Where are you from and where are you based right now?
I am originally from Canada, born in the city of Guelph, Ontario – but moved to Toronto to attend the fashion design program at Ryerson Polytechnic University (one of the most well known fashion programs in Canada) and I will forever consider Toronto my home.
Where am I now? After living and working in Toronto for nearly two decades, the universe just seemed to be pushing (and pulling) me in a different direction. I made the permanent move to Italy at the end of 2019 – partially for love and partially out of practicality. And since I am half Italian, one of my dreams has always been to live, work and take part in the everyday culture of what it means to be Italian. So I live in Tuscany now with my partner, who is Italian – we met in Florence when I was attending a Masters program at Polimoda. Needless to say, it just made sense for us both to be living in Italy and the timing could not have been more perfect. I really could not think of a more beautiful place to be situated while navigating the current world crisis – surrounded by olive trees, nature, amazing fresh food, cheap coffee, wine, beautiful architecture, history...seriously, I feel I am living in a dream land.
Can you tell us what it is you do?
As a creative soul, with many passions, I have a hard time explaining what it is exactly “I do” – but in short – I am a trend forecaster and fashion designer with the side-hustle as a YouTuber. I have over 17 years of experience in the fashion industry, I have worked in a variety of roles as: design manager for a factory facility, creative technical designer for a corporate company where I specialised in Outerwear, assistant designer and design liaison for an evening wear company and assisted an Italian tailor in Italy. I have owned and operated 2 businesses including my namesake women’s wear brand that won a few awards and features in magazines (Elle Canada New Label of 2009, was a finalist in the Mercedes-Bens Start-Up Plan competition, and was considered one of the top 25 Canadian designers in Canada in 2011 featured in Flare magazine). Similarly, I have supported the launch of several successful brands as a design consultant, by managing the full development process from trend research and design, to sample construction, and final production.
And yes I am also a YouTuber (isn’t everyone?); but I like to think my channel, LTRL Trend, is not your typical sewing channel – we do things a bit different. For one, my sense of humour while sewing is pretty goofy, or at least the way the edit is done, it makes for funny content. When you watch my videos, you can sense I love what I do because it is authentically me. But besides putting a spin on a boring topic, the channel is dedicated to empowering our audience by providing straightforward instructions and solutions to many beginner problems.As a creative soul, with many passions, I have a hard time explaining what it is exactly “I do” – but in short – I am a trend forecaster and fashion designer with the side-hustle as a YouTuber. I have over 17 years of experience in the fashion industry, I have worked in a variety of roles as: design manager for a factory facility, creative technical designer for a corporate company where I specialised in Outerwear, assistant designer and design liaison for an evening wear company and assisted an Italian tailor in Italy. I have owned and operated 2 businesses including my namesake women’s wear brand that won a few awards and features in magazines (Elle Canada New Label of 2009, was a finalist in the Mercedes-Bens Start-Up Plan competition, and was considered one of the top 25 Canadian designers in Canada in 2011 featured in Flare magazine). Similarly, I have supported the launch of several successful brands as a design consultant, by managing the full development process from trend research and design, to sample construction, and final production.
And yes I am also a YouTuber (isn’t everyone?); but I like to think my channel, LTRL Trend, is not your typical sewing channel – we do things a bit different. For one, my sense of humour while sewing is pretty goofy, or at least the way the edit is done, it makes for funny content. When you watch my videos, you can sense I love what I do because it is authentically me. But besides putting a spin on a boring topic, the channel is dedicated to empowering our audience by providing straightforward instructions and solutions to many beginner problems.
and how you got into it?
How did I get into fashion design/trend forecasting/Youtub-ing? Well, I am not sure “how” exactly I got into fashion because fashion to me, is like walking. I never really thought of “getting into fashion” the way one picks a career arbitrarily as kid – I just somehow knew one day that I was going to be a fashion designer and then I just was.
Fashion has always been that creative outlet for me, a way to interpret the world and bring it to life through a 3D wearable object. I was pretty-much-self-taught on the sewing machine at age 10, by way of manipulating my dad’s old clothes on my body, I began to reimagine styles I envisioned for myself (and my Barbie’s). All of my skills and talents as a kid assisted in the path toward becoming who I am today.
Trend Forecasting is something that came later in life when I received a full scholarship to the prestigious Polimoda in Florence, Italy for the Trend Forecasting Masters program. I wanted to be on the other side of fashion where the change begins! Fashion design starts with researching and forecasting and many designers look to the forecasters to direct them with colour, silhouette and concept themes for the up coming seasons – usually predicting up to the next 5 years.
