A few weeks ago I was approached by Preloved Toronto, a popular clothing store and staple in Canadian fashion known to reclaim vintage fabrics. For most, they are known as an institution for sustainable fashion who are responsible for breathing new life into over a million pieces of clothing since 1995. This Toronto girl could not say no to this collab for many reasons. One, obviously I am going back to my roots and supporting my old hood. Two, I love vintage and consignment pieces, so this was a no-brainer. Third, Sporting Life Ottawa will now be carrying the Preloved brand, and I could not miss the opportunity to share this news with you guys! Oh, and I guess the fourth reason to be super excited is that their clothes come in size XL- so, you’re welcome!
Last weekend, I went over to my friend Malorie’s place to play with some clothes and do a photo shoot in her bedroom. Sounds weird, right? The folks outside must have thought the same thing! I mean the lights, the backdrop… a bit much for suburbia town! But, I bet if you looked into every home, you would find a rock star running her own business out of her guest room… I mean, aren’t we all? I know I am!
Either/Or is Malorie’s new online store, where she sells only Canadian and sustainable fashion designs. As you all know, I am attending the Metamorphosis Eco-Fashion show and wanted to wear something that was on brand with the theme of the show. I approached her and asked if she would dress me for the occasion. Instead, she invited me to play dress up and reassured me that I shouldn’t buy anything, unless I loved it!
Malorie is so completely devoted to sustainable design, that she has carefully planned her business model around running a successful and lucrative business while being mindful of the planet and supporting Canadian designers. That is dedication, and I admire her efforts to support slow fashion. I think we can all use a little more thought when making purchases, and I am 100% guilty of not following her advice! I have no self control, and it’s starting to become a problem!
Less is more… I can’t forget this!
She has carefully curated her first collection, and still learning about how different brands are cut, how they size and fit differently on each woman. We learnt a few things that day, ourselves . For examples, in some brands and materials, I can wear a size small, but in others, size L is a bit snug. Malorie was also appreciative of my feedback and was happy with the way I styled some of the looks. Overall, I was very impressed with the cut and quality of the clothing. It is important to remember that these are premium items, and are considered an investment. The prices are higher than what we are used to because when you factor in things like proper wages and sustainable fabrics, it absolutely comes with a higher price tag, but with much less guilt.
Without further ado, I share with you some of my faves!
What are you doing on October 26? Nothing? Perfect! Join me at Metamorphosis Eco-Fashion Show for your dose of daily Ottawa Fashion and guilt-free shopping!
About Metamorphosis
Metamorphosis Eco Fashion Show and Marketplace is an event that showcases and supports environmentally-minded emerging fashion designers in the Ottawa area. Hosted by EcoEquitable, Metamorphosis is Ottawa’s newest Fashion Show to enter the social, artitist and ecoconscious scene. It’s a chance to showcase local Ottawa talent and slowly put to rest the practices behind fast-fashion, hopefully for more than just one night.
Founded in 2002, EcoEquitable Inc. is a registered social Canadian enterprise, providing temporary employment and skills development training through small-scale textile recycling.
I am 100% guilty of indulging in non-ecoconscious clothing. I am sure you can agree that finding larger sizes is hard enough, let alone adding another layer of “where/how is this made?” But the interesting fact is, when clothes are hand-made by a local person, it can often be made to measure. It may cost a little more, but it will look amazing (and you will feel amazing knowing you made a difference!) I urge you to get out of your comfort zone and come explore the event with me.
Supporting this event will directly impact the local businesses in your community and leave a small but mighty footprint in the movement towards a safer and cleaner fashion industry. We can’t make a change happen overnight, but we can all start somewhere.
Support the cause
If you have nothing to wear and want to glam it up for the event, Rent Frock Repeat will be donating 10% of all rental sales to EcoEquitable. Make sure you use code “ECO16” to track all donations.
Shop local
I’ll be getting dolled up with my friend Malorie who just launched her Canadian sustainable fashion e-store, Either Or. She will be at the event and will showcase her collection in person! I can’t wait to show you what we put together!
Win tickets to the event
I have 2 tickets with your name on it! Leave a comment below telling me a little bit about your interest, scepticism or feedback around what you would like to see in ecofashion or the Ottawa fashion industry. I will select the winner at random on October 21, 2016.
If you want to learn more about sustainable fashion and how you can start today, you may want to read more on building a capsule wardrobe.
I am a part of a vast network of bloggers in the Ottawa area. It’s a very supportive community. We try to get together on a monthly basis, and everyone gets their turn to host. We take part in charitable causes, we hash out business ideas and most of all, we vent about the #firstworldproblems of being a blogger.
This week we had our Christmas party meetup at Two Six [Ate}, on Preston Street. They kindly hosted our gang in their event space upstairs. The food was spectacular. I forgot how delicious that place was. I have to admit, I used to go more often when it first opened.
Anyhow, I was sitting beside Flic Taylor of loveagoodstripe.com. She is a self-confessed shopaholic attempting to build a capsule wardrobe. I loved how she defined her vision of a capsule wardrobe. I am paraphrasing here, but (in her lovely british accent)she said something along the lines of “a capsule wardrobe shouldn’t look the same for everyone. It’s not about everyone having black pumps, black trousers with a camel coat. It’s about finding the right pieces to build an ideal capsule collection for yourself. A great bowler hat and leather motorcycle jacket would be fundamental in my capsule wardrobe.” In essence, not all styles share the same essentials!
Back it up, what exactly is a capsule wardrobe? Let me wiki that for you.
Capsule wardrobe is a term coined by Susie Faux, the owner of a Londonboutique called “Wardrobe” in the 1970s. According to Faux, a capsule wardrobe is a collection of a few essential items of clothing that don’t go out of fashion, such as skirts, trousers, and coats, which can then be augmented with seasonal pieces.[1] This idea was popularised by American designer Donna Karan, who, in 1985, released an influential capsule collection of seven interchangeable work-wear pieces.[2]
So here in lies the problem: I am not only a shopaholic, but also a fashion chameleon. Capsule wardrobe equals impossibe. My style is, literally, not having to stick to one! I dress based on my mood, what my day looks like, what inspired me that day and the overall vibes of where I am headed. I have an overabundance of clothes, which I partly blame for having a very conservative corporate job by day and being a creative social fashion butterfly by night. I could try really hard to find a style that works for both, but I love me some classic corporate atire. Think Rachel Zane in Suits, #goals.
I also find the waste and pollution brought on by fast fashion, a little difficult to swallow. Building a capsule collection can play a huge role in sustainable fashion. It’s a hard balance between investing in classic essentials (a.k.a. clothes that will last you a long time), keeping up with trends to stay relevant, and squirrelling enough money away to pay the bills.
“The Prophesy” is a series of photographs by photographer Fabrice Monteiro that shines light on the problem of pollution in Africa, yet offers a message of hope.
A great resource for sustainable fashion in Canada, is Ottawa’s own Malorie Bertrand. She has many great suggestions on building a simple, effective and sustainable capsule collection, if that is the direction you prefer heading. She also has a few exciting things up her sleeve, so make sure you follow along!
I think we can all use a little lesson in building our own Capsule wardrobe. So, here is my attempt at one! I think I have way more than I need, but it’s a start. What do you think? Is there anything missing? What would you swap?
