Getting on the Turps

Words: Clare Kempnich
Photos: Paul Sparrow

Saturday, Jul 24

It was time for another elusive Turpentine Fashion Night – this time held at Brisbane’s Port Office Hotel. Showcased was a selection of pieces by the likes of Ark°, Everything’s The Same, Ashlee Hart, Jimmi Paige, Evelyn Curtis and Saralli Designs. All credit to Paul Sparrow for the photography used in this article.

If you have a thing for fashion, then this was certainly the place to be on July 8. Designs ranged from colourful evening and day wear to swimwear; with my personal highlight being a velvet black evening dress with some amazingly adorned sleeves! And it wasn’t just for the ladies; the designers even catered for the happening Brisbane male (much to the delight of the majority of the female audience).

The clothes were enhanced by the stellar work of makeup artist Elana Mullaly who gave ‘bling’ a whole new context. The models’ diamante-encrusted faces were hard to miss as they paraded the catwalk – although I’m not sure that’s a look that many of the audience would be willing to sport on a night out…

As was to be expected, it was a great night. The drinks were flowing, the dancing was excessive and the clothes were fantastic. Let’s hope we don’t have to wait too long for the next night of fashion education from the people at Turpentine!

Cycle with style

On a recent holiday in Japan one of many things I noticed was the sheer popularity of urban cycling and the style and grace in which women would cycle their way through the city streets – heels and all.

I was amazed that there was not a sneaker or lycra outfit in sight. Sartorial sensibility reigned. In Brisbane there is a serious sport cycling culture and for them being lycra-clad on rides makes sense, but what about for urban cyclists lycra is as unflattering as it is impractical?

Enter CycleStyle an Australian online store, founded by Joyce Watts, dedicated to stylish clothing and accessories for the urban cyclist.

Melbourne-based Watts said she started CycleStyle because she felt limited by what bike stores offered in the way of accessories.

“I like to get around Melbourne on two wheels and couldn’t understand why I should wear fluorescent lycra or be limited black bike accessories,” she said.

“With bike stores catering mainly for sports cyclists and with the increase in people cycling for general enjoyment, there was a market for fashionable bags, accessories and clothing that looked just as good off the bike.”

Watts has sourced products from all over the world including Amsterdam, New York, Chicago and London and lets the urban cyclists style shine.

“Our philosophy is about looking as good on your bike as you do off your bike. Each CycleStyle product has been hand-picked to be fashionable and functional.”

 For Dutch shopper bags, funky legwarmers, chic canvas and leather bags and more visit www.cyclestyle.com.au

Turpentine is back – July 24

Make sure you head to the Port Office Hotel Saturday 24 July from 8pm for a rauciously good time.

Turpentine Night is offering up yet another amazing Fashion Parade showcasing emerging Fashion Designers and Accessory Designers hailing from Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

Showing the likes of:

Ark°
Ashlee Hart
Joy French
Jimmi Paige
Everythingsthesame
Evelyn Curtis
Saralli Designs

With FREE goodie bags including:
Turpentine Zine
Boutique Vouchers;
CD’s;
Lookbooks;
Mad shit.

With five social photographers and three special guests filming the night we’re sure you’re going to get your mug seen.

Tickets are $10. Head here to get more info!

Four-Eyed Fashion

Today, I am nervous. Not only is this my first foray into the world of interviewing a celebrity, today I have signed up to be apart of a one-on-one style session with Project Runaway’s Henry Roth.

Henry Roth is an imposing man. Loud, gregarious and was in Brisbane as Specsaver’s (http://www.specsavers.com.au/) Style Ambassador, his booming tones and manic gestures do little to ease my nerves initially, however, his obvious “passion for fashion” and style is both interesting and engaging.

