Rachel Fortin

Rachel Fortin is a Canadian fashion designer and the founder behind her own label Rachel F.

As a young girl Rachel dreamed of being a Paris fashion designer. Because the daily traveling between Paris and Saguenay is somewhat tedious, Rachel decided to start her education by going to art classes at the Chicoutimi CEGEP. That experience stimulated Rachel’s extraordinary imagination, but that young girl in her was convinced that it would be through fashion designing that she would achieve her biggest accomplishment. That’s when she established herself in Montreal and entered the Marie-Victorin College in Fashion Design. Not only has that second diploma confirmed Rachel’s huge passion for fashion, but also her wild talent. For that matter, the designer later won the Marc-Aurele Fortin’s first prize regional contest. She was also selected to receive a bursary that honored her with an internship to the reputed Sandbjervej’s SAGA INTERNATIONAL DESIGN CENTER in Denmark in order to specialize herself in the research and development of fur. Rachel Fortin’s little story doesn’t say if her passion for fur comes from the Nordic region of Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean where she grew up, and it doesn’t mention if the idea of working only with recycled leather and fur comes from the fact that she was brought up by a nice family of browns bears.

After her first job experience in the fashion world as the assistant-designer at Mackage and as a knitwear designer at Collections MAT, Rachel knew that it’s only by working on her own creation that she would truly be happy. Later, she decided to co-develop a company called DADA+TATI. For two years, Rachel presented under that signature many collections where recycled fur was already embellishing most of the clothing. Thanks to her first contribution at the Montreal’s Fashion Week and at the Montreal’s Arts and Crafts Fair, and also to a number of appearances in various national media publications, Rachel managed to find the energy and experience that allowed her to start her own collection. Rachel Fortin became rachel.f.

Rachel’s sensitivity towards the environmental damages created by the modern civilization brings her to use, as the unique primary material of her creation, used animal skins and fabrics. Therefore, rachel.f. spends long hours transforming (“decapitating”) your old clothes in order to give birth to a fur accessory line; toquée et coquette (wild an stylish), and to a leather line; trash et colorée (trash and colorful). At this moment Rachel is developing two different accessory lines. Her first 2004 fall/winter collection was entirely created from recycled fur. She presented that first collection at the 2004 Montreal Arts and Crafts Fair where she was selected to present it to the jury. She obtained such a success that she had to lock herself in her workshop throughout the entire month of December in order to respond to the huge day by day demand. She eventually participated to the following Montreal’s Arts and Crafts Fair and will be at her third year under the name of rachel.f. In the year 2005, Mariouche Gagné, an important figure in the world of recycled fur, offered to distribute Rachel’s products throughout Europe and Asia under Mariouche’s line Harricana.

From one collection to another, Rachel perfects her recycled fur accessory line where the extravagance and sophistication of her unique pieces has captured everyone’s attention. Even the media made sure to notice her: the ICI, the Voir, La Presse, The Gazette, the Clin d’Oeil, the Filles Clin d’Oeil, the Shopping Clin d’Oeil, the Femme Plus, the Primeurs, the Star Inc., all have presented rachel.f. in their pages. More recently, interesting reports have been dedicated to Rachel in the following television shows: Claudine (Radio-Canada), Métamorphose (Canal Vie), and Esprit Libre (Canal Vox). Also, if rachel.f. includes many Quebec celebrities among her clients, the variety of that list shows how her creation is able to blend the extremes with much subtlety.

By exploring the use of recycled leather, rachel.f. comes back with a second accessory line. She manages to bring a new life to some old leather clothes by, not only creating accessories that are completely off the wall, but also by researching the material herself. As a matter of fact, Rachel’s collaborations include various visuals artists from Montreal, such as Hugo Mudie and Jason Cantoro, so that every leather piece may be attributed with silk-screened designs. This line of recycled leather accessories literally gives us the impression that the worlds of fashion and art went out for a drink and got along extremely well. The silk-screened leather that ornaments all the pieces from hats to earrings to belts and bags, they all shine with a little Montreal spark, every item in the collection is like a miniature piece of art that you carry with you at all times.

rachel.f.. doesn’t impose any limitation to her imagination however, two fundamental principles have established the foundation of her creation: recycling and local art production. It’s by personal conviction and to preserve the integrity of her values that rachel.f. chose to use recycled material in her work. Rachel also states that using local art production brings a high quality and a human side to her collection. According to Rachel, local production is inevitable.

Since the beginning, Rachel Fortin hasn’t stopped pursuing her primary mission, which is to make fur more accessible by suggesting an ecological exchange solution without losing the dash of its traditional function.

For that matter, if Montreal represents that city that knows how to blend paradox and originality, than the accessory line of the young designer is definitively a reflection of Montreal. With the harmonisation of recycled materials as a leitmotiv, Rachel Fortin’s creations are like millions of rainbows in the far end of our alleys.