Cover me in Plastik Wrap
August 2003
By Krisalyn Cease
Photography courtesy of Plastik Wrap
Canada’s hottest new design duo is taking the world of cyber_tek fashion by storm. After all, Canadians have always been on the pulse of alternative clothing design as daredevils that are far more style-focused and willing to take risks than their American counterparts. Yah! Don’tcha know?
Plastik Wrap’s Roots
In March of 2001, Ryan Webber and Adrianna Fulop crossed paths one night out on the town. Dressed as members of a royal galactic council, they picked each other out of the crowd and immediately hit it off. Shortly thereafter, Plastik Wrap was founded on April 24th of 2001. It rapidly transformed from a small collection being sold to a single location in Toronto, to becoming recognized at the hottest events in major cities worldwide. Two weeks after the company’s inception, Plastikwrap.com was formed so as to get feedback and exposure for the line. The response was overwhelming. Email requests flooded in from people in regions without retail representation. To answer this demand, Plastikwrap.com was re-launched as an e-commerce website. From the start, images of the previous season were used from the original website which would later become the popular Cyber_Tek shop of today. Currently, Plastikwrap.com features a collections archive and model gallery, event listings, and other downloadable goodies. The largest draw by far for the line’s devotees is the specialty “short runs” not sold to retailers. With sometimes as few as 15 being produced, these limited edition designs quickly become a hot, sought after commodity.
The Dynamic Duo
The heart and soul behind Plastik Wrap is certainly its founders, Adrianna Fulop, designer and production coordinator and Ryan Webber, head of marketing and web management. Fulop was born and bred in Slovakia and attended the University of Art in Bratislava for two years studying fashion history and design and taught herself basic sewing skills. While in school, Adrianna won the award for “Young fashion designer of the year” in Slovakia’s international competition with her collection entitled “…And Life Goes On.” From 1998-1999 she served as fashion editor for the music and fashion magazine, Maxi Super (Bratislava, Slovakia). There she did conception, styling, casting, and makeup for shoots, as well as fashion event reviews, articles, and interviews with leaders in the fashion industry. In 2000, Fulop left the University of Art and came to Canada where she studied pattern drafting at the International Academy of Design in Toronto.
Representing the native Canadian side of the pair, Ryan Webber grew up in Maple Ridge, British Columbia, which is about an hour outside of Vancouver. There he focused on theatre in high school, and after graduation, studied fashion marketing at Kwantlen College in Richmond, BC. Webber had planned on following up with a fashion design degree as well, but was displeased with the program and dropped out. He remained deeply involved with the art, developing many unusual outfits that he wore as both “installation party art” and his daily street wear. Following soon after, an opportunity arose for Webber to attend the multimedia program at the Vancouver Film School where he became a graduate of class 13. Webber’s work in the new media field has won many awards including “Best in Show” at Comdex and a Gemini award for “Most Innovative Website.” In 1999, Ryan moved to Toronto to work with a major broadcaster. There he met Adrianna and the rest is history.
Style Description
On thing for sure is that Plastik Wrap’s style is continually shifting and transforming itself using a vast variety of fabrics, shapes, and colors to aid it. All clothing is tested first on human models of all shapes and sizes, not mannequins. Plastik Wrap’s garments are extremely versatile and available in a multitude of styles making the possibilities endless. The look is cyber_tek chic with an attitude and is just as crisp and modern worn by day as it is in the nocturnal hours. Most fans of the line fall between the ages of 17-30 due to the vast appeal to such innovative minimalist design. Price points are comparable or even less than specialty boutiques (Ex: Bill Hallman, Cherry Bomb, etc.) and fall in line with current popular overseas labels. Every piece is completely designed and manufactured in Toronto, Canada by Adrianna and her team of gifted independent contractors (no sweatshop labor here!). All clothing and accessories are finely tailored and are made from high quality, handpicked materials including meteorite PVC or their iridescent material, which was developed by the aerospace program.
Plastik Wrap News
Plastik Wrap is very active in their market via involvement in a host of underground cultural events and has successfully incorporated its distinct design aesthetic into club promotions with video projections, fashion installations and shows, in-store displays, political statements (no more sweatshops, please!), and the creation of a diverse online network consisting of forum threads, communities, and mailing lists. They have also contributed wardrobe for a nationally televised sci-fi series, and dressed international recording artists, including Analog Pussy, a German hard trance group. This year, Plastik Wrap will be participating in the “Fetish Cares” festival supporting AIDS research and they continue to work with internationally recognized promotion group “R351570R” (resistor in “l33t” or “hacker-speak”), decorating, projections, and whole room transformations (imagine a Plastik Wrap version of Trading Spaces in your room!). Future projects include a fabric recycling plan which would involve creating some very original, one-of-a-kind items that would be sewn right in the studio and a whole new line of accessories.
Musical Influences
Fulop and Webber both love to work to the new Goldfrapp album, “Black Cherry”, but they listen to a diverse selection of music ranging from Dieselboy to Recoil to Moloko with the common denominator usually being a dark, seductive electronic element. They love all things spacey, but they grew up on synthpop such as Depeche Mode. Favorites in their CD case now include Adult’s “Resuscitation” and CEX’s “Being Ridden.”
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