Wandwoods, the latest addition to the Vancouver fashion scene, looks like it emerged from the pages of a Jane Austen novel.
The flowing linen skirts and muted colour palates are at home surrounded by wildflowers and rolling hills with the promise of an idyllic and untroubled life where your biggest problem is choosing between the handsome duke or the even more handsome lord.
Indeed, the debut three-piece capsule from Wandwoods is named the 'Austen' collection; designing it helped founder Natalia Pavanelli find peace and happiness again. And the innocent romance of each piece is only buoyed by the zero-waste small quantity mentality that helped create it.
After 11 years in the fashion industry dressing up in other people's designs and moulding herself to the style of each brand she worked for, self-confessed fast fashion addict Pavanelli says she was constantly stressed and suffering from depression when she discovered cottagecore. That the aesthetic and lifestyle helped to wake her up and set her on a new path that she is following with her whole heart.
"I had no name for it at the time," she says of the cottagecore movement.
Seeing creators like Wendy Hansen of the Instagram account @aquietwild helped Pavanelli identify a vintage dress-centric style that she had always been drawn to but didn't have the vocabulary to identify and wasn't fully given the opportunity to explore in her previous fashion jobs. It also introduced her to the world of sustainability.
"It's such a kind and inclusive community," says Pavanelli, and it changed her life.
After engaging with several influencers and becoming a part of the cottagecore scene, Pavanelli enrolled in a course called Factory 45 which teaches entrepreneurs how to build sustainable fashion brands. She also reduced her existing role working for a kid's clothing brand to a contract basis.
"I invested in myself," she says, "there's a lot of emotion."
Wandwoods is focused on a small wardrobe and buying-to-last mentality. There are only three fabrics that have been turned into the Pemberley top, the Pemberly skirt, and the Lady Jane dress which are all complimentary and can be mixed and matched and layered together. Any off-cuts are made into matching hair bows and scrunchies.
"We have enough waste in this world," says Pavanelli.
The fabrics are locally sourced 100 per cent linen in classic Austen colours: mistletoe green and a dusky shade of pink called old rose. There is also a floral patterned fabric called full bloom that is a hand-drawn print by Pavanelli.
Wandwoods opened for pre-order last week and until next Tuesday, June 14, there is a $20 discount for anyone who places one. Pavanelli will be entering into production next week to fulfill the orders.
With the growth of the slow fashion movement, a local, sustainable cottagecore designer feels like a match made in heaven. It's what Jane Austen would have wanted.
