Canada's illustrious Fashion Magazine is finally opening up and listening to what the public wants. Last week, fashionmagazine.com announced that Canadians were now able to vote on who becomes the magazines next big online bloggers.

With 20 finalists representing each Canadian region, the 10 trend watchers with the most votes will be awarded the chance to give their weekly opinions on the hottest spots to shop, flaunt and horde fashion in their area.

I figure Vancouver, who is being represented by Craig David Long and Terri Potratz, has a good chance of winning the contest. With our growing number of independent shops and increasingly more fashion savvy individuals, Vancouver is finally starting to break out of the simplistic trends of yoga gear and plaid.

Keep in mind though, it's worth it to look at all the finalists. Good fashion is by no means restricted to one city or region. There are some talented writers from across Canada that are in the running to win the reporter challenge including a dear childhood friend of mine, Meghan Tooley, from Winnipeg.

Take advantage of this rare opportunity to voice your opinion. Voting ends tomorrow morning. Happy voting! Photo from FashionMagazine.com

First of all, let me point out that no, I have not recently adopted the use of Internet Slang nor am I so lazy that I cannot type out 3 letters. I'm going to give the benefit of the doubt here and assume most people are already familiar with 4REAL and their mantra. If this is the case, skip the next two paragraphs. For the rest, 4REAL is a documentary television project turned international success story and this summer they are turning up the good time vibes.

Who says clothes can't fuel a revolution?

Thursday, April 17 (tomorrow) hot, eccentric fashions are being brought to the streets of Vancouver. At 8pm, outside the Riot clothing and accessories store (1395 Commercial Drive) a new style of fashion show is being unveiled. With the promise to showcase this season's brightest, tightest and flashiest collections, Riot hopes to start, well.... a riot on the Drive. Fresh air and neon colors do, after all, mix very well together.

Look for fashions from such brands as Kensie, Hurley, and Level 99 Denim. If you are fun-loving enough to attend the rally and enjoy some trendy fashion, or hate this post enough to want to yell at me personally, then show up at 8pm tomorrow and let it all out.

Photo courtesy of Nicole Stewart PR and Riot clothing and accessories

Greens, and browns, and yellows, oh my! The fresh new fashions of Nicole Bridger came out full force this week at BC's exclusive fashion week. With an impressive resume that includes a partnership with Oqoqo and Lululemon founder Chip Wilson, and the Generation Next award for top new designer from BC Fashion Week organizers, Nicole Bridger certainly has a scent of success around her. Despite being a sophomore in the fashion designing world, Bridger already seems to be dedicated to proving that sustainable fashion can be comfortable and classic.

The Mellinda Mae Harlingten Fall 2008 collection was unraveled last night at BC Fashion Week's spruced up China Town venue. With recognizable indie dance tracks playing in the background , Vancouver's fashion trend setters looked on with awe as model, after model paraded down the black runway to show off this fall's latest fashions.

Mixing textures, highlights of red and large buttons seemed to the the focus of Mellinda Mae's new collection. Although safe, this up and coming designer seems to have a handle of what's to come when dealing with hot vs. not.

The time has come for Vancouver to once again participate in the globally recognized and celebrated Fashion Week. For 5 days, March 31st - April 4th, 2008, Vancouver will host an array fashion shows highlighting the many talents of international designers, stylists, choreographers and other industry pros. With this year's focus set on Business of Fashion, BCFW organizers hope to establish international relationships that will put Vancouver high on the list of global fashionistas.

Mixing business with pleasure is what the designers of this year's BC Fashion Week are striving to achieve. Unlike many of the unpractical couture fashion shows you see in magazines that have skirts billowing over the runway and shirts that leave nothing to the imagination, the goal of the designers visiting our city next week is to market a product that can be used everyday. For this reason, BCFW will display two levels of fashion: Ready-To-Wear and Diffusion (that is being described as somewhere in between everyday wear and couture).

As the Canadian fashion elites and international media of all kind begin to pour into our city, the BCFW committee is dedicated to proving that Vancouver has what it takes to become a major mecca for trends. In light of this, locations in and around the Vancouver area will begin rolling out their merlot carpets and polishing up their velvet ropes this week. By setting the standards of expectation high, the BCFW organizers hope the trends seen next week will be on the shelves of Vancouver's top shops come Fall.