Hi David, thanks so much for taking your time to answer my questions. So, how did you get into the fashion industry and how did you come up with this brand?
I actually kind of fell into the fashion industry. Growing up I was always leaning more towards the sciences, I had my sights set on paleontology or forensics, but I've always had a passion for art. For as long as I can remember I've always had a pencil in hand filling up sketchbooks by the hundreds. I typically would have a sketch book full of sketches in a week or two. In high school I focused a lot on the arts, painting, sculpting really just using my hands. When I was about 15 or 16 however I started modeling which really got me into the industry and started to develop my appreciation for clothing. Before then I really didn't have much interest. I knew how to sew however, my mom taught me when I was young and I'd hand sew little outfits for my teddy bears out of my mom's scraps. I remember once I couldn't figure out how to thread a needle (it turned out I was using a pin) and I had just tied the thread around the head of the pin and couldn't figure out why I couldn't get it through the fabric! Needless to say, as creative as I was, I wasn't a natural at sewing. I had to learn all of that in college, and it was really hard without any natural talent. When I was around 18 I was approached by a performer who had seen my art, and she asked me if I could design her some costumes. I found it to be a challenging but exciting possibility, I had never actually designed clothing, but she had a strong idea of what she wanted but basically just need it visualized. After doing about 15-20 of these designs for her I started to really understand and appreciate how clothing was designed beyond just the final finished product.
When it came time to apply for college I found I hadn't focused enough on the studies needed to get into forensics or paleontology, but I had also developed a love for design and illustration. After some research I found that illustration wasn't really all that lucrative, so I narrowed it down to interior and fashion design and applied for both. I got accepted to fashion design at George Brown and well from there I fell in love with fashion.
All through college I participated in as many competitions as I could, I was a finalist for Canada in a world wide competition 3 years in a row, as well as a finalist for the Canadian Fashion Design Awards 4 years in a row in different categories including most promising designer all 4 years. After graduating college with a post grad in the history of fashion and costume studies, I worked in the theater industry for 5 season doing set design and continuing to work with private clientele on the side. Vanja has always been a supporter of my work and was asking me to be a participant of FAT since the first year, but I was never really in the position, till last year. I put together a modest 10 outfit collection in stream lined muted palette of black, white and charcoal grey. It was mostly just a capsule collection to see if there was much interest in my ready to wear. The show was a fantastic success which lead me to develop it into an actual label. The foundation of the label is to create clothing made of sustainable fabrics if the choice is available, I also try and use only natural fabrics. The majority of this season is made of 100% virgin felted wool, bamboo rayon, and organic cotton. The name 'Worth' came from hearing people question the worth of clothing. My collection is designed for a consumer who cares about what they are wearing, and want something classic and lasting, clothing that has worth. I have a strong belief in quality fabrics and impeccable fit which are very important to me. To me it feels like our entire culture is disposable, we have disposable food, disposable cutlery, disposable dishes, our clothing is disposable, our furniture is disposable even love in this age is disposable. We are so ready to get rid of everything from our lives and replace it with the newer shiner model. I wanted to create a line of clothing that will always hang in your closet and that you can always go to weather it be this season or 10 years from now and it's just as wearable, relateable and reliable as the first time it went down the catwalk.
I am glad you took fashion design in the end because I think your last collection in FAT is pretty interesting. Can you tell us about you Fall/Winter collection? Is there any specific theme to it?
The theme of my night, Rage, couldn't have been any more perfect for this collection. My work, my art always relates to what I'm going through in my own life. Last season is was very cold and hard, a protective shell, an urban armor it had a strong cocooning quality to it. This season is an evolution of that. My feelings behind it was that first initial rage you feel when getting out of a relationship, that burst of energy to take on the world, that overwhelming feeling of hope and optimism. It's independent and strong, a statement. It has a fiery energy behind it. All of the pieces have a dramatic element, something to be noticed. The suits have hard strong dominate shoulders, the silhouettes are larger and sharper. But under that there is a softer quality in the drape of the silks and bamboo jerseys. I carried forward with the same colour palette and fabrics as last year with the addition of the colour red, silks and a black, pink, red and white printed fabric I designed and created myself, as well as an ancient Turkish printing technique I've modified and used to print some of the jerseys.
