Tania Martins lets her Pink Cobra charm Toronto’s coolest girls

By Kevin Naulls | April 15, 2011

By Kevin Naulls | 04/15/2011

Tania Martins is among Toronto’s hottest (Image: Supplied by Tania Martins)

Here at The Goods, we’re constantly trying to identify the hidden gems and big stars that make Toronto a competitive style centre. Turns out, there are quite a few of them. Beginning today, we’re generating a Hot List of all the mavens, tastemakers, designers, hopefuls and stalwarts who are worth watching. Today’s fiery inaugural personality is Tania Martins, designer for Pink Cobra and co-owner of Queen West’s Carte Blanche. See our full profile and gallery below.

Like any hard-working Torontonian, Martins is vulnerable—we assume to smog, apathy and the northwest corner of Queen and Bathurst—and she puts that into her designs, inspired by a series of contradictions: fragile yet fearless, feminine yet masculine and provocative yet discreet. Pink Cobra’s fall/winter 2011 collection is what really got us talking, because, well, it’s just sexy. Yes, a woman can wear a top with braided arms, pair a pleated skirt with a navel-baring top, and even wear the most fitted black dress that shows off every last body curve (well, if she’s comfortable with it).

Pink Cobra has no real style boundaries, and the woman who wears it shouldn’t either. It’s the collection’s unfettered sexuality and international resonance (Martins has a mass of private clients in London) that made us think other designers need to shape up or be damned forever, making matronly clothes for ladies who lunch (truly a noble profession, but it isn’t a game changer). There are other, lesser cobras in the world, but we’re happy ours is pink.

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Hot List, our compendium of Toronto stylemakers to watch, appears regularly on The Goods. See the full collection as we check in with more of Toronto’s hottest.

4 thoughts on “Tania Martins lets her Pink Cobra charm Toronto’s coolest girls”

Augusto Oliveira says:

April 18, 2011 at 4:04 am

Watching the current crisis situation of our country (PORTUGAL), it fills us with pride seeing that some Portuguese can achieve success.
Kristy says:

April 18, 2011 at 11:55 am

The Pink Cobra line really is something for Toronto to be proud of and Tania herself is a gem, it is refresing to walk into Carte Blanche and be welcomed with a smile and small chat regardless if you are buying or browsing. I wish her continued success.
Elee says:

April 18, 2011 at 1:15 pm

It’s a great shop but these photos do nothing to introduce the clothing to people who are new to it.

Shooting black clothes against a black background doesn’t distinguish the clothes.
chantelle says:

April 19, 2011 at 12:23 am

These pieces are fantastic! I mean, I was already surprised by the fact that there was a Torontonian out there making stylish clothes, I can actually WEAR…But, the fact that she’s Portuguese, warms me up even more. Work it girl.