When I am asked what I do for a living, and answer that I own Yoke x Hem, a clothing store, the typical response is “Oh, that must be fun, playing dress-up all day!”.
Have you watched the movie, based on the young adult book ‘The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants’ by Ann Brashares? It is the story of four friends who all fit into one pair of jeans, and they’re all different sizes with dramatically different body shapes. Seems a bit far fetched right?
Well friends, it actually happened. Let me tell you a story. Summer is coming which means new arrivals of clothing at Yoke X Hem. T-shirts, tanks, jackets, summer dresses, linen, skirts, shorts, skorts, and as always, jeans (my favourite). As we unpack, steam, tag and make sure every piece is ready to wear, I try and take a moment to appreciate each item. In other words, I try everything on. Yes, it’s dangerous. I fall in love with a new piece of clothing almost every day. But years in the industry has taught me restraint… well, sort of. So going back to my favourite thing, let’s talk jeans. We have carried Jag jeans for years. These jeans have it all - fit, fashion, comfort, and style. And they’re really well priced. When our new box of Jag jeans arrived this spring, I swear I had a moment. I’ll call it… ‘Deja Blue.’ I opened the box, and the perfect dark wash blue jean was on top, in my size, and she whispered to me “best-kept secret, cutting-edge construction, smooths tummy, enhances natural shape, custom fits your curves…” Naturally, I put them on (what else could a girl do). It was all true. The soft elastic inside the waistband that actually stayed up. With a curved yoke and angled darts, I had a booty! And there are mesh panels hidden behind the front pockets that flattened my tummy. I not only felt good in them, I felt good about myself. I wanted to share this sensational jean with the world. And with a photoshoot scheduled a few weeks later, I planned on putting Jags to the ultimate test. There were six models, all different sizes, with drastically different body shapes. Something amazing happened. These Jag jeans fit each beautiful individual that was there. It was an extraordinary moment. Together, in front of the camera of the very talented Adam Moser and his fantastic assistant and wife, Kim, the Sisterhood of the Traveling Jags was formed. We had a size 0, to a size 16. And since age only matters if you’re cheese, wine or scotch, shall I say we’re all ‘twenty-somethings’ with a fruit bowl of different shapes, BUT all of us were wearing (and lovin’) our Jag jeans. So bring your best friends to Yoke x Hem and create your own Sisterhood of the Travelling Jags. I promise you will all love yourselves for it. Hi, I’m Katie, and I am the proud owner of Yoke X Hem. My business has a story, like any business, and I want to share it with you.
YXH (Medicine Hat) is my home, it’s where my parents chose to raise me and where I was determined to stay. Medicine Hat is a community that makes me feel good. It’s comfort. It’s familiar. It’s supportive. It’s YXH - so that’s where I start to explain where our new name came from. Our business has been known as Labels for Women for years. This year I sat down and thought about who we were and what I wanted us to represent. I wanted us to focus on making people feel amazing. I wanted to represent and support our community. I wanted us to get back to the necessary basics of customer service that goes above and beyond. The original name, Labels For Women, didn’t accurately portray our message today. It wasn’t wrong, but it was no longer right. To ‘label’ means to attach a label to something, or to assign to a category, often inaccurately or restrictively. At Yoke X Hem we pride ourselves in our selections by carrying sizes 2-18, XS-XXL, in everything we sell. All ages and all sizes are welcome in our store. We want to see you, to help you, to show you how something CAN be made for you. We do not label. I love making people feel good with the way they see themselves. I work closely with a local tailor and seamstress who have years of experience. I myself have years of experience working in the fashion industry, as a stylist, buyer and now the proprietor of my vision, Yoke X Hem. It’s my job to help my clients discover themselves by showing them a new perspective, by colouring outside the lines and pushing their boundaries to find that perfect look and fit for every age, shape and size. So when you have to size up on the bottom half, we Yoke the waist. If a top is almost perfect but needs to be shortened for your petite build, we’ll Hem it. Now that piece you love is made just for you and made for you at Yoke X Hem. |
AuthorKatie Peckham is the proud owner of Archives
February 2020
Categories |