This Ilk

After a bachelor's degree in Industrial Design in 2007, Montreal designer Tamara Bavdek needed a change. A big one.

After nearly 20 years with long hair, she decided to chop it off into an unconventional retro bowl cut. Knowing that a touch of femininity would be lost together with her long locks, she turned to the era of awesome short dos with women who knew how to pull them off: the 1960s... She was struck by Edie Sedgwick's, Andy Warhol's muse, amazing style. Extra large statement jewelry and bold make-up seemed to do the trick so off she went looking for a way to mimic a pair of Edie's earrings which although were not made of lace, reminded her of fabric. And that is how it all started...

A stroke of genius, and soon she realized that lace is to textiles what gold is to metals and diamonds to rocks, and that nothing beats lightweight statement jewelry. Today, the hair has grown again but the passion for statement pieces never fades. Founded in Montreal in late 2008, This Ilk is now distributed in over 30 boutiques in Canada, the USA and WORLDWIDE.

Today, This Ilk combines the comfortable lightweight and the ornamental aesthetic qualities of high end, vintage and new lace into a collection of textured statement jewelry. each piece is carefully crafted into wearable art in limited quantities in her Montreal studio. Sourcing rare fabrics, designing, dyeing, stiffening, sewing, and assembling are all part of the process.

Reducing, reusing and sourcing locally when possible are all part of the sustainable practices. "I get especially excited when we find inspiring vintage Canadian or American made materials we can bring added value and give new life to. " - Tamara