Laura George

Graduating with a Bachelor of Design with Honors from Ryerson in 2009, and winning Bretton's designer of the year award for her graduate collection, Laura George is a must see at any Bridal Show.

"Personally I'm drawn more towards the warmer tones, more towards ivory for the collections," George says of her current collection that was shown at Alberta Fashion week in October of 2009.

Unlike the stark contrast of pure white, ivory or other off-whites, are easier for most women to wear.

The dresses of George's that hang in Naked Fashion Boutique, where she is manager, are all done in ivory and gold, and adorned with little flowers in both colours.

The flowers are inspired by Hungarian embroidery said George, who hand-makes all the little flowers, and plans to continue using them for her next collection, with pearl centers.

"I'm really looking forward to the next collection, it's inspired by Pride and Prejudice."

Using each of the ladies from the classic novel as an inspiration, her next collection will have dresses based upon the personalities of the girls.

"Kitty is so playful, and Lydia is flirty and fun," says George as she's flipping through her sketch book, each page showcasing a different character.

"Jane is sophisticated of course, and Elizabeth, she will be the showstopper."

George plans to have this collection out by September, and to continue having a new collection out every year or two.

Also doing a lot custom work, she is happy to be designing bridal dresses. "With these dresses I feel I get to be most creative."

Every wedding is such a big deal said George and she loves just being part of everyones experience.

For more information visit http://www.laurageorge.ca/

N.R.T Fashion's

"If I could dress anyone for a day it would be Marilyn Manson."

When it comes to fashion Nicole Rita Tomney doesn't have conventional in mind.

N.R.T. Fashion's is over two years old now and going strong, Tomney keeps herself busy doing all the designing and making of the clothes herself. And when that's just not enough to keep her going she has two jobs on the side.

Coming across as a whirlwind of excitement, N.R.T. Fashion's would be fine calling anywhere home, whether the line stays here or goes to some crazy city across the world.

Looking forward to going wherever fashion takes her, Tomney is infatuated with designing. "I just love the feeling of seeing amazing clothes and photos and love the fact that I get to show my stuff to other people."

Starting in the industry early as a model, sewing in high school helped her passion grow. Now with her own line a local hit, she appears to be on the right path.

While some Calgary designers prefer in keeping with the local ideals, Tomney would rather shake things up.

Designing apparel for women age 18 to 30 Tomney describes the line as fashion forward and for ladies "not afraid to wear something that's going to get peoples attention."

Dramatic changes from season to season show a boldness necessary to stay in such a turbulent industry.

Her collections are the best kind of unpredictable, stemming from a range of inspirations from icons to pictures. "Anything that catches my eye and gives me instant ideas for outfits."

N.R.T Fashion's will be showing in Toronto Fashion Week in April, for more information go to http://www.facebook.com/nrtfashions?sk=wall&closeTheater=1

Broken Doll Clothing

Not one for giving up Leah Bohnet, with Broken Doll Clothing, has big plans for the next year.

"In the fall I'm heading to Vancouver, to look for a wider market."

Currently in 13 stores across Canada she plans on making it into 10 more.

Bohnet first broke onto the fashion scene in 2005 and then came in with her own line in the fall of 2008.

Originally designing womens wear very much around herself and what she wanted, she wants to start designing for a more diverse crowd.

"I want all women to be able to wear it," said Bohnet, talking about branching out from the young look her previous collections have had.

Most of her collections focus around the fabric, some collections are baggier, some are all about draping, and most have a lot of dresses. In her fall 2011 collection the focus is shifting from dresses and it showcases quite a few chunkier sweaters to keep you cozy.

"I've really started to find my rhythm," said Bohnet.

After going really hard at first and then looking back at some of her earlier seasons and wondering what she was thinking, Bohnet's happy to have kept with it and not dropped out of the game like so many.

"I have great parents, if it wasn't for them I couldn't do it," said Bohnet. "It's nice to have a good support system."

