Timeless. As you are.

Timeless. As you are.

That tagline sits atop an ad in the March W magazine. The designer was unfamiliar. The dress was lovely, wearable by a woman of any age— something you don't often see in W.

FYI, W is the brainchild of the (very recently) late John Fairchild. In 1960 he took his family's stodgy industry newspaper, Women's Wear Daily, and turned it into a pithy and gossipy report on the fashionable as well as the business of fashion. In 1999 he founded W as a monthly magazine to rival Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. W has always been a little different than those two. One thing— its size. It's oversized, not easy to carry around or read on an exercise bike (where I was at the time). Its take on fashion is somewhat elitist, especially in the editorial well. Fun to look at though while working out.

That's why Amelia Toro's ad came as a surprise. Such a pretty dress and such a powerful thought. Who is this person?

Amelia Toro

Turns out Amelia Toro is a Colombian-born, New York-raised designer who has been in business since 1990. Her clothes do appear timeless— not over-the-top trendy or saccharine-sweet feminine. She has a boutique in NYC's Chelsea. Clothing is made in her hometown of Bogota in a unique manner. Rather than being pieced on an assembly line, each garment is handmade by a single seamstress and bears her name along with Amelia's on the label. This is an admirable and bold move "for social opportunity and empowerment for Latin American women".

We have been working with single parents for more than 20 years. We believe in the transformation of the industry through the manufacturing of the complete garment by a single seamstress or tailor. This way, each person feels the satisfaction, accomplishment and pride in being part of a creative force. We teach them to produce a single garment from start to finish so if they leave the company, they have a skill that will help them support themselves. Each garment is signed by the person who constructed it. In a country with hundreds of displaced families, we are their second family, providing them with a sense of belonging.— Amelia Toro

A pretty dress

More pretty dresses

All this does not come cheap to the consumer. Apparel ranges from $495 to $2,000. Sadly I won't be doing more than tipping my hat and sending her a "right on".