Australian fashion continued to carve its own path on the world stage at this year’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia (MBFWA) with our designers covering everything from swim to denim, ready-to-wear and high-gloss evening wear.

Dion Lee opened the week with a spectacular show at the foreground of the Opera House, wowing with his unique mix of high tech craft, interesting tailoring and modern swim whilst simultaneously launching the kind of menswear any man would love.I was excited about Alice McCall’s foray into glam rock with a Hollywood starlet edge, Bec & Bridge’s return to rock 'n' roll party dresses, Akira’s soft yet modern collection, Double Rainbouu’s signature look, Michael Lo Sordo’s dramatic silks and hipbone detailing, Christopher Esber’s mix of irreverent cool and great tailoring, Vale denim’s pastels, the ever amazing Ellery fashion code…and the list goes on! Special kudos goes to this year’s casting which included older women, street kids and ordinary people, making shows diverse and fun to watch.

I was privileged to borrow clothes from five designers prior to fashion week to bring you this story. It is always difficult to pry items away from designers so close to their big event, but also incredibly exciting to shoot the pictures whilst getting a sneak peek into their collections.
Without further ado here is my review of five designers …

Wearing: Yousef Akbar dress, Gucci heels from Farfetch, Christian Louboutin bag

Yousef Akbar is a young designer making a name on the world scene designing daring clothes favoured by the likes of Chrissy Teigen, Kelly Osbourne and Jessica Mauboy. Yousef has his own way of mixing avant-garde with eveningwear and I’m excited to see what this fresh designer does next. I especially loved his foray into sequin and feather this season.

Wearing: MacGraw top, skirt and shoes

MacGraw is a label I have been following for a while for their vintage-brought-to-the-21st-century-sensibility. For this collection they seemed to veer far into the past, mixing Edwardian times with the 60s, 70s and 80s, with puffed sleeves, high collars, checks, prints and ruffled skirts that young Madonna would’ve adored.

Wearing 10 Pieces

Ten Pieces showed their collection at Icebergs's dining room and bar, with the pretty views juxtaposing the tough streetwear collection on show. A mainly black and white series of easy to wear pieces showed designer Maurice Terzini’s penchant for avant-garde yet relaxed clothes that are sure to be a hit with the cool kids. For this story we shot a different side to this label, influenced by Terzini’s partner Lucy Hinckfuss who is bringing in a soft and feminine hue as a polar opposite to the label’s aesthetic. Hinckfuss has said: “ Ten Pieces is an androgynous label so we decided that there should be more variations and the kind of clothes that appeal to women. These will be available alongside our other pieces online.”

Wearing: KitX, vintage Balenciaga heels, YSL sunglasses from Farfetch

KITX is one of my favourite brands showing at MBFWA. I am not sure if it is Kit Willow’s infectious enthusiasm at bringing top-notch quality to ecologically responsible manufacturing, or the fact that she always uses beautiful fabrics that she makeshifts into addictively interesting staples . This season, Kit continued her reign as the tailoring queen, mixing it with sensuous silks , sexy draping, colour blocking and grown up relaxed chic.

Wearing: Romance Was Born dress, Gianvitto Rossi boots, vintage hat

Romance Was Born closed MBFWA in a spectacle of a Studio 54 extravaganza. High drama and theatrics always make Romance Was Born’s shows eagerly anticipated and this year did not disappoint. The audience tapped their feet to the beat and swooned over amazing specifics (each girl had different hair and make up! There was a dance sequence! Nude models were body painted by artist Del Kathryn Barton!). Underneath all the glitz, however, certain things stand, such as the incredible attention to detail. The codes that Romance Was Born has built over the years have been re-invisioned through cool denim, oversized sleeves and beading. Lush ruffles have joined oversized feather jackets, along with rainbow fringing and colourful suiting.

Styled and Photographed by Tanja Gacic
Hair and Make up by Claire Thomson using Oribe hair products
Model: Nathalie Nyren from Chic Model Management
Assisting by Eleni George
This post originally appeared on vogue.com.au here!