New Zealand Fashion Week kicked off on Tuesday (which is kind of weird – why would you not start at the actual beginning of the week? Anyway…), and it was a super mega ultra long day for me (and everyone else associated with NZFW, I’m sure), so be prepared for a really long post!
The first show I went to was twenty-seven names – a really fun New Zealand label whose A/W14 collection I’m Lost (‘je suis perdu’) was inspired by Belgian surrealist artist René Magritte. It was the perfect combination of preppy and feminine, with bowler hats, tailored trousers, cosy sweaters, cute frocks (some with very short hemlines and some longer floaty numbers), and beautiful coats.
The prints were cute without being over the top (I really liked the heart print that appeared on a number of pieces, including socks), and there was a lot of navy (my fave!) and pastels. I also loved the natural looking make-up, a fresh-faced look always looks good. Check out the full show here.
COOP by Trelise Cooper‘s collection had me kind of polarised – some pieces that I really really loved and some … not so much. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m not in the target market for COOP, but while some of the fabrics were absolutely stunning I thought there were some that were definitely less wearable (including some that reminded me of the vinyl tablecloths that you see at children’s parties, and faux fur).
What I did like: There were bright pops of pink and orange mixed with monochrome, some pretty metallics and some stunning prints including sheer fabric with an insect print that was absolutely gorgeous. Check out the show for yourself here and let me know what you think – any faves?
After the COOP show I went home to grab lunch and to get changed from this outfit into this one. I then went to Monaco Nails & Beauty to get my nails done in a tribute to DMONIC INTENT‘s collection VEIN that they would be showing at the Miromoda Showcase.
Tuesday evening saw me back at Auckland’s Viaduct Events Centre for Andrea Moore‘s A/W14 collection Northern Lights. Talking about the inspiration for the collection, Moore said, “Scandinavia was a real inspiration this season, they have a tradition of mysterious stories and enchanted animals, quite Gothic and arcane, contrasted with a design aesthetic of such pure simplicity.”
Unfortunately I didn’t manage to get any photos from the show, but I’ll post a link below so you can watch the runway show for yourself. I loved the combinational of autumnal oranges with bright royal blue, the crisp clean silhouettes that accentuate the figure, and the harnesses worn over the clothing. The combination of masculine and feminine pieces is a trend that really stood out to me throughout the week, and I’m looking forward to seeing more of this about town. Absolute highlight of the collection for me was the swan print dress that you can see at 06:45 in this video.
The last show of the night for me was Zambesi, which was without a doubt my favourite show of the whole week. The screens opened up to reveal what was going on backstage, so the audience could see the models getting prepped and primped by the dressers and the hair and make-up crew. It was very theatrical and felt like more of a performance than the other shows I saw. Also, there was some great menswear – check it out in the video linked below.
The clothes were amazing! Think black on black on black (with a touch of other quite neutral colours), a little duck egg blue, a mix of both feminine and masculine styles for women (yes please, more, more!) and a drop dead gorgeous biker style jacket (you know the one, I talked about it in nzgirl’s Hot Five recently). This collection was absolutely stunning and will definitely be inspiring my wardrobe next winter. You can watch the Zambesi show here thanks to 3 News.
That’s all from my first day of New Zealand Fashion Week – whew, what a lengthy post! If you managed to survive all the way to the end then congratulations. I’ll be back with a report from day two of NZFW later in the week, but in the meantime – what was your favourite outfit from day one?
x Meagan
Images: Meagan Kerr Photography
James Yang / Fashion Gallery NZ (as marked)
© Meagan Kerr 2013