Roth is most well known in Australia as the mentor from Arena’s Project Runway (http://www.arenatv.com.au/projectrunway), a reality TV show based around a group of young fashion designers. Away from television, Henry works closely with his sister specialising in bridal couture and is behind the label Henri Joseph Bridal (http://www.henrijosef.com.au/), a family bridal wear business approaching its 55 year anniversary. He is undeniably the face of the label and his media success and charming personality have led the label being successful Australia-wide and in New York, where he spends half of his time.

I was not surprised when I discovered Roth had a background in advertising and entertainment marketing (he was previously employed by BBDO, Michael Edgley and Harvey Goldsmith Entertainment). In between sampling a range of frames with the personable Roth, he mentioned the upcoming launch of his affordable bridal wear line and the availability of Henri Joseph Bridal in numerous stores all over Australia. Surprisingly, however, I didn’t feel he was “selling” anything to me. I was having too much fun.

Roth and I sampled the entire range available in Specsaver’s new Albert Street flagship store discussing the growth of glasses as a fashion accessory. Roth cites celebrities such as Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears as influences in this interesting trend. He also believes that “a pair of frames can brighten up an individual’s look and add a little colour and flair to personal style”. He also hinted that there is a growing trend of brides choosing special frames to wear on their big days.

His obvious enthusiasm for fashion and style was entertaining. Well-known for his distinctive nerdy-styled glasses, he believes that “frames are fashion” and it is important to try a range of styles to see what feels comfortable. And try we did! Roth proposed frames that suggested looks such as sexy, “old-school geeky” and aggressive along with other frames in a whole gamut of colours.

Roth believes that with fashion, you should always feel comfortable in what you are wearing. He also feels it important to not seem like you are trying to hard to be stylish, as it shows. And for the trend spotters, his eye-wear trends to watch this year are Classic Nerd for the boys (think Clark Kent) and Sexy Secretary for the girls (flirty, feminine and Euro-sexy).

Oh, and if you were wondering, I went away with two frames – one “sexy and assertive” and the other “not trying-too-hard geeky”. I also left with a greater appreciation for fashion and its ability to affect my mood. Whilst I approached my meeting with Roth with a bundle of nerves and anxiousness; I left upbeat, positive and inspired (and very fashionably be-spectacled).

Charity is the New Black

For years, the fashion industry has placed itself at the forefront of ‘events for a good cause,’ from Sass & Bide’s charity launch at last week’s Rosemount Australian Fashion Week to the Fashion & Arts United charity event held at Brisbane’s City Hall last month. It is no wonder though, that ‘outsiders’ might be inclined to believe that said charity events are just another excuse for a party and a good networking opportunity. Yes, that woman donated $200 to charity just by being present at the event, but how much did she spend on her shoes? Is it time for a less elitist approach to fashion meets charity?

While you might still cringe at the thought of wearing a rubber wristband or a bandana, those simple body adornments in fact, set a new precedent in fashion for charity. All of a sudden, charitable fashion became less satirically vulnerable and ridden with superficiality. It is no longer regarded as being solely for the social elite and their invite-only charity parties and benefits. In fact, those minor gestures of financial aid from the public meant charitable fashion became accessible to everyone.

A few years down the track and big names like Target and the Loreal Melbourne Fashion Festival have taken the notion of dressing the body for a charitable cause to a very welcome extreme. Their response to fashion for charity was more than just a reformed approach to elitism, and a lot less disposable than a wristband. Instead, they made high fashion available to the wider public through inexpensive garments and inspirational runway shows, while proceeds are forwarded to their elected charities.

It was the inaugural Fashion Palette held at the Sydney Convention Centre last weekend, however, that shared the invariable message between its guest speakers, of using fashion for a good cause. Fashion Palette was a two-day long conference with the intention of making fashion more accessible to the public. The seminar showcased a handful of prominent fashion insiders, from Katherine Green, the fashion director of InStyle magazine, to Spanish illustrator Arturo Elena and iconic Australian fashion designer Peter Morrissey.

