Vancouver Fashion Week FW23 Interview with Sisters Aunalee Boyd-Good and Sophia Seward-Good of Ay Lelum (Vancouver Island)

Aunalee Boyd-Good and Sophia Seward-Good of Ay Lelum will be showing their collection on the runway at Vancouver Fashion Week on Saturday, April 15th at 7 p.m. Ticket purchase HERE!

Bio -

Ay Lelum is a multi-generational Artist family who collaborate in making Coast Salish Fashions from their Design House on Snuneymuxw First Nation in Nanaimo, B.C., Canada.

Aunalee Boyd-Good and Sophia Seward-Good are sisters who have taken the teachings of being raised in an art studio, having run and worked in their parents gallery and wholesale business, and being active in events and fashion shows to launch their clothing line, Ay Lelum The Good House of Design. Mentored by their mother, artist and designer, Sandra Moorhouse-Good, who often takes the lead in couture design, they carry on the legacy that their parents built through their own garment design.

 

Having worked in all aspects of a family Design House and Art studio, together they design and create a Traditional Coast Salish clothing line as their parents had. They feature and work with their brother Joel Good and their Dad, Dr. William Good to incorporate traditional family designs into their line of wearable art. They are active in the community, always willing to promote Coast Salish culture through their own artistic canvas, Ay Lelum garments. They are passionate about documenting and passing on the traditions and art form taught by their Father, Dr. William Good, as well as using eco-friendly fabrics and manufacturing locally.

The sisters are dedicated to embracing and sharing traditional Coast Salish art, culture, language and music. While creating ready-wear collections and couture garments, they also hit the recording studio! Having been taught traditional singing and drumming by their Dad, they record their own showcase music where they sing, drum, rattle, and share hul’q’umi’num language. As well as recording with numerous members of their family, they also incorporate sounds into the music, like spinning wool and carving that are made into beats by Rob the Viking. Ay Lelum music is all recorded and re-mixed in Nanaimo by Rob the Viking.

The duo also perform at cultural events and join their Aunts and cousins in the family Drum Circle, Footprints of the Wolf, performing in the community.

Interview - 

Please share a bit about your journey (s) to choose a career in fashion? Where did you both choose to study or how did you gain your skills?

We were raised in an art studio in Nanaimo, B.C., by artist parents and learned numerous artforms growing up. As young girls we were introduced to fashion when we modeled in shows at the local mall (known at the time as Harbour Park Mall) and had our hair and make-up done at the Simpson Sears cosmetic counter. As we grew older, our parents expanded into having retail and wholesale galleries and we were involved in all aspects of the family business, such as coordinating and participating in fashion shows, sales, marketing, manufacturing, and design process.

We were inspired by our parents to launch our own label because they were trail-blazing entrepreneurs and artists throughout our lives. Our Father, Dr. William Good, is a Master Coast Salish Artist and our Mother is a trained painter since the age of five years old. We are also inspired by our brother, Joel Good, whose balanced artistic design skills look amazing on the body—he is the perfect combination of our both of our parents’ artistic skill. Carrying on legacy, practicing traditions, following cultural protocols, learning and sharing continues to inspire us to create our clothing line everyday.

Our parents created the first-ever Coast Salish clothing line in the early 1990’s called Ay Ay Mut, and we worked alongside them for many years, which had the greatest impact on our decision to create our own line. After our parents retired, we had a retrospective show at the Nanaimo Museum in 2015 showcasing their 35 year collaboration. This reflection sparked our interest in garment design and we decided to do it ourselves! Although we had a great depth of knowledge in the industry, it was the training and mentorship by our mother, Sandra Moorhouse-Good, that prepared us and assisted us in creating the collections that we do to this day.

What inspired you to launch your own label? What has been your highest moment since launching your line? Why did you choose the name Ay Lelum for your brand?

The highest moment for us is to see our collection showcases walk the runway. After months of development and design, family collaboration, as well as recording our own music that embodies the imagery that we show through garment design, we share our modern form of Indigenous Storytelling through fashion.

We chose our name by sitting down with the family and brain storming names for our brand, which even included a few comical ideas by the little children! We knew that we needed to have a name that represented the multi-generational involvement of our family and our family artwork. We also wanted to use our language, as our parents had done before us, so we choose a name in the hul’q’umi’num language from Snuneymuxw. We decided on Ay Lelum, which translates to “Good House”. This name represents our family art, our fashion and design house, and also a play on Good and Moorhouse. It was perfect!

How would you describe your brand? What is the aesthetic? Who is the customer you design for?

Our brand is shareable, wearable art for all people to wear and enjoy. We design for everybody, from XS-5XL in our ready-wear and have no size limitation in our custom couture. Our garments are inclusive, made with non-ceremonial family art and our brand is culturally appropriate -- made by an authentic Indigenous family from Snuneymuxw First Nation. We also choose eco-friendly fabrics and manufacture in Vancouver and Nanaimo, B.C.

Can you share a little about the artists who you work with in creating your collections?

We work collaboratively with our family in creating our collections. This consists of our parents and our brother, but we also include the younger generation as up-and-coming artists whenever we can.

Readers would love to hear a little about the collection you will be showing on the runway at Vancouver Fashion Week FW23.

Ay Lelum Transformation Collections 2023:

Since we had such an overwhelmingly positive response to our Transformation Couture Collections at New York Fashion Week, Vancouver Fashion Week and Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week in 2022, we created Transformation Ready-Wear Collections that everyone can purchase and enjoy. These items are currently in production for Fall and Spring 2023 in eco-friendly fabrics, with a variety of recycled and natural and organic selections. They are all printed in Vancouver and Nanaimo, and sewn in Vancouver, B.C., ranging from XS-5XL and made by limited edition.

The Transformation collections have artwork by our brother, Joel Good, with Killerwhale Transformation and Eagle Transformation designs. These are the first collections that we have designed in our new facility located on the Snuneymuxw First Nation in Nanaimo, BC, Canada, which is our new storefront, studio and Design House. We are excited to share these collections, having been created and developed coming out of a Pandemic, representing Transformation and change. The collections being shown are available by pre-sale on our website and are available for wholesale orders.

Where can readers purchase your garments? 

Our ready-wear garments are available on our website: www.aylelum.com and at a variety of local Gift Shops and Galleries that are listed on our website, including BC Ferries. We now have a newly built Ay Lelum facility on Snuneymuxw First Nation with a retail gallery open with select hours. Our Coast Salish Couture is available by custom order by appointment.

Anything else you'd like to share? 

We also host and open events, do workshops and put on Fashion Shows. We record our own music that has been featured in numerous video and film projects. Custom collaborative art works are also available for corporate projects, which include design work and original art.

Image credits - Fashion Nomads and Patrick Shannon (Supernaturals models shot).

Links - 

• Website - www.aylelum.com
• Instagram - www.instagram.com/aylelum/
• Facebook - www.facebook.com/AyLelum/
• Youtube - www.youtube.com/channel/UCzlUpLxJs1nT4bO95F9NSeA
• Twitter - www.twitter.com/aylelum
• TikTok - @aylelum