Three weeks have passed since Trail resident turned big city fashion designer, Evan Clayton unveiled his 'Fall of Joan' collection at Vancouver Fashion Week (VFW), and much has happened since then.
Immediately following the show, Clayton was swarmed by members of the press, all trying to get to the newcomer that just wowed the crowd.
“One of my friends came up to me in the press room after the show and said that I was in a total daze. Which is okay, but not when you're being interviewed,” Clayton said in an e-mail reply.
“I mean, all the press response I've received has been really positive, so I guess people overlooked my lackadaisy.”
Clayton adds he did see his first negative review the other day. But he “loved it.”
He said it offered constructive criticism and underneath it all, still complimented his clothing, which in the end can't really be argued with.
Aside from the vast media coverage Clayton garnered from the show, he has also netted a few professional opportunities.
“A couple of pieces of mine were just pulled for an upcoming music video for Canadian rapper Matt Brevner,” Clayton said.
Additionally, Clayton has done a couple photo shoots for magazine submissions and will be working on a 'look-book' in the near future for buyer submissions.
“The entire design department at lululemon saw the video of the show and loved it, so hopefully there's some design employment opportunity there,” he added.
Although Clayton gave an extraordinary performance at VFW he does have two things he would have liked to do a little different.
“I would have added more blood,” he said, as it would have helped emphasize his theme; the life and death of Joan of Arc.
“And I would try to be a bit more elegant in my final bow. I didn't know if I should wave or bow, so I sort of half started to do both, and then half realized that it was stupid, and the half gave up. Overall it was just a mess.”
Clayton is currently working on a brand new collection, and without wanting to spoil anything he says it will most likely be smaller and more intricate with some left field fabric choices.
“The only thing that worries me about this kind of attention is the follow-up to the hype. I can't stop now and my work has to be consistently better each time it hits the runway.”