i-am: Claire, Brigid and Polly.

Even on the international runways, most collections fill out a few incredible pieces with pleasing ones. When I watched a video of i-am's latest collection being sent down the runway, it was just like BAM, BANG, POW, WOAH, etc. And the crowd ate it up. This, my friends, is the difference between the talent and the cutting edge.

And so, I find it exciting that I found out a bit more about what goes on with i-am girls - Claire Murphy, Brigid Whelan and Polly Epov.

Starting out:
i-am was started by three girls (Claire, Polly and Brigid) tirelessly searching through stores and just thinking ‘ahh is that it?’

We began the brand in an attempt to subvert the mundane experience of fashion in Sydney into something more bold and unique. We wanted women to have the ability to mix different fashions into one killer outfit and strut the streets with confidence and certainty.

One of the labels' fundamental goals is to transcend the typical assertions of trend and create highly versatile pieces that can be recognised on the busy- beachy streets of Bondi to the urban alleys of Newtown.

The i-am vibe:
The i-am vibe is all about a freshness and sleekness that is essential to the creation of every i-am garment. It’s about teaming structure with nonchalance, the stylized with the carefree- a structured i-am red blazer with white pants and a sheer-t. Any vibe, which radiates style with ease, is synonymous with every i-am garment and any i-am girl.

The Love per piece:

BRAINSTORMING- DETAIL- PRECISION- QUALITY. Any garment you see with an i-am label on it is a product of an intensively detailed manufacturing process, positive energy from Claire, Brigid and myself (Polly) and many hours of lost sleep!

The Inspiration ('Sleek Jungle')

Achieving a fresh look with comfortable pieces and light versatile fabrics. And animals…. Pig skin blazer anyone?

The Future
To keep on creating garments which raise eyebrows, turn heads and prompt girls to run up to you in bizarre places just to ask you ‘where you got your pants from?’.

Bloggers and Street Stylists
We love bloggers! It is our belief that bloggers are the new wave of media: bringing fashion to the streets and the streets to the style.

The International Industry
Can’t wait to meet it. But… Donatella is Brigid’s godmother, Michael Kors is Claire’s nephew and CoCo is Polly's great aunt. Obviously we have it covered!

Thank you, ladies!

I think it's safe to say that I'm head over heels (and some amazing wedge heels :p at that) with the brights, the prints, the patterns, the drive. Everything is so honed and precise, but fun fun fun as style should be. It's statement, it's to the point, it's wonderfully real, it's what so many of us search for.

It's here! You've found it! :)

Check out more of i-am HERE.

The i-am girls will be showcasing at Fashion Forward Festival Sydney on the 7th - 9th May 2010 in Sydney, for any of you who are out, about and ready to be blown away. To find out more about featured designers, festival info and how to get involved, log on to www.fashionforwardfestival.com.au - the best part is that FFF is a free cultural event for the public!

*love*

xx

Oh Happy Day.

fashiongonerogue

Liu Wen is incredible. How much does this completely encapsulate everything the Alexander Wang SS10 collection had to say? It blows my mind :) Such a lovely way to end my day, I'll say. That sweater dress is incredible (and matching cut-out socks!)

Another lovely thing: I was flicking through all my favourite blogs yesterday and was so surprised and doubly flattered to see that fellow Aussie blogger, the lovely Jes (of one of my favourite blogs, harlequin's party), had done a post about my blog! Jes has such a wonderful, inspirational blog that gets me creatively thinking every single day - so it was so lovely of her :) Check out the post and her amazing blog here.

And yet another thing: 150 followers! Thank you all so much :) I love posting what I do, and it means so much that you guys read it!

One more day, friends! Just one. And then we're free to tear up the streets :) (I think I've done a smiley face overkill... :D)

*love*

xx

Eternal Safari/Sebastian's Sister: Gem and Francesca.

Can I just say that I absolutely love speaking to all these amazing upcoming designers and seeing into what goes on behind the beautiful pieces we go ga-ga for in boutiques everywhere.

The lovely Gemma and Francesca are no exception - rocking out their collaboration of Eternal Safari and Sebastian's Sister.

1. Hey there, how's it going?
Gem: Good thanks. Very busy!!

2. How did you first start out as a designer?
Gem: I actually wanted to be an actress (as cliched as that sounds, I really did have my Oscars speech written by the time I was nine!). Anyway I wasn't doing anything exciting and acting school was quite hard to get into so I applied for Fashion design at The Canberra Institute of Technology and I studied there from 2006-2008. Since graduating it has all happened pretty quickly and unexpectedly which is cool but scary.

