Going to university full time and running a business is no easy feat, but jewellery designer Desiree Girlato does both with style.
Back in high school, Girlato was “really into school.” She was on the swim, field hockey and soccer teams, all while taking a keen interest in her studies. It was during her time at Thornhill Secondary School that her budding design career bloomed, when Girlato took a fashion design course: “It was really great, because I found this passion for style.”
So, she applied to Ryerson’s fashion design program. However, while making her portfolio pieces, she realized that she wasn’t a big fan of sewing: “I reached a level of boredom with fashion and sewing, so I needed to find another creative outlet,” she says.
Then one day, her mother tried to throw out some old jewellery — mostly broken chains and friendship bracelets, but Girlato had other plans for it: she completely repurposed the old pieces over a summer.
When a friend came over and was amazed by her work, Girlato said to her, “I guess I should make jewellery.”
She did a few trade shows and sold her creations at school fundraisers and other local events. Then she graduated high school and went to U of T for sociology. After a few years there, she realized that her heart remained with fashion. She switched to Guelph-Humber to study fashion management.
While she was in school, her jewellery business started to take off, selling so quickly that she was inspired to open her own shop.
After she scoured the city for a location, the shop was open for business on Dundas West last summer. By September, she was loaning pieces to stars, such as local actress Charlotte Sullivan, to wear at TIFF.
In a short time, Girlato has had to learn every facet of the business, from hiring, to pricing to sourcing materials. Not only does she supply and run her own store, and go to school full-time at Guelph-Humber, but she supplies a handful of other shops around Toronto with her highly coveted pieces. “It’s unbelievably hectic,” says the designer.
Every style she makes is either one of a kind or in a limited quantity and includes elements sourced from all over the world.
“More than anything, I love making jewellery,” says Girlato. “And I love the jewellery that I make. And thatʼs saying a lot.”