Sylvia Mantella: The Queen of Couture

Sylvia Mantella is a Canadian philanthropist, socialite, businesswoman, mother, and the Chief Marketing Officer of Mantella Corporation. She actively supports Canadian fashion and culture, contributes to the community and local charities, and currently sits on a total of 11 combined Committees, Boards or Advisory Boards – all in the phylanthropic arena. Her fashion style is fascinating and her close friendship with various international designers, including Dolce and Gabbana, arouses interest from thousands of her followers. Sylvia and her husband Robert Mantella own an Animal Sanctuary in Florida, photos of which you can see on her Instagram.

On Family

I am first generation Canadian. My roots originated in the Czech Republic, I have a very large family there with more then 15 cousins. My immediate family though mostly reside in Toronto. My husband and I are very close to our three children and nephews who are all adults now. We are not a very large family but we are a very close and private family. My husband understands how very important it is to me to give back to our community and is extremely supportive to my commitment to philanthropy. Our children attend several of the charity events we support and they are now also contributing and paving their own paths in the field of charity.

On Sylvia Mantella: Dress and pants by Mikhael Kale, boots by Balenciaga

On Charities and Events:

I currently sit on a total of 11 combined Committees, Boards or Advisory boards all in the phylanthropic arena and we support dozens more. I will attend between 50-70 events in an average year. During the months of April and May I will be involved with more then dozen charitable events. I’m honoured to be Co-Chairing The Magic Gala with my dear friend Salah Bashir in Toronto in November 2018, benefiting Camp Ooch. An extraordinary organization providing very special experiences to children diagnosed with cancer. Camp Ooch is the only overnight camp in Ontario to offer onsite chemotherapy IV treatment and blood transfusions. Every year since 2014, Dolce & Gabbana has a 4 days event during the month of July in different cities throughout Italy which I have been attending for the last few years. This year will be in Lake Como. I have no doubt it will be nothing short of beautifully spectacular.

On Sylvia Mantella: Dress by Stephan Caras, shoes by Saint Laurent

On Her Animal Sanctuary:

Since we were children and before we even knew one another, my husband and I both had a great adoration and respect for animals and animal welfare . In 2008 I had the opportunity to foster an orphaned two-toed sloth for 2 weeks. My connection to this fragile helpless animal was instant. In its habitat a sloth will stay with its mother for the first year of its life. They have long arms and legs which they wrap around their mothers for protection and nurturing. They are very sensitive. As soon as the sloth arrived she wrapped her arms and legs around my waist and held on so tightly. The rest is history. We are fully licensed private, non profit facility. We are governed very strictly by the USDA and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. My husband and I believe that if you’re going to accept the responsibility for and have the privilege to care for, rescue and adopt any animals there should be very strict regulations in place. We are now approaching a decade with our exotic animal sanctuary and house over 200 animals varying from, but not limited to, bengal tigers, white lions, primates and many many many peacocks. I truly love them all, every animal has their own story and journey. I am slightly partial to the sloths and Jasmine, our adopted Amur leopard. The sloths were afterall our first adoption and where it all began for us. We have one the most successful two-toed sloth breeding sanctuary’s in the USA. We are located in Florida, it’s the closest sub tropic climate of South American and South Africa, where the majority of our animals are indigenous to and the climate is critical to their well-being. We are onsite as much as possible, ranging between 4-5 months a year, however we are working on spending more time there the near future. We actually did expand our Sanctuary just a couple years ago: we began with 20 acres, then the neighbouring property became available, so we acquired it. We have 40 acres now, but I’m not opposed to a further expansion if the timing is right.

On Sylvia Mantella: Dress by Mikael Kale, boots by Gianvito Rossi

On Fashion: 

My aesthetic growing up was very girly. It was defineitly my mother’s influence. Since I can remember and reflecting on photos my mother would dress me in pretty dresses with matching shoes or bows. I was an only child until the age of 15 years old, internet and social media didn’t exist. I surrounded myself with my dolls and loved dressing them, losing myself in the world of my imagination.

On Favourite Canadian Designers: 

We have a marvellous range of fashion talent in Canada. Mikhael Kale stands out to me as a Canadian fashion designer with an extensive range and has some of the greatest draping and embroidery skills I’ve seen. Stephan Caras, also a Canadian fashion designer, is a master at creating dresses and gowns which exude a strong, but very feminine sensuality. I know what I love, when I see it. I am very content to remain on the side lines and admire the finished product by the professionals.

On Sylvia Mantella: Dress and pants by Mikhael Kale, boots by Balenciaga

On D&G and Her Runway Show: 

I love the Dolce & Gabbana brand. Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana have a very special place in my heart. Walking the Dolce & Gabbana runway show in February 2017 was an astounding experience for me on many levels. Having had the privledge to witness the behind the scenes production of a world class runway show I gained an entirely new percpective and an immense respect for fashion shows and the enormous dedication it takes from every individual involved. This runway experience will be my swan song.

On the Gown She Wore in NYC to the Metropolitan Opera: 

The Dolce Gabbana Alta Moda gown I wore in New York to the Metropolitan Opera in April is an exquisite piece for many reasons. It is the only one which exists. Aesthetically it’s a piece of art, each flower, cherub, the leopard and the lion on the gown are all hand painted. In this case the fabric was Domenico Dolce’s canvas. The skirt of the gown is a replica of magnifienent ballroom floor of the Palazzo Gangi in Palermo Sicily. Silcily is also where Domenico Dolce was born, so understandably it’s a very sacred place for him. One of the animals, which reside at our sanctuary is an Amur Leopard, which I have raised from a young cub. This species of leopard is critically endangered, in fact there are only 35 recorded to exist as of 2017 due to habitat destruction and poaching. Her name is Jasmine and to honour her, the house of Dolce Gabbana had her name hand painted along the bottom of the gown, just under the hand painted leopard itself.

On Sylvia Mantella: Dress by Stephan Caras, shoes by Saint Laurent

On Designers Using Real Fur:

I have not worn fur for over 20 years. I think wearing fur is so sad and it literally dates back to the stone age when it was a means for survival which, of course, it no longer is. The access we have as a society to exceptional quality of faux fur is extensive. I have great admiration and support for the fashion houses, such as Versace, Gucci, Tom Ford, Armani, Vivienne Westwood, Calvin Klein all of which have moved into the removal of fur from there collections and, of course, Stella McCartney, who has built her entire empire as a vegetarian based and cruelty free brand.

On Her Blog

For now the use of my Instagram account is the platform I use to express my love for fashion and my continuously evolving fashion aesthetic and of course share my experiences on our Exotic Animal rescue and adoption Sanctuary.

On Sylvia Mantella: Dress by Mikael Kale, boots by Gianvito Rossi

Photography by Margarita Menard

Makeup by Patrick Rahmé

Hair by Kirsten Klontz 

Location: Four Seasons Hotel Toronto