A native Calgarian, she doesn't plan on leaving anytime soon, though knows there's obstacles with Calgary's fashion scene.

"I've always found that everyone likes malls here."

She points out that a possible reason we don't have the fashion scene that is in some of Canada's other big cities, is because of the way Calgary is built. "Calgary's not really made for boutique shopping and walking around."

Not put off by the thought of it, Bohnet knew what she was getting into when she started, and won't be doing anything else.

"I would rather do what I love and get by, than wait for the clock to end everyday."



for more info go to http://www.brokendollclothing.com

Colleen Pound, Fleur Feminine

It didn't seem to matter that Colleen Pound had the money or the means to buy nice clothes, she never could find what she was looking for.

Pound noticed that for women's clothing there was a serious gap in the market for size 12 and higher. Sure, there were clothes available for that size range, but nothing she wanted to wear, nothing that fit her demographic of a young, style-minded woman.

Pound's turning point came when she was seated beside one of Reitmans managers on an airplane. She told him that as one of his target markets, she would never buy the clothes they offered.

"I don't want to be flammable," said Pound, describing the small selection of fabrics, mostly polyester, available in those stores.

It was then that she decided to start her own line, one to fill the gap.

"I am my target market," said Pound.

Wearing a wool skirt that doesn't need special care and is part of her Love Collection, she proudly flaunts the quality.

Her Love Collection came out in the fall of 2009, consisting of approximately 18 pieces, the entire wardrobe won't even cost a full $5000.

"I have the coolest fabrics."

Full of flattering fits and luxurious fabrics the Love Collection can be mixed and matched to anyones liking.

Managers and others in the retail business would always argue with her that designing for that size range would be pointless.

Most women seem to be in a constant period of transition trying to get one or two sizes down and wouldn't bother investing in clothes they may not get a lot of use out of.

Pound says its not true, even if ladies are in the transition period, they still want to look the best they can at that time in their lives.

If they're not planning on changing they want to have clothes that flatter their curves and help them feel good just the way they are.

Another argument that some use to justify the gap is that it costs more for the use of fabric, and charging more for the sizes would continue to segregate them and cause a huge frenzy.

Pound has no issue debating the lack of logic here, because if you make apparel from a size one to a size ten there's still a difference in fabric use and the cost is the average.

She talks about how adding a few more sizes may raise the average price but it would also open up the market.

You can tell from the in-depth way Pound has thought everything through, she knows what she's doing.

She's going to wait a bit between collections though and look for a partner before she starts her next line. It's a lot of work and she would like someone who has the same vision for the label as she does.

She may not do all the manufacturing herself, but as her ideal market she knows exactly what she wants, and makes it happen.


more information @ http://www.fleur-f.com/ or http://www.facebook.com/pages/Fleur-Feminine/

KaaDiki (Haithem Elkadiki)

After moving to Calgary in '91 then moving to Toronto and moving back, Haithem Elkadiki has a lot to show for himself.

Designing his menswear line, KaaDiki, since 2004, Elkadiki uses music as his biggest inspiration.

While talking about his latest collection, he mentions he received most of his influence from a Pet Shop Boys soundtrack that was made for the Russian silent film Battleship Potemkin.

You can see it in his F/W 2010 line, it's military-esque with that old school boyish charm.

Elkadiki says he can get his inspiration from anywhere though including museums, travelling, and restaurants but "music is the big thing for sure".

When he talks about the men he designs for, he mentions himself.

"I start with me and what I want to wear and how things feel," he says.

He prefers his clothing to be a little closer to the body, saying that his clothes are designed for men who are more body conscious and who take care of themselves, because these clothes are going to fit tighter.

His lines change like him, they are a constant evolution that change based on what he likes and what he wants, because his tastes also change as he gets older, so his style should too.

"Have more people wear my clothes, have it on more bodies," says Elkadiki when asked about what his goals are, keeping it very straight forward and simple.