Morrissey stole the show, closing the weekend with a motivational presentation that drew tears to the eyes of those in the audience who could appreciate how much hard work it takes to build a successful career in fashion. “I want to fashion people’s lives, not just their wardrobes,” Morrissey said about extracting the best from the industry.

In fact, it appears there are more than a few designers who no longer appreciate the connotations of exclusivity that are often associated with the fashion industry. The young and enthusiastic Paul Fields of men’s street label Stand, rejected the idea of designing fashion for money and fame, but instead encouraged the audience to do it for the love of creating, inspiring and to help others.

When asked what he had planned for the future of Stand, he responded by relaying his intentions to use fashion to help those in need. The charity work he has done over recent years has inspired him to continue giving, and he plans to send box loads of Stand garments to third world communities around the globe.

For more information:

www.fashionpalette.com.au/
http://fashionlab.net/

It runs in the family

With her sights set on the future, Brisbane fashion designer Juli Grbac is set to sew up a storm, writes Siobhan Hegarty.

 

 

The downstairs area of a suburban Brisbane home isn’t a space one would normally associate with the workings of a popular Australian fashion designer. Far removed from the glamourous interiors paraded in films and television shows, the workroom of Project Runway winner, Juli Grbac, seems more family than business.

 

Indeed the family element has been crucial to her success. Running the fashion label from underneath her parents’ home, 30-year-old Juli remains motivated, and well fed, with the help of her doting parents. With personal photographs lining the walls and the aromatic scent of bacon and eggs wafting in from upstairs, homeliness is immediately apparent in the Grbac workroom.  

 

“Do you mind if I eat breakfast?” Juli asks, returning from the kitchen. “Mum likes to cook me food. She knows I’ll forget to eat if she doesn’t.”

 

It’s no wonder Juli tends to miss meal a meal or two. In the lead up to Sydney fashion week, she hurriedly prepares her collection and organises last minute details for her label’s first ever showing at the event.   

 

“We’re ridiculously busy at the moment. I’m working on overdrive,” Juli explains. “Sometime I don’t leave the workroom until 2 o’clock in the morning and I’m usually back here at 6am.”

 

Owning her own business for the past six years, Juli’s committed work ethic has formed from years of hands-on experience. Introduced to the fashion industry at an early age, Juli says she “grew up in the sewing business.” After being taught to sew as a ten-year-old, Juli learnt the tricks of the trade from her mother, Tina Grbac

 

Unlike Juli’s natural progression into fashion, Tina entered the industry as a means of practicality. Working as a hand-sewer for Brisbane label Easton Pearson and other corporate companies, she later started her own business underneath the family home.

 

“Juli used to say, ‘I wish you were 63 and retired so you could be at home with us,’” Tina recalls, remembering her reasons for becoming a stay-at-home sewer. 

 

The downstairs area is now dedicated Juli Grbac designs, filled with cutting boards, sewing machines, evening gowns and articles about the label’s success. No longer running her own business, Tina remains keen to share her expertise and to assist Juli in any way, shape or form.

 

“Juli has no time, so I’m happy to help her with her business. At the moment she is our priority, we’re here to help, money wise, food wise… everything! We know that Juli will do well with her business. She’s very determined, talented and passionate.”

 

Juli says her family has been a vital support network throughout the course of her career, from the initial stages of rejection to the constant demands of her business today. Far from being an overnight success story, she maintains her accomplishments are the result of encouragement, commitment and self made luck.

 

“Upcoming designers need to realise it takes many years of hard work to get established. You have to be prepared for rejection. I’ve had disappointment and tears, but I was able to continue and stay focussed. I guess you just have this voice inside you that urges you to keep going, no matter what.”

 

It was Juli’s fighting spirit that led to her winning the reality television show, Project Runway. After being knocked back in the initial stages, she was given a second chance on the show, which ultimately reshaped the course of her career.

 

“Project Runway was an amazing experience. Working on national level and with national exposure I gained a better perspective about the fashion industry,” Juli says. “The support and media recognition I received from the show has been really important. Even now I have women ringing me and asking if I can make them the wedding dress I designed in episode three!”

