It makes sense that Eco Fashion Week is launching with a Vancouver line of athletic wear, because the coming week will feature an action-packed series of fashion events.
Get those sneakers on if you want to catch it all. It’s a week jammed with some interesting (and educational) shows that includes the April 9 opening night at 7pm with RYU (Respect Your Universe), an innovative and environmentally responsible minimalist athletic brand, at the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel.
Next up on April 11 (7:30pm) is the always-inventive Value Village thrift challenge. Three stylists get $500 each to come up with runway-worthy looks for the evening’s fashion show, which is always one of the fashion week favourites. That night will also include the The Visual College of Art and Design (VCAD) 81 Pound Challenge, also presented by Value Village. The challenge, formerly known as the 68-pound challenge, has been renamed to reflect the growing amount of clothing and textiles the average North American throws away each year. The brutal statistic serves as the inspiration for this fashion challenge, where VCAD design students will create a new collection from 81 pounds of gently-used fabrics, clothing, and accessories from Value Village stores.
Other highlights include Jeff Garner of Prophetik designs, traditional garments from New Delhi by Sonam Dubal, and a celebration of First Nations history with clothing designs by Wendy Van Riesen, in collaboration with international-celebrated Haida artist Reg Davidson.
“[We have] always wanted to work with the First Nations community,” Eco Fashion Week founder Myriam Laroche says. “I believe that aboriginal craft can become one of the solutions toward becoming eco-friendly for Canada.”
Another exciting change on the horizon includes an expansion for Eco Fashion Week. Along with its annual spring show in Vancouver, the team will also host an Eco Fashion Week in Seattle in the fall.
“Eco Fashion Week’s producer is based out of Seattle, so we always had it in mind to do something there,” explains Laroche, a onetime fashion retailer who was inspired to start Eco Fashion week as a way to raise awareness within the consumption-based fashion biz.
She praises the support of the Fairmont Waterfront, saying without the hotel’s help it would be impossible to have the event they have.
“It’s more than just a venue, it is really a partnership,” Laroche adds.
The Fairmont is even donating its linens to help the cause. The hotel industry goes through tons of bed linens each year, according to an Eco Fashion Week press release. In response, Eco Fashion Week is teaming up with the hotel for the Chic Sheets: The Bed Linen Challenge. Eight designers were selected, including 68-pound challenge alumni Tammy Joe from Young Oak, Evan Ducharme and Kim Cathers, to transform the used linens into fashionable, functional and editorial worthy looks inspired by haute couture fashion house Balmain’s 70 years of iconic design. The challenge will be unveiled on the runway on Sunday (April 10) then displayed at the Fairmont Waterfront on April 11 and 12 and at Pacific Centre, from April 14 to 30.
After 10 seasons, it seems Eco Fashion Week has become a fine-tuned operation that seamlessly merges the fun and frivolity of fashion with environmental awareness.
