Oh hello! How are you? I'm well. What'd you get up to last night? Oh no you did not! Stop right there. I don't want to hear it.

Okay, instead, let me tell you about my nuit en ville. I went to a cute store opening last night. Well, it wasn't exactly a store opening, per se. It was more of a reopening in a new space. Confusing, right? Let me explain.

On February 20th, preloved, one of Toronto's most adored sustainable fashion boutiques, went up in flames. Believe you me, it was one sad day on the uber-cool strip of Queen Street West, with hipsters crying into their fair-trade lattes.

But out of the ashes, a new preloved flagship store has emerged.





It's cute, like its predecessor, but with a slightly more modern, stylish feel.








For the uninitiated, preloved, as its name suggests, is a sustainable fashion line that takes vintage clothes and redesigns them into sexy new pieces. One designer sketches out the looks he wants to create for the season, and then a team of kids fan out to rummage through the rag-houses of Toronto, looking for source material. Making eco-fashion cool is a tall order - considering how granola-y some of the looks can be - but preloved has been getting it right for 13 years.





They've got stores in Canada and Australia, and are sold through other boutiques all over the world. As retail manager Shelley Whelan told me, completely straight-faced, "preloved is really big in Japan." Respect.

As for highlights from their Fall/Winter collection, well there are these turtleneck dresses that Paper magazine jumped all over:





Pretty adorable, non? I was also impressed with this funky coat, called the Bergman, made out of 4 old pairs of men's wool pants.





But I was most smitten with this ensemble, although I think the fact that the sales girl modelling it for me was sweet as can be may have helped tip the scales in its favour.





Called the Jess Way jumper, this little number is made of vintage corduroy pants, and lined with - wait for it - old bedsheets!

I'm so glad to see that one of Canada's most progressive labels is back on its feet. So the next time PETA gets all up in your grill for wearing your nana's fox fur stole, know that there's an earth-friendly alternative that will still garner jealous stares from the other girls in the office.

Posted by LUKE