Two Designers, Two Examples Of The Rich Fabric Of Life
Sydney Morning Herald
Saturday May 16, 1998
For those feeling a little weary on the third day of Mercedes Australian Fashion Week, the pretty Tea Rose show gave a lift, transporting us back to the days of '30s tea dances, with floating chiffon and sequined, bias-cut gowns.
And who better to take us there than the delicately featured Sarah O'Hare, her blonde hair fashioned in suitably retro waves.
O'Hare wears Tea Rose to a T, whether it's a touch of Jane Austen's Emmain an empire gown of baby blue sprinkled with beads, or the movie-star glamour of sparkling pink velvet embroidered in silver threads.
Designer Rosemary Armstrong's passion for exquisite fabrics was obvious, with full-skirted gowns featuring a splashy tulip print or appliqued red flowers on black net, or matt, sequined florals on pale pink, blue mesh or crushed pearly metallics.
Like many Australian designers, Armstrong travels each year to the world's major fabric fair, Premier Vision, to source her extraordinary textiles.
From the romance of Tea Rose we went to the deconstruction of radical New Zealand label Zambesi. With echoes of Japanese designers such as Comme des Garcons and Junya Watanabe - even down to the powdered, cobwebby hair - the Zambesi show confirmed the resurgence of interest in the radical rising-sun designers of the '80s.
Zambesi's designer, Elisabeth Findlay, is another who is passionate about textiles, saying: "I love fabrics, and the way we style different fabrics together gives our collection its essence."
Findlay says she loves "the irony of mixing things", and it was there to see in dark and moody combinations of wool pin-stripe and black guipure lace, and dazzling ivory and white layers.
Her customers will love it too, judging by the mood of the fashion media and buyers after the show.
© 1998 Sydney Morning Herald