Talking about the fashion scene in Calgary, he has the same reaction most designers in the city do, it's still young and a lot more needs to be done.

"Buyers and stores need to do more research and look after the community better."

He thinks consumers in Calgary need to appreciate it more, and have more respect for fashion.

Elkadiki doesn't plan on going anywhere soon though.

"Sure it would help if you lived somewhere like Toronto or Montreal where everything is more accessible," he says.

In the meantime though he's quite content to keep designing in Calgary.


more info @ http://www.kaadiki.com/

Pout Clothing (Kirsten Summergill)

Always one to be spontaneous, Kirsten Summergill dove in headfirst when she started Pout Clothing back in May.

When talking about the process it takes to put it all together she mentions locking herself in a room for two weeks. This is when she decides what fabrics she's going to use and how everything's going to flow together.

The process of designing a line is a long and hectic one. Large amounts of preparation, time, and energy going into every little stitch.

"Sometimes I'm sewing in a zipper and thinking, why am I doing this," Summergill says with a smile.

Of all the pieces she designs she likes making dresses the most. "Their easier for women to shop for," she explains, saying a dress is much less complicated than trying to find an entire outfit to put together.

Most of Summergill's inspiration comes from the fabric she uses, which is all Canadian made. She's buys all of her textiles out of Vancouver and even her leather's are Canadian trapped.

Her ideal customer is more of a student, someone who goes out on weekends, maybe parties.

"I want to make crazy stuff," she says, "but at the same time I got to make money."

She's a smart girl who welcomes feedback, and knows that what the customer likes is very important, sometimes more important than what she likes.

In the first line she did, the hems were very short, so now she's thinking about making them a little longer.

Everything she knows she learned from an internship she did at Broken Doll Clothing.

"If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be where I was right now," Summergill says about Leah Bohnet, owner of Broken Doll Clothing.

Right now Summergill has her outfits in four stores, three in and around Calgary and one in Vancouver.

On top of everything right now she's taking on sewing for another line, Gypsy Renegade.

"I'm used to more structured clothing, this is a first doing flowy items," she says about the lines clothes. Summergill thinks she can learn a lot from her and build on her experience.

Not one to turn down an opportunity, she always makes the most of what she's doing. With a serious passion for what she does, and a strong foundation Summergill has what it takes to make it.

More information @ www.poutclothing.ca

A Shift in Style (Lori Lasko, April 16 2010)

The Tim Horton’s on 17^th avenue was busy on a Wednesday afternoon. Lori Lasko had just finished classes for the day and was sitting down for a quick bite to eat with her steeped tea.

“My dad thought I was crazy,” said Lasko, he kept asking her how she and her common-law husband were going to pull off just living on one income while she went back to school.

After she was laid off from her marketing job in the oil and gas industry in January of 2008, she wasn’t sure what to do. Lasko said she couldn’t decide if she was going to move back home to Winnipeg, or stay and find another job in Calgary. Or, she thought, she could finally do something she really loved.

                “I’ve always loved watching people putting themselves together,” Lasko said, talking about her love of fashion and people.

                Lasko is this year’s student fashion event coordinator for the Olds College fashion marketing fashion show this weekend. “I basically work with all the committees, make sure they’re staying on track, and just overlook everything.”

                She works with some of the instructors for the course that help her with the planning, and so far getting ready for the show has been a really positive experience.

                “Sometimes it takes a life change to really sit down and search your soul and figure out what really makes you tick,” said Lasko.

When she was laid off one of her biggest inspirations to finally make a break into the fashion industry was the show “Ugly Betty”. She loves the show, and loved how passionate the people on the show were about their jobs. “My biggest regret is that I didn’t do it 20 years ago,” said Lasko.

                When she started researching fashion courses she would like to take, the one at Olds College seemed like the right one. She had already been in the marketing business for seven years so this seemed right to her.

