Evelyn Ebrey is on location at Mercedes Benz Australia Fashion Week covering it for thread.co.nz with her daily diary posts to keep us in the loop and up to date, both on the runway and off…
Evelyn Ebrey is on location at Mercedes Benz Australia Fashion Week 2013,covering it for thread.co.nz with her daily diary posts to keep us in the loop and up to date with what’s going on both on the runway and off. Here’s Evelyn’s first diary day from Australia Fashion Week MBAFW…
Arriving in a blur of sequins, lenses and hairspray, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia (MBFWA) is upon us again and Sydney has been invaded by hordes of stylish media, buyers and industry folk for the week-long celebration of chic.
With a new home at Carriageworks – and it seems even more bloggers and cameras than ever before – MBFWA got off to a strong start with Camilla and Marc’s 10 year celebration kicking things off at 10am before a very packed house.
Next up was one of my absolute favourite Australian designers and my first show of the day, Aurelio Costarella, who did the first installation show of the day in The Box space (pictured above and below). Intricately embellished, stunningly draped and to-die for gorgeous, Aurelio’s dresses and gowns were a sight to behold and I was captivated. The best thing about seeing these creations in a more intimate space was getting up close and having a look at the amazing details. His collection celebrated his 30 years in the Australian fashion industry which is a massive achievement and it was such a thrill to see a retrospective of sorts of his previous collections re-interpreted.
Next up were Bec and Bridge and Christopher Esber, both of whom presented strong collections, but my next show in person was swimwear label White Sands (pictured below). Pretty and feminine, White Sands presented a charming range of swimwear and cover-ups mostly in sweet florals with a few lingerie inspired pieces thrown in. The models were all tanned, bouncy haired examples of just how much Australians love the beach and it’s not hard to see that this label will sell well come the warmer months.
Roopa Pemmaraju showed a riot of Indian-inspired prints next, before iconic label Alex Perry presented a sexy, modern show accessorised by incredible thigh-high lace up boots.
My next show was younger label By Johnny who sent a series of bold body-con dresses down the runway in a variety of monochrome and muted prints. The collection was softened by ruffles at the hems and pretty sheer tops with slightly puffed sleeves, the skirt lengths varying from rather mini to the more wearable midi-length. I’m not sure if she’d been on the runway earlier in the day but I did spot stunning kiwi model Holly-Rose Emery doing a brilliant job on the catwalk too.
Below: Surface Too Deep.
Second to last of the day, and one of the shows I was most anticipating this week (for the kiwi contingent) was the Group Swim show. Featuring four labels; Maidenlove, Skye and Staghorn, Gypsea and NZ’s Surface Too Deep, the show was strong on fake-tan and heavy on the colour blocking and prints. Whilst the others all presented good collections, one of the cutest pieces was a cat-face one-piece by Gypsea.
Surface Too Deep (pictured above) designers Esther Miro and Sarah-Jane Abrams presented the most cohesive and covetable collection of the four. With an emphasis on vintage-inspired silhouettes and beautiful wearability, the range was made of a mix of unique one-pieces and separates in gorgeous custom prints. These girls really know how to make swimwear that not only looks amazing but fits well too. Huge congratulations to Surface Too Deep on a fantastic MBFWA debut.
Below: swimwear by Maidenlove.
Below: Skye and Staghorn
Below: Gypsea
Romance Was Born finished the day up with a candy-coloured explosion of craziness as they’re best known for, unleashing a show that can best be described as psychedelic.
It was a spectacular end to a fabulous first day of fashion nirvana, and I can’t wait for tomorrow’s sartorial delights. In the meantime, I’m most looking forward to Kate Sylvester’s 8pm show tomorrow night.
Evelyn Ebrey 8 April 2013
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