In the latter part of December, we were invited to the Pascal Labelle atelier to preview the Eve Salvail Collection. Growing up in the 90’s I was obsessed with the Fashion Channel. Watching everyone from Noami Campbell, Evangelista, and Eve Salvail. Yes, Eve Salvail!! Isn’t it crazy that I met her energy many years ago through my television screen? Yup, she was the bald, beautiful and radiant model that inspired me in my younger years. Only, I realized this, at the inception of meeting her.
As I walked into the Pascal Labelle atelier, I was expecting an aggrandized model, with an assistant, an agent and a bodyguard. To the contrary, she was accommodating, kind, and displayed a high level of vulnerability when telling us about her experience as a Supermodel.
As a fellow Blogger wrapped up his interview, I sat there and stared. Eve’s aura was so beautiful, so powerful, so strong, that by the time Pascal explained the signature Eve Salvail hoodie collection, my spirit had already absorbed the answer: “this woman is fearless and filled with power, that’s why Pascal was inspired to create the collection”.
As I enjoyed a photo opt with both Pascal and Eve, I wanted to get down to the details of the dragon tattoo on her head. While she explained the significance, which was carried over to the signature hoodie collection, I was astonished. Like, “how could you tattoo your head, when your livelihood depended on not having any tattoos?” – Then she dropped a bomb, explaining that backlash ensued, and she was dropped from her modeling agency because of her tattoo.
Then it all came full circle, Eve Salvail was driven to express herself, in a way, and at a time that was not permitted by women in the modeling industry. Subsequently, she was ostracised from an industry with a limited concept of fashion. But, it didn’t stop her, she explained: “It was bigger than me, it was bigger than fashion, it just had to be the way it was. But it didn’t stop or deter me. I kept on going. I kept on knocking on doors and showing up to modeling castings. Then one day, I got a call that propelled my career further than ever before. That call changed my life and it was all thanks to being true to myself and my dragon tattoo”.
When I left the Pascal Labelle atelier that day, I reflected on the number of women who would have given up if they walked in Eve’s place. I myself might have drowned in a sea of depression and discouragement. In essence, the Pascale Labelle and Eve Salvail collaboration is not only based on mere fashion; it’s based on women empowerment, hope, and strength.
For more information on the collection, visit:
https://www.pascallabelle.com/en_ca/eve-salvail-collection/
Cover Photo Credit: Felipe del Pozo Public Relations
Runways Photo Credit:
https://www.theplace2.ru/photos/Eve-Salvail-md4214/pic-821103.html
https://www.bellazon.com/main/topic/12302-eve-salvail/page/4/
