A look from the Therma Kōta collection.Silja Magg
When New York-based fashion director Mosha Lundstrom Halbert got married last year, she asked her mother, Canadian designer Linda Lundstrom, to create her dream dress. With the wedding taking place on New Year's Eve in Reykjavik, Iceland, it quickly became obvious that the bride would also need a coat, an easy proposition for Lundstrom, who first made waves in fashionable outerwear with her Laparka topper in the 1980s. The result was a cozy ivory parka with sequins.
Almost one year later, Lundstrom, along with Mosha and her other daughter Sophie, a graphic designer, have debuted a new outerwear collection inspired by their nuptial collaboration called Therma Kota. "The whole concept is technical glamour and high performance, high fashion," says Lundstrom who serves as the brand's design director (Sophie fills the role of CMO).
With a design influenced by their roots in Scandinavia and Canada, Lundstrom didn't need to look far for inspiration. "My daughters are very hard-working, ambitious, career-oriented, beautiful young women and I decided it was time for me to arm their generation of women with these wonderful coats that will take them to a meeting and out for dinner in the evening," says Lundstrom "The coats are transformative, and I think that they have the ability to transform the wearer as well."
Their first release is called the Sigrun, a limited-edition piece available for pre-order online for $690 (it will ship in February). It's a reversible style with black technical fabric on one side, a middle layer of insular fabric that reflects warmth back onto the body, and a novelty silver jacquard that's tightly woven and treated to resist water and wind on the other. Its architectural cut is achieved through angled lines at the hem, along the sides and at the bottom of the sleeves; a partially concealed belt adds definition at the waist without too much bulk on the back. Weighing in at just 1,100 grams, the piece could be ideal for travel.
"No one understands this niche like my mum and knows how to make an incredible coat and also has the relationships to make it in Canada," says Mosha, adding that it was important to the team to keep production local. "The Canadian production knows outerwear better than anyone else. And we like making coats in Canada for a Canadian population."
THIS WEEK'S STYLE HAPPENINGS
- For their annual raffle fundraiser, Comrags designers Joyce Gunhouse and Judy Cornish have reproduced three Den coats from their fall 2016 collection, a wool-blend jacquard piece with a front ruffle and hand-embroidered ribbon inside. Each coat will be raffled off with proceeds donated to Out of the Cold, a Toronto-based program that provides hot meals and a safe place to sleep for those in need. Tickets for the Dec. 21 draw are $20 each or $50 for three, available in store at 812 Dundas St. W. in Toronto or online at www.comrags.com.
- After months of speculation following the cancellation of the IMG-run Toronto Fashion Week in July, Canada’s largest city has a new fashion week. Toronto Women’s Fashion Week (TW) is a collaboration between the Toronto Fashion Incubator (TFI), a non-profit dedicated to supporting Canadian fashion talent, and the Canadian Fashion Group, an organization already responsible for Toronto Men’s Fashion Week. Running March 9-14, the event will kick off with the TFI’s 30th Anniversary Gala, followed by the TFI New Labels Competition and Fashion Show and party at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
- On Dec. 19, Vancouver Downtown Eastside landmark Save On Meats is serving up a special meal for its Greasy Spoon Diner Supper Series, a menu that includes pulled pork with pickled okra, shishito poppers stuffed with duck confit, a plantain split and more. The fundraiser dinner is held in support of A Better Life Foundation’s Being Hungry Sucks campaign, which aims to provide food security to women, children and those in assisted living. For more information, visit www.saveonmeats.ca.