 

 

Juli says many of her achievements came from years of preparation. After studying design at Mt Gravatt TAFE she worked three jobs to pay for a ticket overseas. Living in London, Juli was employed as a hand-sewer by celebrity fashion house, Voyage.

 

“It was probably the hardest time in my life. I was earning ₤4 50 an hour, working in a job I hated. But I maintained the motivation to stay there for one and a half years… The experience I gained as a hand-sewer probably contributed to my success in winning Project Runway.”

 

In the competitive world of fashion, longevity is never certain. Fully aware of the industry’s economic instability, it was only last year that Juli quit her ‘day job’ at a pharmacy. Now focussed on the expansion of her brand, she remains hopeful for the future.

 

“My main goal is to stay in business!” Juli laughs.

 

“No, apart from that, I would like to be stocked in the major department stores and I’m planning to export my designs to the European and Asian markets in the next two years.”

 

“Of course,” she adds, smiling. “The ultimate dream is to hold a showing of my designs in Paris. I’ve given myself a time limit of ten years, but I think I can do it in seven. That would mean I’d 37 at the time, which seems a pretty good age.”

 

Luxury without the price tag

Limes Hotel in Fortitude Valley hosted The Devil Wears Prada movie sess last Thursday drawing a crowd of young, high-fashion enthusiasts in their most outrageous heels.

Other than an excuse to get together with your stylin’ besties, drink the free champagne on arrival and nibble on a few delicious canapés – the night on the town featured a shoe competition judged by Limes’ suave staff.

Managing Director of FoxedGlove Marketing Michelle Levings says they weren’t on the lookout for any particular trend or style, just the basic wow factor that means you can’t tear your eyes away from the fierce and fabulous footwear.

80+ highly-adorned ladies (and the odd sneaky male) were seen mingling on the colourfully-lit rooftop bar enjoying the à la mode ambience and hoping to win the lip-licking prizes.

First prize went to stylist Romona Telecican and included a $200 voucher for Gary Castles Sydney and a night out for two at Limes Hotel worth $400. Runners up received body beautiful prizes from The Thai Foot Spa, Identity Cut and Colour and Studio Rise.

Levings says the concept behind the free night at Limes was an opportunity for Brisbane’s fashion lovers to wear their most outrageous shoes.

“The whole idea was to get your girlfriends together, watch a movie and look fabulous,” Levings says.

And as anyone who doesn’t have the pain threshold of a teenager would know, beauty is often pain when it comes to fashion, so a few hours atop a luxurious inner-city location with couches for perking on when it all became too much is a pretty sweet deal for 10cm heel wearers.

One for the boys and girls is a James Bond themed night at Limes coming up on May 20th, with a screening of Quantum of Solace.

Bar manager Jason Mathews will also teach guests to make ten signature Bond cocktails including the Vesper Martini, Scoth and Soda, Mojito and Vodka Martini.

“You can be a hit at your next party [because] you know how James Bond likes to drink his cocktails,” she said.

Check out pics from the night or more info about Limes’ rooftop events here.

Smells Like Revenue Raising

I’m going to preface this story by quoting Yves Saint Laurent and as you read this story I’d like you to remember him – I’ll remind you along the way.

It pains me physically to see a woman victimised, rendered pathetic by fashion.
– Yves Saint Laurent

Here is a promising business idea: we’ll take some pastel blue terrycloth and some pink velour and construct a tracksuit. Then we’ll print ‘JUICY’ across back of the tracksuit in a medieval font so an observer immediately learns the wearer of this particular tracksuit is somewhat succulent. Like all good business plans, this one has a strong sense of the bottom line because anyone who wants to wear such a distinguished outfit can expect to pay $US325 for it. You might dismiss this as a somewhat harebrained idea but in reality, it worked and it made two Californian women very wealthy.

