Jason Meyers: a designer’s diary

LESS THAN TWO WEEKS UNTIL FASHION WEEK (Oct. 5-9)
The days leading up to LG Fashion Week were a blur. On Monday, ET Canada filmed us casting the models and preparing for hair and makeup. Tuesday was mostly spent doing work in the studio and on Wednesday I fit the singer Ivana Santilli for the Bell Gala the following night. I confirmed details for other Fashion Week parties on Thursday, and had a model fitting with my stylist Anne McKay. On Friday I had a fitting with TV producer Angela Smith in the afternoon. She’ll be modelling for me in the group Dare to Wear Love charity show. Angela loved the dress! I made it for the cause with her in mind. Just had to take it in a bit, fully finish the inside with a boned lining and hem it. The show is going to be amazing and I’m truly honoured to be on the runway with such a select number of Canadians including the Hoax Couture designers. I’ve followed them for years and this opportunity really brings it full circle.

FIVE DAYS UNTIL FASHION WEEK (Oct. 12-14)
On Monday I ordered the shoes from Town Shoes for delivery on Saturday and worked out the tentative order of the collection as it will be shown on the runway. Exciting! Picked up the fabric for my clothes at the Hoax Couture Studio for Dare to Wear Love, sent all jackets and shirts out for button-holes and had nine pieces picked up in support of Boobylicious Ball being held this Friday at the Sound Emporium. On Tuesday, there were more interviews, and I did the hand-stitching on some key pieces. I took a break on Wednesday to go out for lunch with my mom, and then it was time for the unofficial opening of Fashion Week, the Philip Sparks show at the Burroughes Building. He’s awesome!  His high-quality, tailored menswear pieces are beautifully done. Definitely represents Canada in the menswear department.  I’m really proud of him and the energy around the show! Just feels good!

FASHION WEEK BEGINS (Oct. 19-21)
It’s Thursday. With my show only a few days away, time has been flying by with meetings with my stylist Anne, the hair and makeup team from L’Oréal Paris, model castings and media interviews. All the while, I’ve been adding the finishing touches to my collection. On Friday, my dress for the closing night Dare to Wear Love fashion show went from a sketch to reality. I have been pretty much locked up in my studio sewing, draping and pressing trying to get it all together in time. I also continued with the hand-finishing of my garments for my own show. I’m adding some freshwater pearls to some of the more formal pieces in the collection. On Saturday I had an important meeting with my web designer about launching my e-commerce site, which should go live later this fall with a small capsule collection for sale online. Picked up the shoes from Town Shoes and we’re a couple of pairs short but will work it out! Worked with Anne and our friend Jen to complete the outfits with all accessories including shoes, gloves and headpieces. Spent the evening with my roommate Phil, who is a music producer, burning the opening video and laying down the music for the rehearsal and show.

Sunday was the rehearsal! It went well but took a few tries to get the timing and sequence of the intro right. It’s imperative that the opening is perfect. The show will open with a video that will show my inspiration for the collection and set the mood. Four models were late so we had to set the call time for the show a half hour earlier to ensure timing on Tuesday. And a few of the shoes didn’t fit perfectly so we ran around making arrangements for pads to put in the shoes so they’ll stay on. Plus a few of my pieces weren’t ready from the seamstress... it’s getting close!

Monday was a crazy day picking up line sheets, after-party invites and my mom’s handmade chocolates to leave on each seat of the show. I also finally got the jackets back from my sewer. Just when everything came together with the collection, I found out two models were double-booked and had to schedule a last-minute fitting with two new ones!  But I did get to pop out to catch Sunny Fong’s show — it was beautiful! Great quality pieces. Then I went to the Holt Renfrew cocktail party for a glass of champagne and hit the opening party at the tents. (The runway room looks great!) An early evening to bed as I had to get up early for a Virgin Radio interview.

Wow what a day! Up extra early on Tuesday for [Virgin Radio’s] The Breakfast Show and I didn’t stop until the wee hours. My stylist and dressers came over at 11am to get ready for the 5pm show. Before I knew it we were at the tents organizing the models and steaming clothing. As soon as the girls went into hair and makeup I started to get butterflies! We got the girls dressed and styled and even with the runway room full we managed to start on time.  Everything ran really smoothly and I was filled with a huge sense of pride and relief. When I walked out on the runway it was overwhelming to hear the response from the audience. Immediately after the show I had an interview with Fashion Television, which was followed by several other interviews. Then I joined my family for a quick celebration before doing it all again at Ultra. It was a long, exhausting day but so great at the same time!

I stayed in for most of the day on Wednesday catching up on my rest after such a busy last few weeks. I felt really relieved that the show was over. I hit Brassaii as a host and guest DJ for the Notable TV event. It was a good-looking crowd and a fun evening. But I wrapped up pretty early. I’m excited to see some shows tomorrow including Evan Biddell and NADA and I’m DJ at another event at Cobra tomorrow night!

THURSDAY NIGHT (Oct. 22)
Exhaustion is setting in! After another great night out I spent the day finishing up my Dare to Wear Love gown for Friday’s fashion show and dropped it off at the Stephen Lewis Foundation. I came home for a quick rest then my girlfriend Avida and I got ready and hit a couple of shows followed by my guest DJ gig at Cobra with Addy and Deko-ze. It’s been a great week, but I’m just about ready for it to be over. Just one more show tomorrow (Friday) night!

FRIDAY NIGHT (Oct. 23)
What a great night! I went to the closing night show, Dare to Wear Love, which was a collaborative show organized by the Hoax Couture boys to raise money for the Stephen Lewis Foundation. We started with cocktails at the VIP pre-show reception and the energy in that room was amazing! The fashion show was packed and I was so happy with how my dress looked on Angela Smith (Trends & Lifestyle producer for ET Canada). She looked fantastic! I was so happy to be part of this great cause. I stayed at the after-party for a bit then called it a night. What a fantastic week! Feels surreal.