Opening Night - Red Dress Event

A powerful night of remembrance, resilience and red.

We come together wearing red, in honour of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, men, Two-Spirit, and LGBTQ+ members of our communities.

As we remember our murdered and missing family and community members, we honour their beauty, strength, and collective resilience. This night is a time to bear witness, to hold space for grief, and to celebrate the legacy and spirit of those we have lost.

Through fashion, movement, and ceremony, we express our deepest love and respect for those we have lost and recommit to the ongoing work of justice, remembrance, and protection.

Bring your cousins, your aunties, and your relations. Stand with us in red.

 

Opening Night Designer Showcase:

STITCHED BY APRIL

April Allen is an Inuk fashion designer from Rigolet, Nunatsiavut, and the artist behind Stitched by April. Her work blends sealskin and beadwork, drawing on generations of Inuit tradition. She’s also the founder of Indigenous Bead Supply Canada, known for vibrant earrings and textiles that reflect deep cultural roots.

Follow them on Instagram: @stitchedbyapril

LESLEY HAMPTON

Lesley Hampton is an Anishinaabe fashion designer and artist from Temagami First Nation. Her work explores mental wellness, body neutrality, and Indigenous identity. A model and activist, Lesley is reshaping Canadian fashion by centering diverse representation and using her platform for cultural and social advocacy.

Follow them on Instagram: @lesley_hampton

SUGIIIT LUKXS DESIGNS – YOLANDA SKELTON

Yolonda Skelton (Gitxsan Nation) is the designer behind Sugiiit Lukxs Designs. Her latest collection, Wind Whispers of Wearable Wisdom, reflects the theme of air – honouring breath, ancestors, and freedom. She merges formline design with modern fashion to create garments rooted in cultural teachings and reverence for nature.

Follow them on Instagram: @yolondaskelton

BRUNO HENRY

Bruno Henry is a self-taught artist from Six Nations of the Grand River, now based in Wikwemikong on Manitoulin Island. His work blends the traditional aesthetics of his ancestors with modern design through photography, fashion, jewelry, and stone carvings. Known for moose and deer hide clothing stitched with leather instead of sinew, Bruno’s designs feature embroidered symbols and artwork on cotton and wool garments.

Follow them on Instagram: @brunohenry25

CHOKE CHERRY CREEK

Angela Howe, founder of Choke Cherry Creek, is an Indigenous fashion designer from the Apsáalooke (Crow) and Pikuni (Blackfeet) Nations. Her brand celebrates Indigenous strength and matriarchal wisdom through collections like Strength in Roots. Angela’s work blends tradition with modern design, showcased at New York, Paris, and Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Weeks. Her mission is to uplift Indigenous voices and reflect cultural pride and resilience.

Follow them on Instagram: @chokecherrycreek

REGGIE HARROLD

Reggie Harrold is a contemporary Indigenous artist from the Fort Nelson First Nation (Dene, Slavey) and Secwépemc/Shuswap territory, based in Vancouver. Her work blends traditional techniques with modern fashion to explore identity and heritage. She holds an MFA from UBC and a Fashion Design diploma from John Casablancas Institute. Her designs use spool knitting, beadwork, and sinew to create wearable art and gallery pieces that push the boundaries of tradition.

Follow them on Instagram: @reggieharrold

MAYNARD JOHNNY JR.

Thii Hayqwtun House of Design, led by Maynard Johnny Jr., blends art and fashion to create stylish Indigenous fashion for men. His pieces offer a powerful, unique expression of identity that can't be found anywhere else.

Follow them on Instagram: @maynard_johnny_jr_artist