3. So what is your design philosophy when you start any collection?
Gem: Each collection has really been a evolution of ideas as we take a lot of inspiration from books and film. With each project I usually try and work out the mood and feel of the collection and because I work very closely with Francesca we are talking about what has inspired us recently or an idea that is in our heads. We use ourselves as models and make a lot of toiles (practice garments) as opposed to doing a lot of sketches so I guess our philosophy is very materials based and the form of the garment is important. Using ourselves as the models also helps us to figure out whether we would wear it and from there whether anyone else would wear it.

4. I love the quirkiness and edge in your work - where does your inspiration for this come from?
Gem: As I mentioned before a lot of our inspiration comes from books and film, in particular author Haruki Murakami and film maker Wong Kar Wai. These two artist's have inspired me immensely and I love the way they can make complex themes into simple, beautiful and appealing stories. I also really connect to both of their philosophies and the way they work, which again is through an evolution of ideas and through building a mood. I am also inspired by the way clothes make us feel and the fact that they can change the way we perceive ourselves and others. I think there is always an element of 'dressing up' when I design.

5. What would you say is your greatest influence at the moment?
Gem: This is a tough one. I have been so busy that thinking about new influences and inspirations is making my brain overload! I have been thinking a lot recently about using sounds as my starting point for a collection. I have bought a recorder and would like to record different sounds (man made and natural) and try and interpret them into garments. I would then like to have an exhibition with each sound linked up to it's garment and have people be able to interact with and interpret both. Hopefully this will happen soon. I will let you know if it does.



6. What kind of work goes into putting together one piece in a collection?
Francesca: Blood, sweat and tears! We start a collection with a brief and then each garment begins as a vague idea which is refined by the toiling process until we feel we have captured the essence of concept in the garment.

7. I'd love to wear this kind of edginess out as a statement - is it more the street or the runway you're leaning towards?
Francesca: Our design philosophy is to make wearable clothes, throughout our design process we constantly question whether each garment is wearable. We invite the owners of our clothes to wear our garments however they see fit, be it cat walk or street.

8. What are your plans for 2010?
Francesca: A key goal for 2010 is to find production, doing all our own sewing is constricting the business’s ability to grow. Having production will free up our time to focus on designing, and other projects we have on the backburner.

9. Who would you say is the most significant style icon at the moment?
Francesca: It’s hard to be specific however I constantly find myself attracted to Japanese design, designers and their philosophy. I feel their work has infinite appeal.
I always want to know more about Japanese design. I have just finished reading a book by Kenya Hara, Designing Design and it gave me great insights into the design process behind the object. I highly recommend it.

10. What changes do you see happening in the international fashion industry in the near future?
Francesca: China is beginning to develop its own designers, such as Qiu Hao which are taking Western ideas and melding this with an Asian sensibility. Considering China has such a strong production base I think we could be seeing plenty of exciting Chinese design in the near future.


11. A random question from a previous interviewee, designer Magdalena Duma (who will also be showcasing at FFF): How many shoes do you own?
Gem: Unfortunately I only own about three pairs but (talking about shoes) I had a party the other day and we played this awesome game called the shoe game. You get as many shoes together as possible (lucky there was lot's of people there!) and you start with only two shoes touching the ground and then everyone takes it in turn to place one shoe on the pile, building a Jenga like tower and only the first two shoes are allowed to touch the ground. We got up to a stack of 40 shoes! It is the best party game, gets quite tense.
Francesca: I have 100 shoes and I regularly lend them out to shoe game parties.

12. And finally, what is a random question you'd like to ask our next interviewee?
Gem: Will you please play the shoe game?
Francesca: What’s your favourite magazine, and why?

Thank you both for your awesome insights :)

I love how chilled but edgy the whole vibe is! I would throw all of it on just to go outside, walk up and down the street 3 times, then come back inside and do a swapsie.

Gem and Francesca will be showcasing at Fashion Forward Festival Sydney on the 7th - 9th May 2010 in Sydney, for any of you who are around. To find out more about featured designers, festival info and how to get involved, log on to www.fashionforwardfestival.com.au - the best part is that Fashion Forward Festival is a free cultural event for the public!

*love*

xx

Autumn breeze sequence.

So I had this dress, from about a year ago, from a little boutique near me (which I've since forgotten the name of :p) and it had this black tube part across the top, which made it a supremely awkward length, but I couldn't bring myself snip it because the hem was so perfectly finished. Pulled it out today and flipped the top inwards - voila! The skirt is now the whole dress - this wonderful mess of brights that I wanted to wear before it got too cold.

Worn with my lovely Zoe Wittner wedge boots, and the gorgeous (coincidentally same green) ring I got in Canberra - not that you can really see it here :)

Quick apology for the weird quality of the photos - used a friend's Canon today (before going out to dinner) and I didn't want to mess with his custom settings, so the flash went a little crazy :D

*love*

xx

Manikinn.com: Shereen Nimbalker.

