This one-time reality TV star is Vancouver’s most promising new
designer. The past year has been a blur for Carlie Wong. At just 24,
she has climbed the design-house ladder, been thrust into the national
spotlight as the youngest contestant on Project Runway Canada and
launched an eponymous label to critical acclaim. With only two seasons
under her belt, the whirlwind shows no signs of slowing down.
Before starting her own line, the Hong Kong–born, Vancouver-based
designer toiled as a dressmaker for eveningwear designer Manuel Mendoza
while studying fashion design at British Columbia’s Kwantlen
Polytechnic University. After graduation, she was snapped up by
contemporary lines Mac & Jac and Kensie. Nearly a year into the
assistant-designer job, reality TV came calling. Wong didn’t capture
the top prize, but her appearance was enough to showcase her
classi-cally feminine aesthetic (with recycled umbrellas, no less) and
was the catalyst she needed to pursue her dream of her own label. In
the fall of 2008, she hit the ground running with a decadent all-black
debut collection.
At this rate, she’s already on the fast track.
—Elisa Kosonen