by eco-conscious companies such as Common Sort, a local retailer that resells a curated selection of recycled fashions and items from other vintage fashion and second-hand boutiques.
For the show itself, garments were sourced from Common Sort, and styled by one of their stylists Megan Hamilton. These days its typical to see fast fashion and quick come-and-go trends filling store shelves, and so it’s definitely refreshing to see a sustainable fashion event featuring recycled garments and previously owned looks that aren’t just going to the landfill. Nevertheless, the runway outfits were styled to the 10’s, and the fashion class definitely showed a creative perspective on how to amp up a pair of vintage Levi’s or leather mini. Instead of dowdy and cheap, these looks screamed chic and the way students rocked their looks turned all pieces into show stopping ensembles.
Another aspect of Redux that was extremely refreshing was the diversity and inclusivity of models and people at the event. At a classic fashion show it’s pretty typical to see white, clean shaven, blonde hair, blue eyed, blank staring models sludging down the runway. And all the power to those designers to choose that market. But at Redux, the runway was completely different. Real students wore real clothes and moved in ways they normally would. All the models and performers dressed and danced with reckless abandon, to the point that their outfits were only half the fun. The other half was seeing how happy everyone there was – from the models to the organizers to the guests, this was one heck of a party and everyone was having a good time. We have officially said goodbye to fashion that is stuffy, delicate and non-inclusive. Redux showed off how what fashion is meant to be: fun and exciting fashion and something not taken too seriously. Some models even took selfie videos as they danced down the catwalk, which added personality and a sense of realness and humour to the event. Now that the event is over and everyone has had time to reflect, I’m sure next year’s students will have to work hard to maintain this class’s reputation for putting on a good time focused on fashion. We can’t wait to see what next years students come up with!
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Photography by Nicolly Coelho
