X-Press Fashion Magazine’s Autumn Edition – Style Council – is out now.

Shot on location at Council House in Perth

Photography by Aaron McPolin

Beauty by Ali Price

Manicure by Heidi Eves

Assistant Stylist: Hannah Kamsadi

With thanks to Di Star and the team at Council House, Gorman, Calibre, Zara Bryson Boutique, Poppy Lissiman Addition, Bluebird Vintage, Pigeonhole and Betts.

For clothing credits and awesome stories click here. 

Ali Price applying touch ups to the beautiful Narcisa from Scene Models, who wears garments from Gorman at enex100

Aaron McPolin shooting Lee who wears suit from Calibre at enex100, Narcisa wears frock from Poppy Lissiman Addition, shoes from Betts

A monument to modernist architecture in the heart of Perth’s CBD, Council House celebrates its 50th anniversary this year and to commemorate the occasion, the amazing peeps at City of Perth (in particular the consistently incredible Di Star) invited X-Press Fashion into the building’s hallowed halls for our Autumn editorial shoot. To complement the building’s aesthetic I opted for retro styling choices, recreating iconic 1960s looks with contemporary garments. Narcisa from Scene was the obvious pick when it came to choosing a female model – with her long locks and gorgeous gap tooth (which kinda makes me wish I didn’t have adolescent orthodontics), Narcisa gives Megan Draper a run for her money (albeit without the Zou Bisou Bisou rendition).

Big props to the creative team who made the shoot possible: Aaron McPolin, Ali Price, Heidi Eves and my trusty assistant Hannah Kasmadi. The full edition hits the streets of Perth and online next Wednesday. In the meantime I thoroughly suggest you take a stroll down to Council House to check out their 50th anniversary exhibition which takes a look at the building’s history and highlights (find out more here).

Henry Holland specs from Poppy Lissiman Addition, blouse from Gorman at enex100

Mini dress from Poppy Lissiman Addition, Love/Hate tights from Pigeonhole

Hannah with our epic clothing rack loaded up with goodies for the shoot

Summer is lingering in Perth this year, and despite the fact that it’s already April, we’ve had a steady stream of 30 degree days. While I love Autumn’s chill and can’t wait for rainy afternoons and cool nights, the unseasonably warm weather came in handy over the Easter long weekend when I played tour guide to two lovely French friends – Kate & Alex (along with the amazing miss Libby Edwards) – on a trip down to Serpentine National Park. An hour’s drive or so from Perth city, Serpentine is a really gorgeous, picturesque spot, home to Serpentine Falls – a waterfall and natural pool that’s a popular swimming spot for locals. Fingers crossed I get a lovely day like this one for the wedding (which is now just four weeks away!).

Watermelon & strawberry sorbet served between courses at Rochelle Adonis

Cucumber & dill aioli finger sandwiches

It’s no secret that Rochelle Adonis in Northbridge is one of the best places in Perth for high tea, so I was super keen to check it out when Mon invited me to a blogger catch up there over the weekend. Tucked away on Brisbane Street in Northbridge, Rochelle Adonis is home to some of the most delicious treats you’re ever likely to try, and with a sweet and savoury course plus all the tea you can drink for $50, you really can’t go wrong. I’m counting down the days until I return for my hens celebrations in April (only seven weeks until the wedding now!).

Steph from Le Fanciulle looking lovely in lavender

Heidy from Love Thy Muse and Sharon from Sass & Spice enjoying their amazing icy poles

Parsley pin wheel with feta, purple carrot curd & roast honey pumpkin

Beautiful Scene Models wearing new-season outfits from Zara Bryson

Fashion journos and bloggers flocked to Claremont Quarter this evening for a mysterious new event called ‘Style Crawl’, which turned out to be a guided tour through CQ with stop offs at fashion retailers with an interesting story to tell. Along the way we were lucky enough to sample incredible canapés and cocktails from Duchess, while learning all about A/W collections and their inspirations. Thanks for having me CQ!

