WATCH: A free program is helping talented youth try their hand at all aspects of fashion design.
TORONTO- Youth Love Fashion is a program created by the Toronto District School Board and The Make Den sewing studio that gives creative youth facing adversity the opportunity to pursue their dreams.
“Our kids need to have venues outside of school, and outside of school time to let their creative juices flow,” said Laura Featherstone, an instructional leader at the TDSB.
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This sewing studio has become a creative haven for these talented students.
“The idea is to give remarkable talent access to resources and materials,” said Irene Stickney, owner of The Make Den. “So it doesn’t matter if you’re wealthy or if you’re not. The program is based on skill.”
Students attend the workshops after school and on weekends for five months of intense sewing, pattern making, and learning about event production.
“This program is amazing,” said Youth Love Fashion participant Gabriel Clarke. “It’s just a great way to harness someone’s creativity, to really take it and evolve it.”
The program has nurtured their self-confidence while setting goals and achieving them.
“It made me more brave of who I am,” said Karlo Feliciano, a participant of Youth Love Fashion.
Throughout the program, the youth learn about careers in the fashion industry, including runway, hair, camera and backstage work.
“They’re going to take the world by storm,” said Stickney. “They’re so unbelievably talented and special.”
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