Mon Dieu! Fashion Pop

Our intern checks out the coolest fashion show to take place in a church basement

By: Jenna Danchuk

Welcome to Église Pop—AKA the basement of the most bangin’ church in Montreal.

Expectations: In the days of yore, before I found myself interning at WORN, I was able to build many misconceptions about fashion and its industry. Hearing that Montreal’s Fashion Pop included a runway show had me believe I was entering some absurd world populated by that type of human seen primarily on America’s Next Top Model. Coming to fashion from an academic background, I was worried I’d feel awkward and out of place.

Forgive me, for I have sinned. Fashion POP is anything but your run of the mill runway romp.

Fashion Pop winner Christine Charlebois revelling in her victory

Reality: I was pretty surprised to find my nervous, fashion show virgin self back in the basement of the French Catholic church where I had downed vodka and Red Bull and danced until 4 a.m. while Peaches spun records in a giant titty-covered leotard only a few nights before. (Those of you dying to ask Is the Pop Catholic? I’ll have you know the event is totally secular. Also: shush.)

There was no snobbery at Fashion Pop—just cheap beer, house wine, and a good old-fashioned survival of the fittest competition.

This, I could handle.

Fashion Pop designer Marie Darsigny.

Montreal chic outside of Église Pop.

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Fashion Pop Returns

Start getting excited for one of our favourite annual Montreal events

By: Jenna Danchuk

Fashion POP, a component of the POP Montreal Festival, was created in 2008 as a means to bring attention to the emerging crowd of young designers surfacing in Montreal.

Six of Montreal’s most excellent and experimental designers will present their work to the fashion community, competing to win a fantastic prize package: a $1000 cash prize courtesy of Le Chateau, a pop-up show at Espace Pop, and of course, a four-page editorial spread in WORN. Most exciting of all? The event is totally free.

Pop on over to Église POP Salle Little Burgundy this Sunday, September 23, at 7 p.m. to see the event in action for the fourth year in a row. WORN will also have a table at Puces Pop on Saturday, September 22, and Sunday, September 23, at Église St. Michel, so come and say hi.

Vicky Dubois
Dubois’ self-titled clothing line makes use of volume, contrast, and simplistic shapes to create beautiful garments out of high quality natural materials. Her experience at Marie-Victorin College studying Fashion Design, as well as her time spent working with designer Clayton Evans of complexgeometries has allowed her to develop her sensible aesthetic.

Marie Darsigny
Inspired by dreamy teenage pop and kitsch, Marie Darsigny’s designs are fused with ’90s style, which she sells on her etsy shop, marie magie. Darsigny has completed degrees in Fashion Design and Communications, and fuses these loves together by writing for sites like xoJane and LezSpreadTheWord.com.

Christine Charlebois
Christine Charlebois is an award-winning designer whose minimalistic design creates maximal results. Developing her expertise in women’s conceptual clothing, Charlebois has worked with JEANPAULKNOTT in Brussels, and is currently the research assistant to Joanna Berzowska, an expert in the field of electronic textiles and responsive garments.

Danica Olders
Canadian fashion artist Dancia Olders is a recent graduate of NSCAD where she majored in Textiles and minored in Fashion. Her limited edition silk-screened clothing and jewellery line, The Lost City, is reflective, intricate and striking. Her body of work explores the concepts of time, money and the machine—elements that rule our lives in both inspiring and destructive ways.

Camille Forcherio
After working with swimwear for many years, as well as a gig doing made-to-measure tailoring, Forcherio broke out on her own to create her line MimiHammer. After three collections and her own line of swimwear, Forcherio’s feminine and romantic design continues to progress.

Duc C. Nguyen
Nguyen is currently completing his degree in Fashion Design at the École supérieure de mode at Université de Québec à Montréal, but his background in Architecture and Industrial Design make him no stranger to the world creative fabrication. Alongside his hands on work, he is also the Fashion and Trend Editor for MontrealStateOfMind.com.

images // courtesy of POP Montreal

Be A Fashion POPette

By: Haley Mlotek

Attention emerging designers! Fashion POP is once again searching for up-and-coming Montreal talent to participate in their sixth annual competition. Each designer will present a 6-look collection to a panel of industry judges for the chance to win a $1000 cash prize courtesy of Le Chateau, a spread in WORN Fashion Journal, and a pop-up showcase at Espace POP. Previous winners include Dane Richards, Norwegian Wood and Isabelle Campeau. For more information, visit their website.

E-mail a short bio, a description of your collection, and a minimum of 3 photos of your work to: fashion@popmontreal.com before August 19th at midnight.

Vintage POP

By: wornette

From the fine people who bring us POP Montreal every year comes another project close to our hearts. Vintage POP is a pop-up shop hosting some of the city’s best second-hand clothing curators under one roof. Featuring men’s and women’s clothing, the sale will have an array of amazing pieces spanning the ’20s to the ’90s, plus a selection of vintage housewares and accessories. These girls worked hard to find the most unique pieces, particularly duds that will keep us cozy as the temperatures start to drop.

Where To Go:
OFF Interarts (5145 St. Laurent, in Montreal), between Laurier and Fairmount. The nearest metro is Laurier.

When To Get There:
Wednesday, September 7th from 11-7
Thursday, September 8th from 11-9
Friday, September 9th from 11-9
Saturday, September 10th from 11-7

Participating Vendors:
Young Captive , New Wave Natives, FAD, Hunt Club, Megacat, Cheap Opulence, Caesar Pony, Tarantula Sisters, Homerun, YARD666SALE, YeYe Vintage

You can get a sneak peek by checking out some of the vendors’ websites, but trust us, it’ll look better in person. So get out there and support local businesses by bring all your friends, but only the ones who don’t wear the same dress size as you!

text by Natasha Bigioni
pictures from popmontreal.com