As tweeted on Thursday morning, The Stolen Orchid began the first style snapping rampage. It was quite a fun experience and am sure to do frequent style hunts throughout the city. Pretty sure RAFW is one of the biggest stylish gatherings in Australia, so what better place to start snapping. My photography skills can be summed up in one four lettered word… ‘shit’, so I will apologise in advance.
What caught my eye to the Arnsdorf collection was the colour palette. The mixture of pretty in maroons, lilacs and pinks of the prints and the earthy tones of brown, camels, cream, rusty reds and khaki greens formed a very light and wearable palette for the collection. Sihouettes dropped from the exausted strong shoulder to an exaggerated elbow. Soft feminine colours in the prints were sharpened by the haphazard direction of the line and construction of the garments. My favourite were the camel colour tapered trousers and the bibbed long sleeved shirts in both cream and lilac.
Well let me start by saying what a horrible show this was, I found myself hating every single look! There was zero creativity, zero skill and zero aesthetic appeal – I’m absolutely appauled. But of course I am kidding… The most anticipated show for this season from – I dare say – the finest designer to ever emerge out of Australia showcased his collection at the Sydney Opera House in the morning. For those who have been living under a rock, this designer is Dion Lee (in that case you should remember the name for future reference). The collection featured a highly evolved technicality that is evident in all of the designers’ collections – true to the signatory attention to the precision of tailoring and garment construction. The looks showcased a diversity of athleticism through the cutting edge shapes and femininity through the intricate pleating and knotting detail. The colour palette consisted of refreshing shades of lilac, pastel blue, ivory, black and violet. A nostalgia was evoked from the Rorschach print work incorporated in the garments which were reminiscent of paintings that were done in pre-school (folding the paper in half to form a symmetrical paint print). The young TAFE Sydney Institute graduate displayed a complexity beyond any other Australian designer repetoire – articulating himself into a whole league better fit for the International runways – say London or Paris. Really, we get the point that you’re a fucking genius and every trendy kid in Australia worships you, please dominate the world already!
Kym Ellery once again showcases her ability to win over the fashionstas with her creativity. The mixture of embellishments, leathers and feathers created an elaborate collection full of textural detail. The sihouettes remained with the labels synonymously sex appeal whist the leather and tailoring have it a stronger edge. I didn’t particularly like the extravagant flared trousers; they really haven’t grown on me yet. The collection however distinguishes Kym Ellery as one of the more original Australian designers.
Although the collection was nothing mind blowing, it was definitely wearable. Pollitt send an army of models down the overheated and smelly runway of the Cargo Theatre in a rainbow of black and white. Hemlines were short with the exception of the angular cigarette pants. Sheers and leathers made another guest appearance at this show. The looks had a sense of dejuvu attached, from previous Friedrich Gray colections and reminiscent of the early work of Alexander Wang.
Although I didn’t get the chance to see the Zimmermann show for this season, I was impressed by the above designs. The collection titled “The Vanishing Point” showed on Day 2 of RAFW, showcasing washed out floral prints in various pastel shades. The geometric lines and details complemented the soft femininity of the fabrics resulting in structured romance. Along with these more interesting looks were the label’s standard swimwear, featuring the oh so original high waisted bikini – note the sarcasm – but nevertheless, points for the soft prints. Can’t wait to see the zebra like tan lines to hit fashionsta bodies this summer.
Images from Vogue Australia
One of the few good things of my Monday (Day One of RAFW) was the Christopher Esber show. After a long and exhausting day, Esber’s first individual show was quite the sight for sore eyes. The collection was minimalistic with intrigue attached to the selection of fabrics and silhouettes. The collection referenced the SS09 Prada collection with the crinkled crops and the recent work of Phoebe Philo for Celine with the slick incorporation of leather. The use of leather in the collection was definitely what stood out for me from this emerging designer. This collection is a significant step for the TAFE Sydney Institute graduate. Keep your eyes peeled kids.
Images from Vogue Australia
It’s been a fucking long and exhausting day sprinting back and forth from university and the OPT, so I will apologise in advance for spelling errors, excessive whinging or mean comments due to my lack of sleep. As I have been knocked back as a media delegate for RAFW this year, I’ve only been able to attend the shows that I’ve been invited to – so I guess I’ll only bother with these shows unless a show is mind-blowing enough for me to write about.
The Zambesi show was the first New Zealand designer to showcase their collection this season and was a good start to my fashion week. Supporting the label was a myriad of fellow Kiwi’s including, Kate Sylvester, the guys from Stolen Girlfriends Club, Zara Mirkin, Karen Inderbitzen Waller and blogger Isaac Hindin Miller of Isaac Likes. The show opened with Tiah Eckhardt, the show featuring 2 model couples being Tiah and her husband Patrick Delaney and NZ’s Jasper Seven and his gf Dempsey Stewart.
The theme was ‘Modern Rogue’, sending somewhat gothic travellers and marching down the runway. The collection featured a variation of fabrics recycled from previous collections – the more interesting to me was the sheer gauze like fabric featured in both the womens and menswear. Soft beige and pastel pink lingerie garments were contrasted with black and navy tailoring. The overall look was derelict with subtle elements of delicate refinement, in particular the silk scarves and lace featured in the menswear and the shimmer of sequins in the womenswear.
Images from Vogue Australia
