Olsen twins launch fall fashion line
Lorrayne Anthony

TORONTO—It’s perhaps ironic that two self-made multimillionaires - who have made worst-dressed lists and also been called trendsetters - have their name on fashions at one of the world’s inexpensive department store chains. But despite their estimated worth of $275 million US and heading back to university next week, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen were in town Tuesday to launch their fall line of twin fashions (for ages five to 12) at Wal-Mart stores across Canada.
“We just wanted to connect with everyone. I mean, to be honest, to be in some place like Wal-Mart where you can give your clothes to anyone, you know, and people can afford it,” said Mary-Kate. “They have the most amount of stores, so it’s more accessible,” Ashley interjected. “That was really important to us,” Mary-Kate said finishing the thought. The twins, 19, are back at New York University next week, so they were in Toronto just shy of 48 hours. “The clothes are so cute,” said Ashley Olsen. “On little kids ... it’s so cute with accessories and little details.” “I mean the skirt is very something we’d wear. There are photos of us walking down the street wearing a skirt like that,” Mary-Kate said while Ashley held up a pink poncho with a matching floral pink bohemian skirt.
Beyond twin fashion their highly successful Mary-Kate and Ashley brand produces furniture, fragrance, area rugs, optical frames and watches. During their summer off and in between studying during the school year the Olsens meet with or are “on the phone constantly” with designers, said Mary-Kate. Their products are available in Canada and the United States, and thanks to the global syndication and popularity of the television program Full House - where the girls got their start at the age of nine months - their wares are in Australia, New Zealand, Germany, France, the U.K. and Spain.
More than just prolific, the Olsens have given a generation of girls a sense of style beyond the flesh-baring fashions of the Britneys, Jessicas and Parises or the haute couture in high fashion magazines. “It’s interesting to see it all unravel. Gossip magazines, just by catching people walking down the streets, can actually be more effective and fashion-oriented than fashion magazines,” said Ashley.
“Let’s be honest ... kids don’t wear gowns,” said Mary-Kate, who along with her sister has had their bobo (bohemian bourgeois) style of dust-catcher skirts and street-sweeping cardigans documented by the paparazzi. “It’s streetwear.” In fact, the industry is picking up on the public’s fascination with celebrity style as opposed to fashion shoots. A recent issue of Vogue Italia featured a fashion layout that looked more like a gossip magazine spread of Hollywood stars being photographed on the sly: beautiful women in casual clothes wearing oversized designer sunglasses and toting shopping bags and lattes.
While the twins didn’t set out to be fashion icons, they don’t let the fact that mothers dress their daughters like them dictate their style. “I wear what I want to wear and I’m not really affected by how I should look ... I’m not changing for anyone,” said Mary-Kate. “I’m usually the worst look of the week.” But she added that they wouldn’t include too-revealing clothes - like cropped tops, which they don’t wear - in their line.
“It’s a very studied look that they have and it’s definitely a few notches up from Britney Spears,” said Toronto image consultant Linda Gaylard, who has outfitted stars including actor Wendy Crewson. “The look is very carefully set out to reflect the trends ... what you’d see (on runways).” Despite their bank account and a luxury condo in Manhattan, the twins appear remarkably down to earth. For the handful of Toronto interviews Mary-Kate wore a vintage black cocktail dress; Ashley a green blouse with a black skirt. No designer names, just clothes they thought looked nice.