Hot Gear By Smart Alex Gets The Nod Style

Sun Herald

Sunday August 6, 2006

GLYNIS TRAILL-NASH

ALEX Zabotto-Bentley's FashionAssassin show had Hugo's Lounge packed to the rafters on Wednesday night, and the man himself seemed thrilled with the showing that made up for his pulling out of Fashion Week at the 11th hour for personal reasons. Clearly his original idea for a "gentle, quiet little thing" was never going to happen. Instead, the show was a riotous party of colour and exuberance and the Lost Horizon range featured pieces that will undoubtedly become summer staples for Sydney's sexiest boys and girls. Simple dresses had great attention to detail and fabulous prints that will stand out at the beach or at the bar, and guys will be strutting their stuff in patterned trousers and combat pieces. Hottest would have to be the Hawaiian print board shorts that are like a "classic '50s boxer short shape", Zabotto-Bentley said. "But I made the leg a bit wider so when you roll it up, they're a bit like Christopher Atkins in Blue Lagoon." They're enough to have any girl wishing to be marooned.

Rocking road home

IT'S been a round trip from Adelaide to Sydney's East Sydney Tech, then to Tokyo dance party costumes and London, but the single-monikered Weave (her name is Genevieve Neck, "but I could never say Genevieve as a two-year-old, it just came out as Weave") has finally settled in Sydney and launched the "preview collection" of her By Weave label, which is already receiving accolades (love that jumpsuit, pictured right). Currently stocked only in Sydney (phone 9365 5991), the range draws on a variety of influences. "I like very modern design and to throw in some rock with an Elizabethan feel," the designer said. Recent commissions have included Justin Hawkins's outfit for the Australian MTV awards and "about 400 costumes in three weeks" for British singer Will Young's video clip shot in Sydney. "It's all been word of mouth from people who have known my work," Weave said. "I've been very blessed."

Sassy New York blitz

NEW York Fashion Week is going to seem like a home away from home this year with so many Australian designers showing their wares. Word is just through on sass & bide's collection for the frock fest, to be titled From Here To Arcadia. The range takes as inspiration opulent, Egyptian-styled art deco design mixed with 1980s irreverence. The next shape to be touted by the duo of Sarah-Jane Clarke and Heidi Middleton is the "diamond silhouette" - on which I defer to the press release, which explains this as "dresses and pants [that] trapeze at the hips then drape elegantly at the knees, creating a diamond shape". Of the range Middleton says, "the effect is a blend of geometric shapes in silver, gold, black and cream offset with faded electric blue and layered with bodysuits and leggings".

Mystery unwrapped

ALMOST 30 years after her murder in her Paddington wallpaper showroom, Florence Broadhurst is having something of a renaissance. A book has been published (Helen O'Neill's Florence Broadhurst: Her Secret & Extraordinary Lives) and a film (Gillian Armstrong's Unfolding Florence: The Many Lives Of Florence Broadhurst) is released this month. One designer who twigged to the appeal of Broadhurst's graphic designs some time ago is Tim O'Connor, who this season is featuring the Ikeda print on dresses and separates. And as part of Sydney Design 06, the Powerhouse Museum is hosting two Broadhurst events. Today you can catch the film at midday (if you're really clever, you can nip into one of O'Connor's two stores to get a discount on entry), or next Sunday you can join O'Neill and Babette Hayes, stylist and friend of Broadhurst, for high tea and a lively discussion of the designer's life and work in the museum's grand foyer ($35; phone 9217 0222).

Keep abreast of bids

NEW Woman's 200th issue anniversary designer dress auction has become the scene of a bidding war with four of the 10 local designers leading the pack by attracting bids over $1000; Lisa Ho's is the most covetable so far, with a top bid of $2000. Leona Edmiston's is second at $1750 and close behind is Alex Perry's scarlet gown at $1700, while Collette Dinnigan's offering is sitting pretty in champagne silk at $1500. With all proceeds for the one-off dresses going to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, so keep clicking at www.newwoman.com.au. The auction closes this Tuesday.

LITTLIES TAKE A FASHION LEAD

Leona Edmiston's children's range, which has been in the pipeline for some time, has finally come to fruition under the Little Leona banner. It's part of a growing trend among designers to create covetable kiddies' clothes. Edmiston said: "The original idea was to do matching dresses for mothers and daughters, but I'm not sure how many people would want that. I think it would be cute, but some people might find it a little bit Joan Crawford." The dresses, which will be stocked in Edmiston's stores and Myer and will feature on the catwalk at Myer's spring/summer show, cost about $69 and include miniature interpretations of Edmiston's signature jersey, wrap and shirt dresses. "Little girls love clothes," said Edmiston (pictured with two young friends). "It's a natural instinct from when we're very young." Of her new range, Edmiston added: "I think they're gorgeous. Hopefully the little misses will think so, too."

S0 LOVE

Cable TV recipients can tune in to Fashion TV to catch a 30-minute doco on the Lancome Colour Designs Awards that took place in Sydney recently featuring the designs of final-year UTS students. Ninety-second vignettes are promoting the doco, which is on rotation for another week.

SO HATE

Girls, it's time to buy up - Accessorize is about to close its doors. While reports of a closure surfaced early in the year, the writing is finally on the wall for the handful of remaining stores still in business around town. Supply issues from its British parent company have been cited as a major factor behind the closure, so if you want some bargains and some fond memories, best hurry.

WATCH THIS SPACE

Fashion history buffs will love a glimpse of Sydney Exposed at www.atmitchell.com. The online exhibition from the State Library of NSW chronicles the lives of Sydneysiders from the 1860s to today - and the fashions that went with them. (Left, George Street Pedestrians by Frederick Danvers Power circa 1900.) Fascinating stuff.