Fashion marched to a new beat Friday night.
For the closing night show of LG Fashion Week, designs, dance and music inspired by Africa took over the catwalk to raise money for the Stephen Lewis Foundation.
Celebrity models strutted 24 designs from Canada's top designers for the Dare to Wear Love fashion show.
It's the largest public "dare" of the organization's new fundraising initiative "A Dare to Remember" which is coaxing people from across the country to take on challenges of all kinds to raise funds to support African grassroots organizations working on the frontline of the AIDS pandemic.
Brian Bailey, David Dixon, Evan Biddell, Wayne Clark, Farley Chatto, Linda Lundstrom and Lucian Matis were just some of the designers who took on Hoax Couture's dare to create luxe gowns from six yards of different but equally colourful African fabric.
"This is only the beginning of this venture," said Chris Tyrell, one of the designers behind the Hoax Couture design label, opening the show.
He told the more than 1,200 guests attending the event that he was inspired to take up the challenge because he was raised by his grandmother when orphaned at a young age -- and the story of Lewis' efforts to raise funds for AIDS orphans, and the grandmothers who raise them, struck a chord with him.
An auction of the show's one-of-a-kind garments will happen at a later date with proceeds benefiting AIDS orphans of Sub-Saharan Africa and the elderly relatives who raise them, said Lewis.
The former United Nations special envoy on HIV/AIDS in Africa said that while many organization do good work, little aid gets to the worst-hit areas where people "live and die."
"That's where our foundations puts it's money," said Lewis, promising he'd take funds directly to "traumatized and bewildered" children and their "resilient" caretakers.
The show featured dresses from several of those who presented collections during the spring-summer shows, as well as top talent who did not.
While the designs were spectacular, it was the strutting of celebrity models which had the crowd revved up.
MTV host Jessi Cruickshank, in an outfit from Brose, entertained the crowd with her sultry walk and teased photographer at the end of the runway.
Wearing Izzy Camilleri, singer Jully Black strutted off the runway and into the lap of interior designer-turned TV star Steven Sabados' lap to a roar of approval from the crowd.
The stunning outfits were as varied as their creators: long and short, simple and complex. Some designers added other fabrics and accoutrements to embellish their gowns.
Lundstrom's design stood out as what looked to be a wide, fur-lined shawl collar was spectacularly tossed down to become a luxurious cape. Graphic fabric used by Greta Constantine was cut in such a way that the derriere of the dress looked somewhat like cat's eyes.
Comrag's bejewelled tuxedo-style coat featured floor-length tails, with a miniscule cummerbund-looking style skirt. Pam Chorley paired her donated green and black fabric with hair-like stands down the waist and also from wrist to elbow on long black gloves.
Lucian Matis' mini dress appeared to have used every inch of his fabric with layer-upon-layer of ruffles on the bodice.
Fashion Design Council of Canada president Robin Kay vowed that a similar event would also take place next year to the applause of other city celebrities such as Canadian Idol judge Jake Gold and radio host Jian Ghomeshi.
Kay declared this latest edition of Toronto's fashion week, the second largest in North America, a resounding success. In it's new larger venue on King Street West, she said attendance was up 300%.
International media attendance included some newcomers: the Huffington Post and New York's Fashion Week Daily which declares the event "a feast for they eyes."