That sounds interesting and I am looking for ward to see it on Friday night. Out of all the fashion designers in the world, who are your favorites at the moment? What makes you like their designs?
Alexander McQueen has been my idol since college, that he was able to establish such a groundbreaking brand and doing it essentially from nothing was so awe inspiring to me. We have a very similar aesthetic so I've always been able to relate to both him and his work. I was deeply devastated when I heard of his passing, it was incredibly hard on me, it was a lot like losing a best friend. Jean Paul Gaultier has also been a big influence for me, his ability to shift the perspective of gender was always really interesting to me, it's such a fine line, but he was able to create feminine menswear yet still have it look highly masculine.
I draw a lot of my inspiration however from fashion history. Being that it was my post grad major, I've always had a fascination with the history of fashion and watching the trend curve how it was back then and where it's going now.
I love McQueen and I wish he would stay in this world longer to continue being the leader in the world fashion industry. What do you think of Toronto fashion industry right now? Do you think we have caught up with the world fashion industry yet? If not, what are we lacking?
The Toronto fashion industry is lacking, as there is no support for it. Even the people near the top don't wear Canadian fashion during events like fashion week. Everyone always looks away from our country before they look in it. I'm a proud supporter of Canadian Fashion, but it seems that if you have talent you need to leave the country to be recognized for it. It'll be some time before we will catch up to the rest of the world. Canada is still a very new country and it doesn't have the deep cultural history that other countries have, we are still building our identity I think.
I have to agree with you and the Caten brothers are the best example of Canadian fashion designers whom move to Milan to get their names out. If people want to buy your collection, where can they buy them?
This will be the first season for Worth to be looking to sell to buyers, but currently orders can be placed through myself through e-mail (davidcwigley@msn.com) and we are hoping to have the website up and running by the end of next month. www.worthbydavidcwigley.com
Great! I have been looking for your website ever since I want to do a feature for you and I am looking forward to see the launch of your site. Last but not least, what are you planning to do for your next collection?
For spring I've been looking into digital printing on jersey and heavy cotton twills. The basic silhouette will remain the same, as well as the same principals, expect structured jackets, strong shouldered dresses, gorgeous draped jersey and interesting details on the menswear. I don't want to say too much and give it all away ;)
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It is now time to ask him some random facts to know Dave on a more personal level. I have to say these fun facts are as good as the main questions!White or Dark Chocolate?
Dark chocolate, obvi... white isn't even chocolate!
Black or Gold?
Hmm... I love the fierce look of the two together... can I say both?! Otherwise... if I have to choose it depends on what the object is... Black can be luxerious while gold can be tacky... but it can be said the other way around, black can look cheap where gold looks unique.
Silk or Chiffon?
Silk. I love the crispness of it, the sharpness of the folds and the luster of it.
Jeans or Khaki Pants?
Jeans. I don't think I even own any Khakis...
Milk or Orange Juice?
Hmmm... depends on what it's with. Milk in coffee... orange juice with tequila... milk with cheesecake, orange juice with... er... breakfast?
White bread or Whole Wheat Bread?
Whole wheat always! I don't eat anything neon or bleached. LoL
Toronto or Vancouver?
I'd have to say Toronto as I've never been to Vancouver
R&B or Rock Music?
Depends on the song, I have such an eclectic mix of music on my iPod, I listen to just about anything.
Glasses or Contact Lens?
Well I don't really need glasses, just for working, so glasses. I have been blessed with perfect vision, I just wear glasses to keep it that way!
Summer or Winter?
Summer ALL the way, for life... for designing, Fall/Winter. I love the autumn, but I hate that winter is just moments away from those warm sunny crisp days of apple picking.
At this moment, I am so hyped to see what Dave will have in store for us in the fashion show on Friday. Thank you so much to Dave for taking time our of his busy life to answer my questions. If you live in Toronto and still have no idea there is a Alternative Fashion week going on in Toronto, hurry up and head to its official site to check out the schedule! David's show is on Friday at 7:20pm! Make sure you join his facebook fanpage to get the latest news before his official site launches!
All photos are courtesy of David C. Wigley
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