Vintage vendor and millinery maven Sarah Magwood of Cozette Vintage and Designs noticed something somewhat lacking in the Queen West style scene.

Pop-up fashion sales.

So, she thought, why not throw a Make Sale? "These types of events are starting to develop on Queen Street West, and I want the area to be known for this," she said.

The Drake was a logical place to start, so she approached the hotel about throwing a weekly Thursday event where local vendors could sell their wares in The Sky Yard, ideally with a theme, and with a performance element to give it that extra fizz. First up was Vintage 69 last week, and Model Citizen this week.

Vintage 69 sold their clothes and accessories with a gypsy theme, complete with sumptuous surroundings, be-turbaned salesgirls and a fashion-future fortuneteller. "We want people to walk by and see something unexpected," said Magwood.

Drake patrons this Thursday could poke their head in to get a peek at Model Citizen proprietor Julian Finkel doing some on-the-fly silkscreening, adorning newsprint with boxer prints and carefully laying them to dry underneath the clothing racks.

Next week? The rogue boys of Funktion Gallery will have some of their art on offer, but will also be papering over the space and graffiti-ing all over it and then selling off pieces of it at the end of the night.

Magwood wants to bring as many vendors to the masses as possible: for the first several weeks, the events will consist of a single vendor, but she hopes to do group sales as well, and eventually take the event even bigger and incorporate bartering and exchanges to further build a feeling of community.

"Every purchase is a vote, and you have to make the right vote and support the right people. People think about what they put in their bodies, but what about what goes on your back? Garments communicate a whole history, and that's all relevant to who you are and what you believe in," Magwood said.

Besides, she laughed, "There's a lot of amazing people in this town, but who can afford to rent a store?

SUMMER SCHEDULE:

July 2: Funktion Gallery
July 9: Silver Falls
July 16: Silver Snail
July 23: The Refinery
July 30: Cozette Vintage and Designs

Photos by Jennifer Kavanagh.

Photos by Jennifer Kavanagh