By Christa Fleeton
Western Australian designers stood their ground against globally recognised names at this year’s Telstra Perth Fashion Festival, with collections by Steph Audio, One Fell Swoop, Morrison, Zhivago and many more.
Design by One Fell Swoop.
Still suffering from jetlag after showcasing her collection during New York Fashion Week, 24-year-old Perth based designer, Steph Audino, was a hit with designers at the weekend.
“Steph Audino was probably my favourite. I thought she was very creative… overall I thought it was pretty good,” said Kym Carmody, a front row viewer at the show.
Miss Carmody, amongst many others, enjoyed the event but there was a lot of talk as to how thin the models were looking.
“Definitely too thin… I think in this day and age we should be looking at more realistic models… I actually think that it is disgraceful that they would flaunt such skinny girls in front of a crowd and then promote a calorie burning drink in the bag we received for the front row seats,” Miss Carmody said.
Francesca Guillaume, owner of Maylands’ boutique Lula & Sasha was just as disgusted with the thinness of the models.
Mrs Guillaume believes designers set the standards in society when it comes to body image and these standards are what get seen on the catwalk.
“Like all catwalk models, they were grossly underweight. The average woman is around 1.6 metres tall and a size 12 to 16 and the designers need to start reflecting this,” said Mrs Guillaume.
The National Eating Disorders collaboration.says issues relating to body image for young Australians have increased dramatically over the past 30 years.
Because many people in society look to the catwalks for the latest trends, Mrs Guillaume says designers need to start using more realistic models.
Lula & Sasha will be showcasing Steph Audino’s designs early next week.