8 May 2009, Sydney – Australian Merino wool showed its
‘cool’ side in a number of spring/summer 0910 designer collection shows at the
2009 Rosemount Australian Fashion Week (RAFW) – affirming the fibre’s
reputation as the natural choice for year round fashion.
Local designers including fashion royalty Jayson Brunsdon
and new guard stars – Ben Pollitt (of Friedrich Gray), Gary Bigeni and
Konstantina Mittas – wowed buyers, the media and other members of the fashion
pack with their diverse collections of super soft and featherweight wool
jerseys that demonstrated Australian Merino wool’s naturally luxurious feel,
breathability and versatility.
Australian Wool Innovation CEO Brenda McGahan says this
year’s RAFW saw an unprecedented number of Australian fashion designers using
Australian Merino wool in their spring/summer collections.
‘This is the direct result of our continuing efforts to
educate the fashion design community about the latest developments in wool
textile technology and connect them with the supply chain here and overseas.
‘With their support, we’re getting the message to their
trade customers and consumers about wool’s natural suitability for year round
apparel.
‘This helps create new demand along the supply chain which
is good news for woolgrowers and the fashion retail industry.'
Jayson Brunsdon
Inspired by his mother Dorothy, the easy undone glamour of
Australian women and a sense of charming simplicity, Jayson Brunsdon’s
spring/summer resort 0910 collection is an expression of the simple things in
life – classic shirtdresses, shorts, sundresses, tees and shirts – all a hint
of escapism through the luxury of fabrication. Australian Merino wool brought
characteristic elegance and sophistication to wool jersey halter jumpsuits,
town dresses and gowns.
www.jaysonbrunsdon.com
Friedrich Gray by Ben Pollitt
Inspired by the David Lynch film ‘Dune’ and the architecture
of Zaha Hadid, Ben Pollitt’s 8th collection for Friedrich Gray is a dazzling
mix of sleek, luxurious and modern pieces created to be timeless classics.
Titled Transgression, the collection featured draped and clean, elegant and
feminine lines with a strong focus on the touch and feel of the super soft wool
and other fabrics.
Digital prints on Australian Merino wool – an
Australian-first and a unique collaboration with Sydney-based Think Positive
Designer Prints – animated the collection as design inserts and engineered
placements to complement the cut and drape of the garments.
www.friedrichgray.com
Gary Bigeni
Exposing the many facets and elements of an individual’s
personality, Gary Bigeni’s spring/summer 0910 collection – Beside Ourselves –
is an exploration into the multi-dimensional representation of emotion and
feeling that we each possess but rarely show.
Bigeni used ‘Sabine’, a lightweight 150gm, 100% wool jersey
from Adelaide-based Michell 1870 (a division of Michell Pty Ltd) to create his
signature timeless, clean and fluid aesthetic. The collection featured elegant
and cleverly constructed wool jerseys that morph into tops and Merino wool high
waisted, wide leg pants, singlet dresses and jackets, presented in classic
black and specially dyed grey and lilac tones.
www.garybigeni.com
Konstantina Mittas
The Konstantina Mittas spring/summer 0910 collection - The
Strangeness - strangely familiar yet startlingly new, celebrates a new
modernity. Distant echoes of Tudor times collide with the future in a vortex
world of quarks, protons and electrons. The use of traditional couture hand
knotting techniques and high tech wool development, creates texture and
provides an 'individualist and futuristic' dimension to the collection.
Fabrication and shape provide a canvas for hand painting to further instil the
essentialness of art and the artist in all aspects of design. The lightweight
19.5 micron Australian Merino wool pieces in Mittas' collection are intended as
an easy yet glamorous layering garment that can be thrown over a simple
singlet, bikini or dress.
www.konstantinamittas.com