Montreal, Que -- One of Canada's foremost design talents, Loucas, is the gold medal winner of this year's North American Fur & Fashion Design Competition. Lia Crocetti for Looks Sportswear won silver, and Line Bussiere for Par Apparat took the bronze.
Loucas Kleanthous's talent has been described as bold and often outrageous, and this was recognized by the jury. Loucas presented a mink-lined nylon hooded jacket with mink collar, a tweed jacket reversible to nutria with nutria collar, and muskrat dyed, sheared and cut into corduroy tripping on heavy Lycra jacket, "...echoing the emotion of fur and giving it a new look."
Lia Crocetti for Looks Sportswear, silver medal winner, is a young, dynamic designer recognized in the contest for her three black nylon suits trimmed with mink, silver-tipped raccoon and nutria. Lia was inspired by the technical challenges of integrating fur and fabric into a new commercial look, asking, "How would a 30-year-old woman like me wear fur? It must be warm, sporty and comfortable, but it must also be exciting, practical and really original!"
The bronze medal went to Line Bussiere, rising star in fashion and costume circles. The only men's ready-to-wear collection finalist, Line Bussiere impressed the jury with her raincoat with detachable sheared muskrat vest, her vest and matching 3/4 car coat with sheared nutria and long herringbone coat with mink collar. "We had to adapt ourselves to a new way of working, which enabled us to discover the richness, the beauty and the feel of fur," she said.
Awards were presented at the North American Fur & Fashion Gala fashion show May 1 during the Montreal fair. The winning designers were awarded bursaries and promotional opportunities totalling $30,000 including cash awards of $8,000 for the gold, $5,000 for the silver and $2,000 for bronze medal winners.
This year the Fur Council of Canada, which sponsors the contest with the Federal Bureau of Regional Development (QC), plans to take the designers and their creations on tours of North America for promotional events in conjunction with charity functions coordinated with retailers.
Canada Majestic Mink, Northern Supreme Wild Fur and Louisiana Bayou Nutria participated in the contest, which promotes and encourages ready-to-wear designers who are introducing fur into their collections.
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