I decided last week that it cannot possibly be healthy that so many incredible pieces are available to us at, literally, the click of a button 24/7. But, thankfully, the lovely Ms Shereen Nimbalker, Director of Manikinn.com, has changed my mind. Yet again. They always win! :)

I spoke to Shereen about what she and Manikinn are all about:

How did Manikinn start out?

Manikinn.com is an Australian Online Fashion Boutique created by Shereen Nimbalker in 2008. It started out to create easier shopping for the busy, fashion conscious, young female. Manikinn.com takes all the hard work out for you and you are rewarded with trendy, up -to-date, top quality fashion.

What kind of work goes into releasing one product?
Trend sourcing comes first, so attending parades, trend casting and so on. After we have come up with a decision on what we would like to feature on Manikinn.com, we source the product, which means going on buying trips. We source our range from quality wholesalers from the USA and Europe.

To release the product, we do a fashion shoot- from the models through to photographer, to capture the product. We then release the product onto our website, facebook and twitter pages. We work closely with our PR agency to market our product. We update all of our client base on our new range.

What would you say is your greatest influence at the moment?
My influences are always about what is happening in my life. At the moment I would say my greatest influence is the Couture Fashion Show that took place in Paris in 2010. I was there at this time and the atmosphere at the shows and in the city was electric! This is reflected in the new range, which has a parisian theme and is also a bit edgy and supersonic!

What are your plans for 2010?
My plans for 2010 are more buying trips to expand the manikinn range and expand the range to wholesalers. Also to grow the manikinnbrides.com, which is our new site for bridal wear.

Who would you say is the most significant style icon at the moment?
At the moment I would say Olivia Palermo. She has a natural flair in mixing and matching fabrics, adding the right amount of sparkle and dimension to an outfit. She has a knack for looking great in anything she puts on without a doubt!

What changes do you see happening in the international fashion industry in the near future?
I see the international fashion industry taking on quite a dramatic change concentrating more on shapes and forms rather than adornments. So a lot of innovative design concentrating on the shapes of the clothes rather than their smaller details. Rich hues of colour will be emerging, all presenting the exciting world of the modern young woman, a hint of exotic chic.

Always loving insight like this, Shereen! Thank you, also, to the lovely Tamara Secivanovic!

Check out more of Manikinn HERE.

P.S. Way to fuel my love of lace :)

*love*

xx

Nicola Haffmans by Sylvie Malfray.

fashiongonerogue

This is the kind of lighting I can only dream of achieving. Not that I am, in any way, anywhere close to being as good as Sylvie Malfray. In fact I'm not even on the charts. But I can sit. And admire. And play around with what I would hope would be something similar... and never quite get there :)

I wish I could pull off sitting on a rock like that too :)

Loving the pink hair.

Loving Harper's Bazaar Romania.

*love*

xx

3-D (thrē′dē′) [adjective] a system or effect that adds a three-dimensional appearance to visual images, as in films, slides, or drawings

With a little image editing and messing around, we have the above (a photo from earlier this year - my beloved ring collection). Try not to stare at it for too long - you won't be able to see straight for 5 minutes (personal experience :p). In any case - had a bit of fun with this :D you should try it with some old photos.

I doubt it would work with 3D glasses, but hey - innovative photographic effects. Who cares :)

*love*

xx

“You punch me, I punch back. I do not believe it's good for ones self-respect to be a punching bag.” ~ Edward Koch.

Isabel Marant Lapis Oversized Oval Ring - Yves Saint Laurent Arty Aventurine Ring - Isabel Marant Lapis Oversized Oval Ring - Roberto Cavalli Large Sponge Coral Ring

So we all know I don't make a secret of my love for statement rings... particularly ones with amazingly coloured stones that will be rotated from outfit to outfit until the only solution to the vicious cycle is to wear them all at the same time, and have strangers part at a 2 metre radius for fear of being cracked across the nose with these babies :)

How was everyone's weekend?? Mine was absolutely fabulous - I cannot even begin to tell you!

Have a wonderful Monday, friends!!

*love*

xx

Hermès FW10.

tfs

With all the flurry over, I realised that I'd forgotten to put my stamp of love on the Hermès collection shown at Paris Fashion Week. Although I found that Mr JPG took a lot of the vibe and staging from his show last year, it still had the gorgeously mysterious and playful take on a concept that was so well chosen. Elementary, my dear Watson. (Apparently Holmes never actually says that in any of the books. How funny).

I've decided that pumpkin orange was nice here - it did remind me a lot of one of the Obama girls' coats at some point in some ceremony - I don't even know :)

I have also decided that Coco Rocha has this amazing presence - it's like she's performing, not walking, every time she hits that runway.

How awesome is that full length coat!?

