Fashion

Fashion

FASHION designer giveaway: Enter to win this dress by Paul Hardy

2012 marks FASHION Magazine’s 35th Anniversary! To celebrate, each issue, we’re pairing up with a different Canadian who is also celebrating a milestone. We invite our readers to enter for their chance to WIN the designers’ featured show pieces. Good luck!

Enter to win this dress by Paul Hardy »
Watch our behind the scenes video with Paul Hardy »
Read our interview with the designer »

Hardy Boy: Canadian designer Paul Hardy celebrates 10 years in fashion and pays his respects to a pivotal collection.
By Sarah Casselman

A church, an antique shop and a ballet school—when it comes to runway show venues, Paul Hardy’s eclectic choices share the quiet sophistication of his namesake ready-to-wear label, with its shredded silk evening skirts, LBDS, shearling vests and trademark neutral palette. Since this 39-year-old Calgary-based designer debuted his first collection in 2002, he has expanded his empire to include a limited-edition fine jewellery collection comprising Canadian cer- tified diamonds and a handmade Irish knitwear line named Paul Hardy Kaille (pronounced “kai”). In 2007, he opened his first freestanding boutique in Calgary, and in 2011 he designed the costumes for the Alberta Ballet’s Fumbling Towards Ecstasy. Diversity is the name of his game. When he puts down the needle and thread, Hardy devotes his time to humanitarian work in Africa and to Fergus, the German short-haired pointer he calls “the great love of my life.”

What do you enjoy most about the design process?
“Visually telling a story as it relates to the current life lesson I am personally experiencing.”

What is the inspiration behind your fall collection?
“Paradoxical freedom—do some of the beliefs we possess truly set us free or are they the very matter that binds us?”

Who sparked your interest in fashion?
“Aside from my belief that it is innate, one of my biggest influences early on was my grade 6 teacher, Irene Kocsis- Bolt. She always looked like she’d stepped out of the pages of Vogue.”

Describe a defining moment of your career.
“I staged a mock funeral at the Church of the Redeemer in Toronto for my Fall 2006 show. The models were mourners of the dearly departed, and Measha Brueggergosman sang gospel spirituals a cappella.”

What’s next for the Paul Hardy brand?
“I am working on a handbag collection, made-to-measure boots and an e-commerce site for my knitwear and accessories. I’m also setting up an office in Paris to manage overseas production.”

How will you celebrate your 10th anniversary?
“I am planning a special showing in Toronto, and I’m relocating and expanding my atelier in Calgary. The grand reopening will be in September.”

Photography by Colin Way; hair and makeup by Teslin Ward. Dress, $1,095, belt, $245, gloves, $225, and cuffs, from $245, all by Paul Hardy. Shoes, models own.