As for YouTubing, I never thought in a million years I would be publically broadcasting myself; however, I have come to love teaching online – and I am excited to announce here, there will be further developments of the “FASHN GURU” into an online Academy launching within the next year.
Where did you learn your technical skill?
For the most part, sewing just came naturally to me and I began teaching myself on the sewing machine at a very young age. Much of my technical skill started out from my failures – seriously! It’s like never knowing the rules to a game, and in order to get better, you have fail many times over. There is no straight pathway toward becoming “good” at what you love to do without having those challenges – they are the essential building blocks to success in any new endeavour.
Although I would like to take full credit of innately acquiring my sewing skills, I would have to acknowledge the influence of my Italian grandmother (now, in her 101st year of life and is one of my biggest fans as she watches my YouTube videos on repeat). She taught me the importance of measuring and the details of tailoring to the body. A memory I recall well, is a time she helped me alter a pair of pants I had made; they were too big (because I was just learning how to read a pattern and didn’t know that the ease was much bigger than the finished “body” measurements), so she showed me that by taking-in each seam evenly (according to the measurement you want your finished body measurement) you should have a good fit. I wore those pants to my Ryerson admissions interview and felt very proud – I got early acceptance into the fashion program and I might contribute that success to those pants.
So, besides my grandmother, my failures, and my formal University Fashion degree, I learnt my hand-sewing skills from an internship I did with a Tailor in Florence, Italy. I had moved to Italy to pursue an internship in 2010 – even though I had already been working in a fashion career for 5 years at that point and had just started my own namesake collection (2009) – I sought to gain hands-on experience with couture techniques. It was a one-man tailor shop in the heart of Florence and everything we made was hand-drafted, hand-cut and samples were all hand-sewn. These techniques are a dying art these days, but many can be found on my YouTube channel.
Thinking about re-use, recycling and repairing how do you see sewing as a skill contributing to sustainability?
Today, I think fashion brands have lost their sense of wonder – their sense of innovation. Fashion is now seen as products to “sell-through” with the following year having to “out-do” the last. There is so much emphasis on more, when there is already “more” in circulation. However, knowing and understanding the root of the problem, we can collectively transform old standards – right? Ultimately, that was my objective for studying trend forecasting, to be on the other side of the design process and to be a voice for change. Because once you understand where the market trends are headed, you can infuse new concepts and recharge the industry standards with innovative ideas that can ultimately be the driver of firsthand trends towards sustainability.
My YouTube channel, LTRL trend is only a small step toward ‘laterally’ shifting that consciousness. In fact, the brand started out of frustration! I didn’t want to be driven by industry politics and old systems that bogged me down in my creativity – I already did that when I was working in a corporate fashion job. I saw the mass-production and over-consumption directly contributing to the landfill and lining the pockets of the profiteers. I hated being apart of this nonsensical cycle of waste; I wanted to be apart of the solution!
We have grown further and further away from understanding the process of “making” and the YouTube channel (and soon-to-be online sewing Academy) teaches you valuable lessons that can inspire community transformation by taking responsibility of your own “making” process – and at a larger scale – industry change! That’s the hope anyway - to empower everyone out there who also feels that same frustration with the industry.
Re-using, re-making and repairing is not only saving the objects you love from landfill, but you are directly giving those objects “love” – a new lease on life. And maybe by taking what you learn from my channel, you might become more sentimental knowing you took the time to reimagine a well-loved garment into something new.
Although we assume you are encouraging an emphasis on reuse and on extending the life of clothing, if we accept that a lot of clothing will end up being recycled, do you have ideas about how fashion designers themselves might create clothing that is easier to recycle in the first instance and from the beginning of the design process?
