WHAT INITIALLY PROMPTED YOU TO GET IN TO FASHION?
As a child not being able to sleep one night I coloured in my finger nails with pink texta, lay back and thought about all the glamorous ladies on TV! Actually that’s just the glamour part. My mother made many of our clothes and my Grandmother taught me crochet at the age of about 8 or 9, so I was always up for it when it came to clothes or fashion.
AND HOW IMPORTANT WAS IT FOR YOU TO WORK WITH HOUSES SUCH AS ALEXANDER McQUEEN?
Very important. I’ve seen the real thing. I know what happens in an international fashion house. Also I picked up on so many techniques and skills Alexander brought back from his time at Givenchy. I feel so proud and lucky to have worked for such a talented designer.
YOUR LATEST COLLECTION IS AN INTERESTING MIX OF COUTURE AND CULTURE. WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO WORK WITH WOMEN IN THE AFGHAN COMMUNITY?
Sydney can be tight for resources. Interesting fabrics can be scarce. There are people out there with amazing skills, I just wanted to find them. A friend had told me about these women in Auburn who had incredible embroidery skills so after numerous phone calls and meetings with community workers we got in touch with someone who could introduce us…. The rest as they say is history.
WHAT IMPRESSION DID THESE WOMEN MAKE ON YOU AND HOW DID THEY CONTRIBUTE TO YOUR COLLECTION?
It was quite confrontational actually. It was very very real, unlike many other situations a fashion designer generally has to deal with. I could tell immediately I had to adapt my way of thinking and find a middle ground with them in order for us to communicate. One lady, Zarafshan, made a huge impression on me… we really clicked creatively and although she knew only a few words in English we did a lot of communicating with our eyes.
AND HOW DID THIS EXPERIENCE DIFFER AND COMPARE WITH PREVIOUS EXPERIENCES SUCH AS DESIGNING GOWNS FOR A JAMES BOND FILM?
It’s a totally different experience. On a huge feature film project like James Bond one needs to comply to rules, certain criteria and fit into a whole work structure, whereas working on this level with these women was like having to create structure from nothing. It was totally adhoc to begin with but as time goes on we have built some professional foundations to work from.
DO YOU THINK THAT FASHION HAS THE POWER TO BRING ABOUT SOCIAL AWARENESS AND REFORM?
Yes but we have to not look down on each other socially. We need to look at skills rather than social or financial status. There’s a lot out there, it’s just a matter of stepping out of the familiar comfort zone.
CAN YOU TELL ME A BIT ABOUT YOUR LATEST COLLECTION IN TERMS OF THE STRUCTURING OF THE GARMENTS AND THE MATERIALS AND COLOURS USED? AND ALSO ABOUT THE CONTRAST BETWEEN MILITARY OVERTONES AND ETHNIC EMBLEMS AND DESIGNS?
All the fabrics in the collection are natural. This was a very important factor for as I wanted the collection to be organic yet still hold the signature tailored style. So the Military section is a 100% light wool with hand made cross-stitched motifs made by Zarafshan. I liked the conflicting message of the military uniform yet the appliqué of Afghani peaceful cross-stitch motifs. Then there’s the ethnically embroidered embellished section, where the garments are made of 100% cotton which are dyed and boiled into a marbled sand washy beige. This section mainly reflects the desert terrain along with some stone washed leather pieces embossed with trilobite skeletons.
