Meet two Vancouver designers headed to Paris fashion week (2024)

Two Vancouver-based creatives are collaborating for a special fashion presentation in Paris.

Set to take place during the buzz of Paris Fashion Week at the Paris Posh event, Julia Heinonen, founder and owner of the jewelry brand Chroma Nostaa Designs, and Shauna Griffiths, founder of SG Fashion House, will showcase their combined designs in a collection called Bloom.

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We caught up with the designers to learn more.

Q: For those who aren’t familiar, how would you describe your brands?

Shauna Griffiths: SG Fashion House is a brand that epitomizes art, creativity, and style. My designs are a perfect fusion of sophistication and boldness, focusing on high fashion garments that highlight vibrant colours, intricate florals, and striking prints. My work uniquely blends vintage and modern silhouettes, crafting pieces that are both timeless and contemporary.

Julia Heinonen: Chroma Nostaa Designs is a jewelry brand that creates handcrafted and unique wearable art that aims to uplift the wearer. Chroma Nostaa Designs is known for its intricate and unusual nature-inspired pieces, as well as sculptural, 3D jewelry designs that are inspired by architecture and fashion. Chroma means colour in Greek, and reflects the vibrant and diverse colours that you will find in each piece. Nostaa is a Finnish word meaning, “to uplift” and communicates the intention that each person wearing or seeing Chroma Nostaa Designs will experience a joyful and uplifted feeling. The name of the brand also reflects my heritage, which is Greek Cypriot, Finnish and British.

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Q: How did you join forces?

Griffiths: When Julia and I had our first phone conversation, it quickly became clear that we shared a mutual passion for purposeful art and a similar creative vision. Through multiple discussions about a potential collaboration and our willingness as entrepreneurs to connect, we decided to use Julia’s jewelry to style the garments I had designed for a photo shoot, showcasing the various collections I have created over the years. I loved this idea and truly believed her work would elevate each entire look.

After an extremely successful photo shoot and lots of positive feedback, we realized that collaborating further would allow us to bring something unique and innovative to the fashion world. This led us to the exciting decision to create a fashion design and jewelry collection together for Paris Fashion Week. The journey has been amazing so far, and we cannot wait to showcase our combined work on such a prestigious platform in our favourite fashion city!

Q: What made you want to apply to show in Paris?

Heinonen: After successfully collaborating together on some recent photo shoots, Shauna and I thought we could really shine together as designers in Paris after Paris Posh reached out to her to showcase her beautiful garment designs. It felt natural and aligned to propose that we co-create and present a collection together. After proposing the idea to Paris Posh with photographs of our work together, they enthusiastically embraced the idea and we were absolutely thrilled that we could join creative forces on this amazing opportunity and project.

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Q: How would you describe the pieces/collection that will be shown there?

Griffiths: The Bloom collection embodies a captivating narrative unfolding the transformative journey of a root-bound plant to its full boom, mirroring the stages of growth and adaptation as the plant transitions from confinement to flourishing vitality. Garments are enriched with cording details that symbolize the intricate patterns and tactility root confinement, while 3D floral embellishments burst forth, adding a unique depth and personal narrative to every ensemble. These details bring the garments to life, capturing the dynamic energy and organic movement found in nature.

While each ensemble encapsulates a pivotal phase in the plant’s journey, the designs symbolize resilience, liberation, and the ultimate euphoria of reaching full bloom. We invite wearers and viewers to embrace their own journey of transformation with grace and confidence.

Q: What do you hope to take away from the experience?

Griffiths: Paris Fashion Week represents an extraordinary opportunity to present (our) collections to a global audience, understand how the work resonates internationally, and connect with the broader fashion community.

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Aharris@postmedia.com

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