YES! There are quit a few designers already thinking about the lifecycle of their products and really causing a ripple effect, because others are taking notice. Again, I think that in order to shift out of these “old” patterns of “cradle to grave” we need to collectively discard this longstanding mentality of just consuming out of convenience. The same goes for the fashion industry, it IS more convenient, cost effective and more profitable to make a product that will live only one season; less time in the design process, lower priced fabric, and faster production methods – which means more sell through, better return on investment per season and faster turn-around time. On the other side of that coin, there is less loyalty to the brand, no longevity, and the products are usually discarded within the year. The brands that are focusing on quality and bringing back this idea of “process” over product, are brands like: Freitag, the brand started with a product to re-use discarded truck traps for one-of-kind bags and they have expanded into making their own “F-abric” apparel collection that is 100% biodegradable in your composter. All of the production stages take place within a 2500-kilometer radius of their factory in Zurich, which cuts the costs, time and speed by more than half. This really is the future of fashion; if all brands started thinking about the COMPLETE life cycle before the development process we would have a much simpler and more sustainable product in the end. This way of thinking of fashion in a circular way has been talked about for over two decades, Corporate Social Responsibility is not a new term; but it always seemed that convenience and competition out-weighed any benefits to CSR. To really implement change– it all starts from the very beginning of that cycle. And if you cannot find textiles that suit sustainability methods, do like Freitag did - invent them!
Do you think it’s possible to separate the overall idea of changing styles that has long been the raison d’etre of fashion from the model of fast-fashion? For instance, maybe an emphasis on talking up the regurgitation of what could be said to be timeless vintage styles could be beneficial to encourage the repair of older clothes as opposed to seeing them go to landfill. That way fashion would maybe still get the desire to change styles more frequently than need dictates at the same time as reducing the waste of too quickly discarded styles. Might such an idea form part of your thinking or do you see the desire to change styles in fashion as problematic more generally?
This way of thinking is infused in the way I design; when I had my namesake collection of ready-to wear, there were a few pieces in the collection that were designed specifically with the intention that the wearer could manipulate the style in 15 different ways (with one piece of clothing). There were also classics in the collection as well: because classic pieces are evergreen; however, I found that these versatile pieces that were able to change between seasons and mood of the wearer– these were ALWAYS the best sellers! I also think that you can have a minimal wardrobe (that focuses on quality and not quantity) and still be forever changing your combinations. This idea of circular fashion is slowly making its way to the forefront; which I am super excited about - it takes fashion to a whole new level and I hope that the industry will follow suit with further innovations into textile technology.
(*Did I answer your question?)
What do you think of the various apps out there, which have started to encourage a second hand market via the smartphone?
I think it is great to see that there is a trend for second-hand and any disruption to the mass production system of the fashion industry is a good thing. It’s also nice to see people value either buying thrift or thrift flipping their finds. Although I still question the credible sources of those pieces on those apps – are they just being sold by fast-fashion brands or are they legitimately a piece that has been handed down? I dunno, I personally do not use any of these websites; I like the thrill of the find in real-time rather than having it being shipped to me (which is also a question of sustainability?).
There is an app called “Good On You” to help you in your research to distinguish if a company is really sustainable or if they are just using the “s-word” to green-wash their company image. I have found so many corporate fashion companies that are known to be big polluters talking about sustainability, but it is just that – all talk. Zara and H&M are prime examples – they can never be sustainable companies because they have built their business model – the foundation of their products on this quick to market model.
Beyond the apps, this movement towards swapping is picking up speed in the second- hand sector. In fact, there are swapping parties and boutiques dedicated to swapping only. There are meeting areas for swapping communities in Canada called BUNZ – started as a Facebook group and turned into a nation wide app, to swap anything you don’t want with others that are searching for the you are giving away.
Your YouTube channel shows that you spend a lot of time using tools in your work, sewing machines, scissors, etc. What are the most important tools in your daily work?
Surprisingly, I do not use my sewing tools daily, but if I were to be using my sewing tools. My top 3 tools I cannot live without when I am working:
1. My Juki sewing machine (for obvious reasons),
2. Clear drafting ruler
3. My small clippers (scissors)
And my favourite place to buy all my supplies is a store in downtown Toronto called “Leather & Sewing Supply Depot” – they ship internationally!
Why did you decide to get into YouTube-ing, what were the technical skills you found yourself using for this and do you see any parallels between making videos and making clothes?
My partner, who is a videographer, was the one who encouraged me to start a YouTube channel. We were going to Peru to start a brand so we thought the channel would be a good promotion for the collection and a good way to connect the consumer with the makers. To be honest, I never thought of becoming a YouTuber, speaking in front of the camera is not my thing; however, when I am behind a sewing machine it seems to come naturally. Conversely, the diversion to sewing tutorials happened organically while filming some b-roll for a resume video – which actually was a joke at first, but turned out to be my first YouTube video for the FASHN GURU. The sewing videos were getting great reviews and many more views than my other content. When I researched further into sewing tutorials on YouTube (you know, I needed to know the competition), it seemed as though NO one was presenting sewing in a way that was fun, easy and simplified. Even when I watch a video tutorial on sewing, I am usually left confused and/or bored – like, “get to the point already”. No offense to all the sewing teachers out there, it just seems as though sewing as a “bad rap” for being boring and a hobby for grandmas – its just no the case. Through my videos I hope to breath new life into sewing, spark joy in someone’s day or empower the viewer to take charge of their own “making” process.