Sara Winfield artwork on the wall at Father

Golden (or are they silver?) boots at Sambag

Beautiful, high end threads from Adam Heath

Love the look and feel of the Morrison boutique

OTT ladylike style at Allanah Hill

Loved this vintage style VM at Tigerlily

Amazing emerald ring from Rosendorff’s (a girl can dream!)

Last night under a sparkling night sky amidst the glow of office towers in the heart of Perth’s CBD, Garth Cook showcased his SS 13-14 collection to an intimate crowd, proving once again why he’s regarded as one of WA’s most innovative designers. Always striving to push the boundaries, Garth’s latest collection – entitled VRH – is full of unconventional silhouettes and cuts, executed with beautiful silks and lustrous reflective synthetics. The show was staged outdoors in a walkway behind the Terrace Hotel, boasting a 50 metre runway that a beautiful bevy of Chadwicks models strutted down. Big congrats to Garth and the team who helped him produce the show, it was by far one of the best fashion events I’ve been to in Perth.

Garth Cook admirers Sarah Langley and Evelyn Leckie from Scene Models representing in their white GC frocks

Mother Nature sure knows how to make Perth sweat – dishing out a humid, 40 degree evening for the 17th annual WA Fashion Awards. A night that champions the local fashion industry and the people who make it tick, the WAFAs are always great fun, and this year’s instalment was no different. Big congrats to all the winners, in particular the amazing Pippa McManus who won the Creative Edge category. I never feel snap happy when it’s crazy hot (I’m generally too busy fanning myself), so apologies that this post is light on pictures!

Perth born supermodel Rose Smith presenting a WAFA

Bonnie Friday, me and Heidy from Love Thy Muse

The night of nights for Perth’s tight knit community of designers, models, stylists and bloggers, the WA Fashion Awards (presented by Perth Fashion Festival) are fast approaching; only four more sleeps to go! To celebrate the forthcoming WAFAs, today’s edition of the Sunday Times Magazine featured a photoshoot with some of the nominees, including yours truly (you’ll spot me up the back in the pink frock).

At last year’s WAFAs I was lucky enough to take out the inaugural Betts Best Blogger Award,  pocketing this epic pearl medallion, and this year I’m nominated in the Creative Edge category, which is open to stylists, photographers, makeup artists, hair stylists and artists. I’ve decided to give my Prada wedding shoes a trial run at the WAFAs, fingers crossed they make it through the evening unscathed. I’ll report back after the event with pictures and ramblings. Best of luck to all the nominees!

Cameron Etchells & Rebecca Mason from Scene working their magic for On A Whim

Last weekend I had the pleasure of helping the lovely ladies from On A Whim produce a lookbook for their forthcoming S/S collection entitled The Spectator.  Inspired by tennis (and tennis skirts), badminton, croquet and other leisurely sports that you can play while wearing a cute outfit, The Spectator is full of pastels, pleats and pretty translucent  fabrics. Here are some sneaky behind the scenes snaps from the shoot; I’ll be sure to share Cameron Etchells’ official images when they’re released a little later on.

Super cute Betts flatform sneakers, taped up and ready to shoot.

]]> http://www.dropstitch.com.au/?feed=rss2&p=1282 0 http://www.dropstitch.com.au/?p=1279 http://www.dropstitch.com.au/?p=1279#comments Mon, 04 Feb 2013 01:03:55 +0000 emma http://www.dropstitch.com.au/?p=1279

Photo of Amy Raats by Libby Edwards

As a special treat for Dropstitch readers, Groupon has given me two $100 vouchers to give away, and to be in the draw all you need to do is Like Dropstitch’s Facebook page then leave a comment on the wall saying ‘Gimme the Groupon vouchers’ or something to that effect! Winners will be drawn randomly this Sunday, February 17, and will be notified via Facebook. For those of you who haven’t heard of Groupon, it’s a pretty nifty site offering deals in the fields of beauty, food and drink, shopping, leisure and adventure activities in your capital city. Mosey on over to Groupon.com.au to see what’s on offer.