Artist Profile: Julie Prescesky

Under the Jules Mae Clothing brand, with its memorable tagline, "Heavenly style, sassy as hell," Julie Prescesky from St. Catharines creates one-of-a-kind handmade apparel using recycled, repurposed and ethically sourced materials.

Julie has been sewing and designing for as long as she can remember. As she explains, "I grew up in the sleepy countryside just outside of Vancouver, BC. My mom was our community seamstress and often made elaborate gowns for proms, weddings, beauty pageants and the like. My love of garment construction and design most certainly comes from her.

"I've spent most of my life in pursuit of creative adventures. I'm a DIYer, which means I think that almost every challenge has a solution. I just need to find it. And with that comes the inevitable challenge of almighty TIME."

Rising to that challenge, Julie is currently working on a project called Moo Moo 100, which, as the name suggests, will see her design and produce 100 moo moo dresses. You can follow her progress on her blog.

Besides working on her clothing line, Julie is in the process of finishing up her "long lost" Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. "I'm pretty excited about that," she says. “I've studied a myriad of techniques and gained a mindset which naturally bubbles into most areas of my life."

Explaining how she manages to balance the multiple roles of artist, student, wife and mother, Julie says: "I do my best to stay focused on the task at hand and see it through, and then move on to the next challenge. I love figuring things out. I was always attracted to puzzles of all sorts as a child, and I think that has helped me find creative solutions to whatever may be facing me and needing attention."

Come out and meet Julie, and eight other talented artisans from the Niagara region, at our exclusive, ticket-only event on Thursday, April 29. The event takes place at the Wildflower Market Restaurant on Hwy 20 in Fonthill from 6:30 to 10 pm. You can buy tickets online (button at right) or by calling Alison at 905-892-6424.