FIVE BASIC PIECES
Kathleen Todoruk fashions a style
Fashion or function? How about both? This month, veteran Edmonton designer Kathleen Todoruk is releasing her newest collection, 5 Cut Core, comprised of five staple pieces in a range of fabrics and colours, that can be tailored to fit any woman.
“The idea is for women to have the five basics to go to that they can build upon,” says Todoruk. “They’re really great-quality essentials that are custom fit to them.” The five pieces include a pencil skirt, a basic blouse, a sleeveless dress (available with sleeves for the fall), a trouser and a topcoat-style jacket that can be worn both indoors and out.
Todoruk has been a clothing designer in Edmonton for more than 20 years. She graduated in 1992 from the University of Alberta’s faculty of home economics (now human ecology) and launched her first collection that year. Her studio, located in the Mercer Warehouse (#201 10359 104th St.), has serviced clients from Juno nominee Chloe Albert to television executives, as well as everyday moms and business women.
She still does couture, but Todoruk has departed from it with this collection because “people freak out that it’s going to be extremely expensive.”
5 Cut Core takes an off-the-rack approach and blends it with bespoke fashion. All of the pieces are already drafted. Once a customer chooses a piece, Todoruk and her team chalk out the custom lines right on the textile and customize it to the client’s measurements and fabric preference. In contrast, couture clothing is designed from ground zero and takes much longer to make. You can see her work at todoruk.com.
Q Why did you create 5 Cut Core?
A Women are always looking for a great trouser, a nice pencil skirt, things I’ve been hearing from clients over the years, and it’s never quite right. It’s the reason why maybe a piece gets bypassed in their closet, or else it’s donated or never worn and that’s not really sustainable. So, why not invest a little bit more than you normally would when it’s going to last you a heck of a lot longer and you’re going to love that piece, and you’re going to pair it with whatever is fun or trendy or cheap. It’s meant to be a very versatile collection and you can buy whatever parts of the collection you need the most.
Q Have you done anything like this before?
A No, I haven’t actually. I feel kind of silly that it’s taken me this long to figure out that’s what’s missing. Maybe there’s somebody out there who’s done it, but not that I know of in this city. Q How does pricing work? A The freedom in it is that you can have the design made out of whatever you want. We’ll offer fabrics within a specific price point and then if you want something that’s even more beautiful, if you want a cotton that is completely crease-free and all those wonderful things, there are cottons that we can offer you, but the price point will be a little bit more. Trousers, we’re probably looking at sitting around $320. So, that’s a partially lined wool trouser, custom cut. $210 for a wool skirt.
Q What is the timeline for a piece?
A Typically, I’d like the wait time for a client to be probably no longer than up to two weeks, preferably a week and a half. It depends on their schedule too, but I like the turnaround to be fairly quick, because we’ve already got the patterns drafted and graded.
Q How can someone try on the collection?
A It’ll be on display here in the studio. Just drop an email (todorukdesigns@shaw.ca) or call 587521-2691. As long as people give about a 15-minute heads up, it’s 99-per-cent totally fine.
Q What have you noticed about how people dress in the city?
A I’m downtown the other day at the bank and I’m just looking around, and it’s a sea of black and grey and people who are just down and hiding in their clothes. And it’s like, what does it take to inject more into it? I figured OK, if I start off with strong pieces and encourage people and draw them into the world with really safe pieces, they won’t feel as terrified.