Local entrepreneur gives leather new lease on life
Vancouver designer Erin Templeton has taken her keen eye for preloved items and used it to build a strong business.
At the heart of that business is a line of bags and accessories made out of recycled leather (ranging in price from $20 for a card case up to $395 for large hobo bag).
If you’ve ever wondered about what became of all those leather parachute pants from the 1980s, you can rest assured some of them live on in Templeton’s design.
“There is no lack of black leather pants out there. I can’t save them all. I wish,” said Templeton, an avid collector of vintage clothing.
Templeton has just launched a new line that will be carried at Urban Outfitters, a company she has supplied repurposed bags to in the past. We asked her a few questions about taking a new look at old clothes.
What made you decide to go the repurposing route?
Mostly, it’s always been that I saw a great textile that was being unappreciated and I wanted to make something out of it.
Are you seeing more people who want items that have had past lives?
Some people think it’s a really fun idea. But some people, when you tell them the bag used to be a pair of pants, say, “Oh! you totally can’t tell,” in a tone that sounds like they didn’t want to know. Ha.
Where do you source your leather?
I usually buy hundreds of pounds at a time from a wholesaler.
I also buy vintage for my shop, so I’m always on the hunt. Sometimes Bombast furniture, my neighbours in Chinatown, give me leather leftovers from their beautiful sofas. That’s always a treat!
What’s the best vintage find you’ve had?
An Alaia skirt and Jil Sander pants, both very ’80s. And last year I found a pair of Vince stretch suede leggings that I didn’t take off for about four months.
After picking vintage for 20 years, I get the most excited about a pair of really weird gold pants or a turquoise skirt, or something bizarre with a story.
But the hands-down best nonleather find: A John and Yoko T-shirt, and I’m pretty sure it’s one of the ones (Yoko) made when the Beatles were still together. I saw a collection of her clothing at the Tate Modern.