The Hoax Couture Tutu has an African theme and was constructed from three exotic prints layered into the top plate. The result is an exuberant art piece boasting a riot of colour. Hoax Couture founded Dare to Wear Love, a fundraiser for the Stephen Lewis Foundation that unites the Canadian fashion community in support of children orphaned by HIV/AIDS in Sub Saharan Africa and their grandmothers.
Chris Tyrell and Jim Searle started Hoax Couture in 1985. Without formal fashion training, the Hoax duo began by selling T-shirts on the streets of Toronto. Within a year, their first fashion collection was available exclusively through Holt Renfrew. Since closing their Yorkville boutique in 2005, the designers have been creating couture fashions for clients from their Toronto showroom, as well as designing costumes for dance, including several collaborations with Coleman Lemieux and Compagnie.