As I mentioned my partner does all the technical stuff for the videos, although I know how to edit and shot a video I would much rather be doing my thing in front of the camera.
The parallels with filming and making clothes would be loads of patience. Nothing comes easy, although as experts in our field we make it look easy – that’s the beauty of doing what you love.
We watch a lot of YT tutorials, often just out of interest. YT is an accepted way of learning nowadays and we’re old enough to remember when this kind of information was much less accessible. What do you think about this as a new way to pick up skills maybe in comparison to how you learned to sew?
In comparison to the way I was taught in my University days, the formulas are well drawn-out and formally tested. Our professors would also show us examples and we would be instructed to follow with a hands-on practical assignment. Designing fashion is very technical, in some cases garments need an engineering degree (joking, but not joking) to make structures stand, or sit a certain way. I am not saying a fashion degree is the “right” way; it is all up to the person on how they learn best.
In my opinion, the best way to learn is by doing, whether that is a hands-on internship, an online sewing course (whink), or taking garments apart and putting them back together. It is in the action of “doing” and making mistakes that we cement our knowledge. In fact, the majority of my learning happened out of my failures. As a young aspiring designer, I made many mistakes that transformed into valuable lessons. That is what I find different these days, YouTube makes it far too easy to give you the answers, than having to go search for the answer by failing. Don’t get me wrong; YouTube is a great platform for sharing knowledge – I just think that the pool of knowledge contributes to fewer acceptances to failure. And I don’t know if you know, but the fashion industry is all about failure!
Your video on how to thread up a domestic sewing machine brought back memories for me - in the UK in the late eighties/early nineties, sewing was taught in schools, it was referred to as domestic science, then. We had to make our own apron; mine was a fetching red gingham number . Threading the machine was a nightmare for me and inspired fear for some reason, have you found that there are some skills you are asked to talk about again and again?
I had to sew up an apron too! It might be one of those staple projects, like the tote bag or pillowcase? I wonder why threading up a sewing machine had inspired fear in you?
But yes, there are so many details to know about sewing machines – back-tack, stitch length, basting stitch vs. stay stitch, serge, edge stitch, thread stack, bobbin tension, needle gauge, etc. When you are first starting out, it can be pretty daunting to know all of these terms; which is why I put a course together with the soul purpose to untangle many of those confusions - revealed in my “Foundations” section in the online FASHN Guru Beginner Course.
However, when it comes to skills that I have been asked to talk about again and again, it is the process of cutting out fabric. It seems easy enough, right? Nope! There are so many factors to consider when cutting out your pattern: fabric content, stretch-ability, weight, with-grain vs. bias, the type of scissors, pinning vs. weights, your position and direction of cutting. It is a tricky subject... so, no wonder this is the most popular and highly watched video on my YouTube channel (over 108K views).
Do you want to tell us a bit about your move into farming? How is it related, if at all, to your fashion work?
The move into farming was a conscious migration, out of necessity as well as a goal to be self-sufficient. I consider myself very lucky, since we live in the countryside where we have access to land, tools and the luxury of time to really go for it. Ever since the world crisis hit here in Italy, my partner and I have been fully focused on learning everything we can about growing our own food organically (without pesticides, hormones or herbicides) using methods such as agro-forestry and permaculture. We both didn’t know much about producing food, let alone the plants to grow in the correct season. It has been a huge learning curve, but I am very grateful to witness the magic of nature – the growth from seed to harvest.
In terms of how it relates to fashion, for me, fashion is a great deal about the planning process. To sourcing the textiles (content, price, quality), placing your product a the right time in the market, meeting the needs of the client and designing a product that is both valuable and wearable takes up much of the planning process. Farming is much of the same, one must take into account the: season, soil ph, and companion plants, what was previously planting in the area, sunlight, water source, and predators.
Both with fashion and farming, the movement towards sustainability is making conscious choses everyday - especially when it comes to the products we wear and the food we eat.