Juicy Couture was born on the USA’s west coast to an audience of irreverent teenagers and cashed-up socialites. The brand biography posted on the official Juicy Couture website is short enough to directly quote in this article.

“Once upon a time in a land far, far away called Pacoima, there were two nice girls who set out to create the perfect girlie collection. Juicy couture swept the land and they lived happily ever after.”

Juicy Couture founders Pamela Skaist-Levy and Gela Nash-Taylor launched the now global brand in 1994, but after more than 10 years in operation any substantial information on the brand’s history is all but non-existent. A brand biography will usually devote a few paragraphs to the early days when the now head designer and CEO would take their products to the local markets and flog them to all their C-grade celebrity friends. Instead we’re simply told Juicy Couture ‘swept the land’ – as if this is some twisted fairytale where achieving perfection necessitates over-priced products, made of inferior materials, being stocked across the world and subsequently adorning the walking billboards that are Juicy Couture customers. Let’s make reference to the YSL quote – physically pained? Affirmative. Juicy Couture was started as a business move and exists as an insult to fashion itself. It laughs in the face of fashion history and literature, while posting $200 million annual profits.

The word couture doesn’t sit easily behind the word juicy. Let’s get some perspective. By definition, couture is clothes and related articles that are designed by fashion designers and are made to order. Something that is, has or suggests the style and quality of a fashion designer. So the mass produced, ill-fitting, fluorescent, terrycloth merchandise that Juicy Couture manufactures in Chinese sweatshops is still couture right? It is an insult to those true trailblazers who have designed couture that has and will continue to stand the test of time. Coco Chanel changed the way women looked and how they looked at themselves. While she may not have defined herself as a feminist, her work was unquestionably part of women’s liberation. That is couture. Fashion so definitive it stereotypes an era. Couture isn’t replicated for the masses; it doesn’t sit on department store shelves waiting to be purchased. Maybe the difference in ideas of couture stems from who is at the helm of the label. Coco Chanel was a visionary, as was Yves Saint Laurent. YSL created a significant moment in fashion history when he launched the women’s tuxedo in 1966. He called it ‘Le Smoking’. The design was considered radical at the time, but the women’s tuxedo is now considered an essential in the corporate woman’s wardrobe. Looking again at his quote, doesn’t paying $250 for a pair of pink velour hotpants, manufactured in China and pitched to the consumer as couture, render the wearer pathetic? Pamela Skaist-Levy and Gela Nash-Taylor would have you think not, but their lives prior to Juicy Couture were not in fashion. Juicy Couture was conceptualised to produce the clothes the women wanted in their wardrobes but couldn’t find in the stores. The clothing is fad-true and immediately popular to the masses, but holds no reverence in fashion history.

The Juicy Couture Boutique, on New York’s Madison Avenue, boasts a ‘New York meets Alice in Wonderland’ theme. The Alice in Wonderland, over-the-top trend had its two and a half minutes of fame in 2004 when Gwen Stefani released What You Waiting For. The film clip had a similar theme and so one could be fooled into thinking Juicy Couture got something right. You would be fooled though because the outfits Gwen grinded to in her 2004 clip were designed by Christian Dior designer, John Galliano. Galliano is a master of haute couture so imitations of his ideas are made all the time, but nothing compares to real Dior. No one can pull off Alice in Wonderland except Alice herself and Mr. Galliano. However, Juicy Couture’s popularity remains.

That popularity is driving sales across world retail markets. In Australia, Juicy Couture is stocked in David Jones and Myers only. The Juicy Couture range in Australia includes handbags, shoes, jewellery, fragrances, and clothing. The clichéd Juicy Couture customer can be seen roller-blading down Surfers Paradise Boulevard. Picture – white stretch-denim hotpants, peroxide-blonde hair, Christain Dior aquamarine top circa 1999 (with ‘DIOR’ printed in gold paint down one sleeve), equally ghastly rimless sunglasses (with ‘DIOR’ printed across the frames) – that’s the Juicy Couture customer. This customer responds (with her credit card) to branding slogans such as ‘Smells like Couture’. This phrase is the homing beacon to Juicy Couture enthusiasts across the world; it is the first in a long line of branding slogans used by the company and features on merchandise, packaging, and product literature. Smells like Couture. Juicy Couture products smell like couture. What does couture even smell like? Apparently it smells like Barbie. Confused? Me too.