I know I haven't done any outfits posts as of late! I don't currently have access to a camera of any sort, but I will soon, so bear with me!

Hope you're all having an ace weekend.

*love*

xx

Just a little.

fashiongonerogue

How stunning is Lara. I love how they styled with bodycon to show off her figure. I am now so in love with that Gucci and Burberry.

*love*

xx

Louis Vuitton FW10.

tfs

Is anyone besotted with elbow length leather gloves? And that leather skirt - so shiny. The LV monogram on those clutches are so gorgeous as well. I quite liked how muted the whole collection was from afar but, zooming in, you see all this insane little details that give this nicely balanced, aesthetically pleasing look.

What a star casting :O

*love*

xx

Alexander McQueen FW10.

tfs

All I have been thinking about all day is the Alexander McQueen FW10 collection. With 5 minutes to post something for the day before I continue power-summarising The Great Gatsby (which, by the way, is quite wonderful), I can finally explode this thinking into a post as best I can.

You can't live forever. You can't live forever. You can't live forever.

McQueen lives forever. His return to the medieval makes the collection so monumental and pulls it away from the mass-futuristic-innovation that has been happening this season. He brought back everything that runway was starting lose. He merged his individuality and a very rigid time period into this amazing, structured and organic sequence of art.

I think it's only now that we can really say R.I.P.

*love*

xx

Wonders Cease: Maryanne.

So you all know I'm always on the hunt for the quirkiest, edgiest possible things to admire and, if it makes it to my wardrobe, find 500 million ways to make it *pop*. And of course, when I do come across such pieces, it's a bit of an A-HA moment in my day.

When the lovely Aaron Kay, of FFA, introduced me to the work of Wonders Cease, I had my little A-HA moment, and promptly tried to jigsaw every piece in the AW10 lookbook with each other. As you do.

I had the chance to catch up with the talented Maryanne Edwards about her work and Wonder Cease.

Starting Out:
Wonders cease was started by myself and fellow designer, Emma Fitzgerald, after several years of working for different companies. As designers we wanted to create something that was new and at first small, that was entirely our own. We decided to get started we should travel to Tokyo for a week of inspiration and designing together, our first range which was for summer 09’ was titled ‘tokyo tomboys’. We launched the label and first collection with an exhibition at global galleries, Paddington.

The design philosophy:
We aim to create pieces that are boutique-exclusive but also affordable and make the wearer feel stylish yet fun. We like to style some of our more feminine pieces back with something edgy to create balance with contrast. Being small and new means we can pretty much do whatever we like design-wise at the moment which is fairly liberating in a time when some labels are playing it safe or conservative to reduce risk of poor sales.

In 5 years time...
We’re not a label that aims to take over the world, we want to progress at a pace we can handle and which allows us to remain true to our first vision. If we were stocked in a handful of great boutiques in each state of Australia and had our own store, or a few, that would be ideal.

Bloggers and street stylists?
I think its a trend that has caught on massively and is a result of society’s need to be constantly up to date, which is certainly not a bad thing. It means high fashion as well as original street style are being viewed on a much broader scale and I think the best part is that it inspires people to experiment more with fashion and take a few more risks.

The Wonders Cease vibe:
The ‘wonders cease vibe' is feminine yet edgy, directional yet wearable. Most pieces are quite clean or minimal and have an interesting design detail or fabrication. We love contrasts, hence our last campaign which was all about opulent fabrics in dark, luxurious colours was photographed at the run-down tram sheds of Harold Park. If we do a detail that’s a bit soft or girly it has to be styled with something quite bold or minimal to balance it. We usually go for a quite neutral palette with the addition of 2 pop colours.

Thanks for the insight, Maryanne! I'm pretty sure you'll all agree that so many of those pieces would take a Saturday night, a cocktail party, a grocery run and Paris Fashion Week by an absolute mammoth storm. That blue!!

Check out more HERE.

Wonders Cease will be showcasing at Fashion Forward Festival Sydney on the 7th - 9th May 2010 in Sydney, for any of you who are around. To find out more about featured designers, festival info and how to get involved, log on to www.fashionforwardfestival.com.au - the best part is that Fashion Forward Festival is a free cultural event for the public!

*love*

xx

Valentino FW10.

tfs

Is it possible for something to flow sharply? That was all I could think of to describe Valentino. Everything was calculated, clean, proportionate, but not restrictive - I think this showed in the models and the general vibe (makeup versus hair helped too).

I can't say I'm a massive fan of the pointed, awkward-height shoes that seem to be around this season (Stella McCartney, Lanvin, etc.), but I guess, here, they acted as conceptual anchors (I'm admittedly writing a pretty intense English essay at the moment :D).

Love those ruffles and layers though. Also good to see some Valentino Red once in a while :) Thoughts?

*love*

xx