Betina Lou S/S'14

Betina Lou’s cute clothes are Parisian to New York secretary-chic, and we simply cannot 

get enough. Created by Montreal designer Marie-Eve Emond, the collection is full of high waists,
 decorative buttons, pretty prints and Parisian chic bows resulting in classic, almost 
vintage-looking pieces simple enough to wear every day. Classics have been reinterpreted 
through staple pieces including the trench dress, the denim skirt, the double-breasted 
trapeze jacket and pleated pants. Since the launch of Betina Lou in 2009, the Montreal
 designer behind the collection, Marie-Evie Emond’s vision was to draw inspiration
 from uniforms and men’s wardrobe items but placing emphasis on feminine cuts and finishes.

Betina Lou’s previous collection has been channeled through into the S/S'14 collection with 
its recurring design of striped seer sucker shirts and dresses combined with broderie anglaise,
 and traditional black, navy and white shades paired with splashes of warm hazelnut, wine red 
and royal blue. Betina Lou’s principle behind its pieces is stylish comfort, which is the 
epitome recurring throughout the collection; emphasised by pieces created with combed cotton 
twill and silk-like Japanese fabrics, the pieces are a fusion of comfort and stylish details including
 ribbon and lace and decorative top stitching.

It’s easy to imagine girls scooping up these threads and pretending to live their lives in a Breakfast
 at Tiffany-esque way, sashaying around in a nautical inspired dress set off with sunglasses 
lounging on a beach with a Martini. Betina Lou’s simple, timeless, feminine wardrobe staples
 with easy-to-wear neutral colours and subtle patterns are easily recognized as influenced from 
fashion of the past. Indeed Marie lays this claim to “Golden Age movies, Mad Men, bazaars, 
elders with a classic style, vintage fashion magazines, especially ’60s Elle and ’70s Eaton
 catalogs” as inspiration.

Not only is it rare to find well-designed fashion but fashion that advocates ethical and
 responsible consumerism. Betina Lou’s clothing is designed, cut and assembled in Quebec and 
uses quality materials such as natural fibers which are renewable and biodegradable such as wool, 
cotton, silk and linen. Pretty andethical, this sounds perfect to us!

The vibe for Canadian label Betina Lou‘s spring/summer 2014 collection is free-spirited, feminine

 and flirty making you want to ditch the woolly jumpers and slip those legs into a dress or two. 
Throughout the SS14 collection, the subtle mix of deep set collars and rich, dark shades in classic 
silhouettes and luxurious fabrics like silk, boiled wool, and viyella cotton screams timeless 
and effortless fashion. 

Stocked across the globe from Ontario to Brooklyn across the pond to Hong Kong, this is
 fashion that spans across the globe and time. 

Zohra Khan

Click here for further information. 

As published on The Clothes Maiden.