Juicy Couture’s first fragrance, aptly titled Juicy Couture, was described by Pamela Skaist-Levy as being the perfume Barbie would wear. So now, couture and Mattel’s Barbie smell the same. The fragrance was reviewed as being ‘bright, perky, sweet, and young … if it was a celebrity fragrance it would be Britney Spears … pre meltdown’. It lasts on your skin for around an hour, 59 minutes longer than it takes the wearer to regret spraying it on themselves. Juicy Couture’s one redeemable quality is its current line of jewellery. Although only gold plated, the pieces are collectively better than any other category of Juicy Couture merchandise purely because it is very difficult to stamp ‘JUICY’ on the arse of a necklace pendant.

YSL has experienced a decline in sales across the last decade. Juicy Couture forecasts sales to reach $3 billion in 2010. When those money facts are as they are, the issue changes focus from a problem with what is being designed to a problem with what is being consumed. Is the traditional fashion follower morphing into a cheap-thrills fashion consumer? If so brands such as Juicy Couture will continue to gain cult-like popularity, simultaneously rendering their wearers pathetic, as YSL would say.

She’s got the look

Across the globe millions of teenagers are becoming fashion designers, models, stylists and photographers in their own right. But amidst such change, where does the future lie for the rest of the fashion industry? Siobhan Hegarty reports.

With the click of a mouse, another photograph is added and in a matter of hours a new face reigns supreme on the Lookbook site. With 118 comments and 987 ‘hypes’ in the past five days, 18-year-old Samantha Mcinnes from Montreal is currently the leading fashionista of the moment. Sporting a leather jacket, black tights and an unyielding stare, her ‘April’ look is well-liked amongst the online style-conscious community.

The rise of technology has caused a transformation for the fashion industry. With cameras and the internet accessible to most, change has prompted a distinct shift for today’s tech-savvy generation. No longer are fashion magazines the guiding source of style, with runway collections viewable on the internet and online style sites posting the hottest looks from all corners of the world.

But it’s not just fashion designers using the internet to promote their works. Young people with little to no experience in the fashion industry are becoming recognised as the new arbiters of style. Websites such as Lookbook and even Myspace have become platforms to flaunt individuality and express fashionable flair.

For film student and Lolita-enthusiast, Goldie Soetianto, Lookbook offers a means to promote her individuality and often alternative style. “I think a lot of people like to show off their style and it’s really interesting for other people to look at what they’re wearing.”

“Lookbook’s success is probably from the popularity of networking sites such as Myspace and Facebook, except that it is for the more fashion-forward. Lookbook is a U.S. based company, so it’s dominated by trends from America. But for the fashion community it’s really good to see international styles coming through, especially from style capitals such as Paris and Milan”

But despite the increased importance placed upon the style-conscious consumers-turned-creators, Goldie believes fashion magazines and well known designers will continue to lead the industry.

“I definitely think designers will continue to maintain influence, because eventually cheaper versions of their creations come into shops and that is what people will be wearing. Whilst Lookbook does promote personal style, many of the hyped looks are similar, so obviously they are inspired by the same magazines or designers or aesthetics.”

According to the website, “LOOKBOOK.nu is an international social experiment in style. [Aiming] to bring together diverse, aesthetically talented and open-minded people around the world and showcase the best in international street fashion.” Essentially an exhibition of the latest trends, the premise of Lookbook enables stylish individuals to be rewarded with the recognition of their peers.

The website also offers instructions for beginners, but with youth being the key demographic for Lookbook, even the terms are in teen-speak.

