The fashionista loves what she wears, she defines her personality through her wardrobe choices. Fashion is, to her, about  creative expression and feeling amazing! Knowing what she wears is flattering to her shape, colouring and personality is of importance to her!  The conscious fashionista takes fashion to higher level, knowing what she wears has been ethically sourced is important to her as well as looking great. Her motto isn’t just “Look good, feel good”, it’s more like “Look good, feel good, do good”.

Entry… Slow Fashion.  The slow fashion movement is about the fashion industry adapting methods toward creating social and environmental benefits.

Increasing the capacity of the well-being of people and communities by designing and producing pieces on site is the philosophy of slow-fashion. The small studio eliminates or greatly reduces the need to outsource from other countries where people may be working in oppressive and dangerous conditions.  It also allows the customer to invest their money in building the economy of their country and communities.

Slow fashion honours the craft and passion of artists. Investing in hand-made quality pieces makes sense, from a financial investment point of view. How much money have you wasted on wear-wash-wear-toss items?  Ethical fashionistas love to support the creative work of their community members. Celebrating the skills and talents of others, as well as keeping the money local is forward-thinking and the only way that we can progress away from depleted job markets and low paid labour.

The small studio also offers peace of mind for the environmentally conscious. The fashion industry is the second most damaging industry in the world, regarding environmental toxins and waste. When purchasing from The Dress Shop, one can have the option of investing in designs from our in-house label: Dominica Maazur. We use Canadian fabrics and the line is designed and produced  on site. We also have a selection of items, made with sustainable fibres, such as bamboo, hemp and organic cotton. These fibres greatly reduce the carbon imprint on the planet.  The other labels that we carry in shop are over 80% Canadian.

Slow Fashion also offers custom fit, a service that is highly sought after by those who appreciate quality and excellence. Pants too long/short? Sleeve too wide? No problem!  Go for coffee, we’ll have it fixed in a couple of hours. Want a different fabric for that dress? Want it longer in the waist, shorter in the hem? No worries, my dear! We’ll custom make you that perfect dress/top/pant! And by the way, that service is included in the ticketed price! Struggling to find clothes that fit off the rack? Why are you wasting time wandering a mall frustrated? Come and see us at The Dress Shop, where our patterns are cut for real women and we recognize and celebrate the diversity in shape and personality of our clients!

Yes, we have slow fashion, right here in Carleton Place. The owner/designer, Olena Androschuk has brought her experience of years of working in high end city fashion houses to the quaint town of Carleton Place. She is a highly trained fashion designer, with a keen eye for perfection and beauty in her patterns.  The staff, Annemarie, Lila and Chris are seasoned fashion stylists with a passion for fashion and excellence in customer service.

We look forward to your visit and welcome you to the studio!

Written by: Annemarie D’Alessio

At The Dress Shop we are getting quite the reputation for offering a very unique and rare service in our society today ~ “Haute Couture (French, for “high sewing” or “high dressmaking” or “high fashion”) refers to the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing.”

“Haute couture is fashion that is constructed by hand from start to finish, made from high quality, expensive, often unusual fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finished by the most experienced and capable seamstresses, often using time-consuming , hand-executed techniques. Couture translates literally from French as “dressmaking”, but may also refer to fashion, sewing, or needlework and is also used as a common abbreviation of haute couture and refers to the same thing in spirit. Haute translates literally to “high”. ”

“A haute couture garment is often made for a client, tailored specifically for the wearer’s measurements and body stance. Considering the amount of time, money, and skill that is allotted to each completed piece, haute couture garments are also described as having no price tag – in other words, budget is not relevant. Each couture piece is not made to sell. Rather, they were designed and constructed for the runway, much like an art exhibition.”

All this is included in the price of your garment at The Dress Shop. So come and visit us and get your custom Dominica Maazur piece made especially for you by our very talented in house Designer!

A glimspe of how the amazing fabrics turn into wonderful designs…

Fashion/clothing, is art which we wear on a day to day basis, the second skin we choose to reveal to the world and thus defines ourselves without uttering a single word. Many designers utilize fabric as a vocabulary to make social commentary encased in a beautiful outer shell.  I am truly blessed to have been in the presence of a true artist.  Chaos can be surrounding you and your environment might not be optimal but it doesn’t matter because at the end of the day the art just happens!

Dominica Maazur is an artist in every sense of the word. . .