Ah, fashion week. The pinnacle of the Sydney fashion industry’s calendar, this year MBFWA brought organised chaos and creative innovation together to give birth to a week of street style and runway trends that are a subtle metamorphosis of classic styles. Over four full days, Backyard Opera was a guest at spectacular runway shows exhibiting the best of what innovative Australian labels such as Alice McCall, Anna Quan, Blair Archibald and Double Rainbouu had to offer. A stunning use of location and space took us away from the post-industrial Carriageworks and into the warm, luxurious conceptual space that Resort collections stand for. But runways weren’t the only place to spot fresh and novel trends, with the street style on show taking wild and colourful turns, accompanied by a chorus of shutter clicks. After some down time, Backyard Opera reflects on all that we saw to bring you the hits and misses from MBFWA 2018.

Trend of the week: Pastels, Frills and Tulle Galore!

One of the most prominent themes on the runways during MBFWA was frills, frills and more frills. And not just any frills, a heavy use of tulle brought ultra-feminine vibes that, coupled with subtle pastel pink, purple and cream tones, provided us with sweet fairy tale princess dreams. Some of the best examples come from the Fashion Design Studio Innovators show, with designers Danielle Soole of White Hart, Shroud by Jessica Kite and Zella May by Kamilla May fulfilling our pastel tulle frill cravings. A denim jacket and pant set from White Hart had our hearts particularly aflutter. Pastel denim frills coupled with vintage tassels created an edgy take on the feminine trend. Shroud’s entire collection exhibited just how powerful and amazing frilled tulle can be; each ppiece reimagined the trend with innovative shapes and cuts accentuating the female form in a myriad of ways. More and more frills kept barrelling down the runway with Zella May’s highly accessorised collection, which contrasted pastel pink and champagne with black and white; a killer combination.

Alice McCall, known for its delicate, playful range of resort wear, was also major contributor to this trend. With gentle frills flared delicately coupled with perfectly placed cut outs and subtle embellishments, the Resort 19 collection entitled Kismet sought to enhance traditions and inspire boldness. Alice McCall showed her classic ability to merge seemingly differing ideas in perfect harmony. A union of Chantilly lace, fine pleated tulles and garden florals adorned the runway. Shades of champagne, ultra violet and fuschia made the collection a dream collaboration of class and pleasure, fulfilling the designer’s intention “I design dresses for girls to have a great time in. To celebrate. To have fun”.

London-based fashion label Still Still Studio continued the princess feel into the fourth day, with their collection entitled The Twinkling. An ode to the frothy decadence of the late 1920’s, coupled with rebellious hints of corsetry and boudoir sleepwear, satiated modern ideas of femininity with a taste of its traditional past.

Designer focus: Double Rainbouu

The Double Rainbouu show and preview at the Lansdowne Hotel had us feeling like we were in high school again and the cool kids had finally invited us into their gang. The Resort 19 collection SYNTH UUAVE was a psychedelic ode to summer with loud patterns, baggy outerwear and mesh. The show’s cast consisted of bunch of raw and stunning fresh faces with diverse personal styles that brought attitude and excitement to the show. Each model took to the famous Lansdowne stage after literally running past the eager audience, injecting their own personality into each piece of the collection; an element of the show totally unlike the rest. With each model given a chance to be themselves on stage, the Double Rainbouu brand was personified, and the pieces came to life as not merely one of many new articles of clothing on display, but as icons of attitude and cool.

Street Style Trends

Monochrome and matching ensembles were a highlight of this year’s street style, adding a sense of coherence and simplicity that, when coupled with heavy accessorising, act as clear defiance against fashion rules and a nod to the loudness of fashion trends gone by.

Flares were brought back this fashion week, and we are loving it. Finally, our ankles have room to breathe again. Full length or cropped, denim or colourful - it didn’t matter; all were a hit.

A key aim for anyone trying to get noticed at any fashion week the world over is to make a statement. And that was definitely achieved by this year’s street style cast in a subtle but important way: footwear. Big boots, platforms and loud sneakers were a common sight, and damn did they look comfy for a big day on your feet.