                So far she has really been enjoying the course that is only eight months long, and is really excited about what she is doing. The course is fashion oriented but with a focus on management, retail, and the business side of fashion.

                “I don’t sew, I don’t like it, and I don’t want to know how,” said Lasko with a smile. She’s more interested in marketing and maybe one day being a buyer. “I would love to be a fashion buyer, travelling all the European markets.”

                She thinks it sounds like such a glamorous job, shopping all the time, but she knows there’s more to it such as paper work. There’s working with the planner and of course budgeting, but she said she would overlook those parts and still enjoy it no matter what.

                “I’ll probably start in marketing, because I have the experience, and make my wishes known,”

said Lasko. “That’s my plan.”

                If she lands something high fashion she would like to work for a place like Holt Renfrew.  Something a little lower fashion but an all around good ethical company she would like to work for would be Mark’s Work WareHouse.

                “She would be good at a PR position and has skills already in marketing,” said Leslie Howard, “so any position as co-ordinator of events or fashion marketing where dealing with the public and media would be excellent for her.”

                Howard is an Administrative/Instructional Assistant at the Olds College Calgary Campus and has been working closely with Lasko these past few weeks in dealing with their upcoming fashion show.

                She’s hardworking, dedicated, and very pleasant and sociable said Howard.

                When Lasko did job shadowing for her fashion course she was able to work with the marketing team for Mark’s Work WearHouse for two afternoons. She really liked working with the team saying it was a very positive experience.

                With the course all students have to do four different job shadows.

Along with working with the marketing team, Lasko also shadowed an image consultant for a company called Style File. She was able to use a lot of what she learned in her image consulting class but was still taught a lot about how to dress for your body type.

                Image consulting is also one of her favourite classes, along with organizational behaviour and trend forecasting. She found trend forecasting to be really fascinating which is about how they decide what’s in style. Sitting their gushing about how much she enjoyed the class it really showed in the way she had put herself together.

                A green spring jacket accented by her purple tote bag and pulled together with a purple blouse and floral, light scarf, showed that she knew what she was talking about, as she stood out from all the other customers sitting in the coffee shop.

                The one class she really could have done without was the computer class, she stated. It was an extra course on top of the others and was just a refresher of stuff she already knew. Although she now knows Microsoft word very well she said showing a positive outlook.

                 In one of her classes she was able to experience working with paper mache to create props. “I have all these props sitting around my house that don’t match anything, but I don’t want to throw them out,” said Lasko, speaking about the clutter created by all the projects they do, such as prop making, presentation boards, and even designing display tables.

                On the off moment she’s not busy memorizing retail terms or working on presentations, she loves hanging out with her puppy Carlos, an English Russel Terrier. “I’m into any activities involving dogs, I used to have him in agility training until he hurt his back,” said Lasko.

                To top it all off Lasko has done a serious amount of travelling which she hopes to continue once she’s done school. “My heart is in Mexico, I love Mexico. When I go out there I live with the locals.”

                She has friends who live in Mexico which enable her to live with the locals when she travels there, and she loves Paraguay describing it as majestic.

One of the many breathtaking sights she observed while travelling was the Igauzu falls. “We’re hiking through the jungle, and then we came to this waterfall in the middle of nowhere,” said Lasko. She said it’s not like the little falls in the Rockies that it is more the size of the Niagara Falls.

It’s easy to tell how much she loves travelling, when Lasko talks about it her eyes light up and she gets very into it, using her hands to help her describe what she’s saying.

“I’ve sent out some resumes and I feel pretty positive about them,” said Lasko. She’s put out notices in Vancouver, sent a resume to Miama, and signed up for a Florida jobsite as well. She doesn’t care where she is as long as she’s doing what she’s passionate about.

After an hour of sitting and chatting she’s off again getting back to her daily routine. With the fashion show coming up on the weekend she’s a very busy woman.