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Beauty and Poise at iD Fashion Show

1950's gymnasium shapes and tapestry prints at Emilia Wickstead SS16. Image Sonia Sly

Audience filing in for the iD Fashion Show at the Dunedin Railway Station

Carlson kicks off the show. Image Sonia Sly

Dunedin designer experiments with woven denim. Image Sonia Sly

Emilia Wickstead SS16. Image Sonia Sly

Emilia Wickstead's statement making prints. Image Sonia Sly

Kate Sylvester's A Muse AW 16. Image Sonia Sly

New neutrals from Julian Danger. Image Sonia Sly

Steve Hall applied statement ruffles in his collection. Image Sonia Sly

Weaving denim dreams at iD Fashion Week. Image Sonia Sly

Zambesi play with rich tones in their AW16 collection. Image Sonia Sly

Audience goers of all ages converged on the Dunedin Railway Station for the iD Dunedin Fashion Show on Friday night, where around 28 collections were paraded down a 120 metre runway.

Carlson was first label off the block—the song ‘Young Americans’ complementing her mix of feminine florals and seventies-inspired silhouettes.

Other local fashion retailers followed with their in-season AW16 collections; among them were designs from Charmaine Reveley, Julian Danger, Nom*D, Zambesi, Company of Strangers and Auckland-based designer, Kate Sylvester—a special guest designer for the retail-focused fashion event.

In the ‘Breakthrough Designer’ category Steve Hall, last year’s winner of the International Emerging Design Awards, presented a new collection using ruffles, bows and oversized rosettes as statement elements on his geisha and monk-inspired garments. 

The winners from Thursday night’s awards show also had another go at sending their looks down a substantially bigger runway than the previous night’s event, giving everyone a taste of the new talent on offer this year.

The highlight of the evening was the much-anticipated collection from international guest designer, Emilia Wickstead, who spoke this week about the importance of young designers adopting confidence and a commercial vision in order to grow their brand.

Wickstead chose selected pieces from her Spring Summer 16 collection, inspired by George Cukor’s film, The Women.  The designer plays with a mix of tapestry-style and statement prints, puff sleeves, delicate high waists and clean, modern shapes that make reference to the past, present and future with an effortless beauty, poise and confidence that the designer herself, exudes.

The final runway show for iD Fashion Week commences at the Dunedin Railway Station on Sunday 20th March.