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NEWS
RELEASES - 2006 | 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
EMERGING DESIGNERS HAVE CHANCE TO EXPOSE
THEMSELVES, AND VANCOUVER’S DESIGN CRED, AT WHISTLER FASHION
SHOWCASE
Finalists in Designer Search and Expose
contest reveal themes of sexy, sustainability and spunk.
WHISTLER, BC , 13 March 2007 – One of four
Vancouver-based fashion labels will get the launch of a lifetime
this spring at the TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival.
Togs Designs, Twice Shy, Third Floor Designs and Megan Franklin are finalists
in the inaugural Designer Search and Expose contest, a quest
for the freshest local design talent in BC.
Based on an online response to the online showcase of their designs at www.whistler2007.com/2007/fashion/searchandexpose.php < http://www.whistler2007.com/2007/fashion/searchandexpose.php > ,
the grand finalist will receive free travel and accommodation to Whistler and
a Wild Card spot in the Schick Xtreme 3 Fashion Exposed show
April 20.
There, the Designer Search and Expose winner will join 18
leading lifestyle brands slopeside for Fashion Exposed , the
style-savvy showcase of snowsports, street style and mountain life at the TELUS
World Ski & Snowboard Festival. The line-up, set to include Burton, Peak
Performance, Roxy, Quiksilver, Lifetime Collective, Helly Hansen, tna, Salomon,
DC, 686, Bonfire Snowboarding Company, Oakley, Rossignol, and Zimtstern, spotlights
the latest in action sport and urban chic clothing in a tightly choreographed
sensory assault.
The Designer Search & Expose finalists were chosen by
a Contest Review panel made up of industry players Carolyn Simons ,
Clothing Designer for Volcom; Ross Hill , Managing Partner for Hill’s
of Kerrisdale, Rick Rayburn Menswear & Blue Ruby; Deanne Gale ,
Snowboard Soft Goods Buyer for Whistler Blackcomb; Andrea Murray ,
Clothing Inventor for Lululemon Athletica; Anne Morris , Academic
Director of Fashion Design & Merchandising at the Art Institute of Vancouver
and Mark Little , Lead Merchant for Abercrombie & Fitch Boys and
Hollister Dudes Vintage Shorts, Pants and Surfwear.
The four finalists are:
Togs Design -- The Burnaby-based founder of Togs Design, Tabitha
Savoie , graduated from the Fashion Arts Program at Vancouver Community
College in 2001. A New Year’s Eve party creation of fleece legwarmers
prompted critical acclaim amongst fellow-revelers and inspired her to launch
into a new year project of her own design collective, Togs Design. Following “booties” with
artwork for tshirts, Savoie kept adding to her skill-set, becoming a self-taught
screenprinter, t-shirt pattern drafter, then launching a full collection at
the “Understated” fashion show in November 2003. Togs continues
to add to its line with each season, building a repertoire of wearable art. Reviewer
Carolyn Simons said that the line was “very well put together as a collection,
tying together silhouettes, colours and accessories.” D Gale agreed that
it would be “fun and easy to merchandise in a retail store.”
Megan Franklin Designs –- When her fashion school director
emailed her about the Designer Search and Expose contest, Megan Franklin, now
based in Burnaby, went into a frenzied four-week production cycle of sketching,
pattern-making, sewing and photo-shooting to create a ready-made line. It wasn’t
a stretch for a girl who’s made her grade 7 prom dress. After graduating
with a diploma in fashion design from Blanche Macdonald, she worked as an assistant
designer for a Vancouver clothing company, moved to Cranbrook to turn her Dad’s
two car garage into a mini clothing factory, took some business courses, sold
her designs in Fernie and Victoria, and put on fashion shows in Vernon and
Fernie. Currently, she’s soaking up inspiration from the city and
hustling up to Whistler whenever she can. The review panel liked her “attention
to detail” (Carolyn Simons) and her willingness to challenge herself
by “designing garments with a greater level of pattern making and construction
difficulty” (Anne Morris.)
Twice Shy – Jen McCormack is a self-taught graphic
designer who burst the bubble of ski resort life after five years of shredding
and serving, to own her own business and provide fashion conscious folk with
modern, earth-friendly style solutions. Her company, Twice Shy, started with
partner Michael Ziff, was born out of a personal fashion dilemma : a desire
to wear cool, urban clothes made from organically grown and sustainable fabrics.
No one else had anything to offer. So they started their own fashion label.
Recently launched is organic kids line, Fig. Currently available at the Twice
Shy store on Manitoba Street, Vancouver. McCormack’s out to prove to
the world that sustainability is sexy. Reviewer Mark Little agreed, commenting
that Twice Shy’s submissions were “very simple yet very cool. Love
the organic feel without going granola”.
Third Floor Designs – A boutique lingerie design company,
Third Floor Designs has been creating lingerie that allows women to express
themselves, from the inside out, since 2003. Intentionally blurring the lines
between underwear and outerwear, Third Floor Designs is entirely Vancouver-based,
and headquartered on West Hastings. Founders Brenda Li and Tiffany Ho
have combined Li’s design chops (studies in Clothing and Textiles at
UBC and design at New York’s Parsons School of Design) with Ho’s
buying savvy to find their own niche. They were recently featured on
CBC Venture’s Dreamers and Schemers and have twice been nominated for
the Fashion Export Awards. Reviewer D Gale praised their use of colour and
textures, and Andrea Murray commented on their professional execution – “sellable
and sexy.”
On-line voting for the grand finalist started yesterday and will end Monday
March 26, 2007 at 5pm.
The TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival is produced by Watermark
Communications, a Whistler sports & entertainment marketing company, and
presented in partnership with Tourism Whistler and Whistler Blackcomb. Founded
by W1’s Doug Perry twelve years ago, it is now the largest annual winter
sports and music festival in North America. The TELUS World Ski & Snowboard
Festival is a high-octane 10 day and night showcase of the best of snowsports,
music, arts and mountain life. Featuring major professional ski and snowboarding
competitions, the largest free outdoor concert series in Canada, the legendary
Pro Photographer and Filmmaker Showdowns, and many more unique art and cultural
showcases, the Festival is the ultimate wrap party for the ultimate winter. For
information on the 2007 TELUS World Ski and Snowboard Festival , this
year from April 13-22, visit whistler2007.com.
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Lisa Richardson
Communications Manager
Tel: 604 938 3399 x21
Email: lrichardson@watermarkinc.ca
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