Lata Design

Fashion – Vancouver

I was born and raised in the Fiji Islands before immigrating to Canada at the age of 18. My mother first introduced me to embroidery when I was eight years old, and learned crochet from my aunts shortly after. At the time, the availability of manufactured fashion was limited in Fiji: most clothes were either homemade or produced by tailors. From a very young age, I had been passionate about making clothing. My first creation was a sari blouse that I sewed for my mother when I was 12. Over the years, I kept creating garments whenever I could steal a moment: I sewed, crocheted, cross-stitched, and embroidered, with eventually teaching myself to knit. While I had always wanted to pursue a career in fashion design, the comfort of a well-paid job proved too difficult to leave. However, after twelve years of working in finance, I decided to take the plunge and follow my dream. I left my job, and the rest is history. I graduated from The Art Institute of Vancouver in December, 2013 with Best of Show Award, and 6 month later being induced in the Wall of Fame. I am a designer at Lata Design, TA at the Art Institute, and teacher at my local Continuing Education. This year I have had, and still continuing to, a lot of media attention for making a burlap prom dress for Courtney Barich.