1. You upload photos of your looks, and browse others.

2. Vote up stuff you like – community “hype” determines which outfits show up on the front page.

3. If people hype your looks, you gain “karma” which builds your reputation as a stylist.

The trend towards street style has become widely reflective of the fashion industry, with many brands scouting for stylish, young, real people to represent their label. Recently formed Sydney company Six Wolves adopted this concept in creating their street-based modeling agency. Run by advertising agent Adam Browne and photographer, publicist and producer Kristen Perich, Six Wolves focuses on edgy brands after more unique or raw talent.

In an interview with The Australian, Browne says he is keen to take part in the global trend of big brands hiring “ordinary” people. “What separates us from the big agencies is that we avoid overpriced, over-polished and over-exposed models. [We look for] edgy, unique people with really interesting features.”

Like Lookbook, Six Wolves uses it’s website to promote clientele through style-savvy photographs. Searching festivals, markets and suburbs for new faces, the agency seeks to capture the authentic, edgy trends worn by new talent. With the current economic downturn, Browne hopes fashion labels will look to the creative, less expensive alternative that Six Wolves offers.

While magazines and big brand labels will continue to influence the fashion industry, the internet possesses an increasingly fundamental role. Showcasing street style on an international level, sites such as Lookbook have gained the support of fashion-forward youth. Flicking back to the site’s ‘most popular’ page it seems April might have competition. With her office-inspired outfit, Krystal from California could become the new queen of cool… Ah the flippancy of fashion.

West Side Story

Stepping off the dirty pavement onto shimmering white tiles, the contrast hits me immediately. Only the best in designer Italian shoes, clothing, belts and wallets surround me. There is a chandelier above my head and I keep catching glimpses of myself in the sea of mirrors that surround me. I feel like a million dollars, nothing can stop me, nothing at all. Nothing at all except those high heels, and that handbag. Oh and those dresses. Damn it! I’m in a women’s clothing shop. Not again.

I’m in Brisbane’s West End, a suburb of contrasting cultures and classes, and one whose fashion reflects it. Rabeha Habchi has owned her boutique ladies fashion shop “Athena’s” here for 18 years. She has watched others come and go, but the one so called the “wonder woman” has no plans to move from her beloved West End.

“I’ve been in West End for a long time, I started down the road selling shoes mainly,” she says.

“We had other stores around Brisbane, but this one is like home, I came here from a non-english speaking background to fit in, so people would accept me,”

She is not alone in feeling comfortable in what is sometimes a “crazy little suburb”. Many West End regulars feel as though the suburb (and its reputation) is their own, and Renee Innis has good reason to feel the same way. She has lived in West End her whole life and the menswear store she runs has been owned by her family for 59 years.

“I’ve grown up around this store,” she says.

“Fashion is all I know, I’ve been surrounded by it my whole life,”

Renee believes it is too hard to pinpoint one style (trend) that represents West End’s fashion scene, because “the fashion reflects the suburb… it is really diverse”. Her family has seen many changes in West End, but the cultural fabric of the suburb has always been the same.

“In a place like this, you honestly don’t know who is going to come through the door next,”

“There has always been a lot of different people in West End, it makes it what it is,” she says.

The suburb truly does have a wide range of people to cater for, and maybe some of that truth is reflected in the many differing retail outlets that exist here. It is a place for young, local designers to get opportunities that wouldn’t exist anywhere else and although many see West End as a trendsetting hub, it’s the suburb’s instinct to rebel against the trend that makes it so unique.

“In West End, people wear what they believe in. I mean, the fashion truly does reflect the suburb, whether it is the swanky boutiques up the road, or funky shops like our own, the clothing here is really a mixed bag,” says Renee.

As you walk up West End’s landmark Boundary Street on an average weekday, it is easy to see why its diverse fashion reputation exists. From Flannelette to Fur, you will see it all in West End. For those who haven’t experienced it, don’t be surprised if this suburb’s fashion has you talking long after you have left its paved streets.