An 89-year-old Mount Maunganui grandfather is an unlikely Fashion Week muse.
But Taukiri "John" Tawhiao is the mentor of designer Shona Tawhiao, who is showing at Fashion Week on Friday as part of the Miromoda show.
Ms Tawhiao, a former Mount Maunganui College student, has lived in Auckland for 20 years.
But it's
her grandfather, previously of Matakana Island, who is her inspiration.
"His old-school values and outlook on life was the best thing in helping me determine which way my life would go in terms of a career," she said. "I don't think I would be where I am today without him."
Ms Tawhiao was selected via the Miromoda Fashion Design Awards - run by the indigenous Maori Fashion apparel board - as one of seven designers to show at its Fashion Week show.
Her designs are made using traditional Maori techniques and natural fibres.
Modern-day paints, fabrics, wire and styling complement the traditional weaving techniques.
Her collection, called Te Whiri, is based on post-European Maori and the clothing worn during the early 1900s.
"Te Whiri is Maori for plait. It's the joining of everything, really," she said. "This is a culmination of all my work that I love, so it's pretty exciting."
A mother of three, Ms Tawhiao trained in traditional Maori weaving at Unitec in the 1990s.
Her work has been displayed in art galleries, film and TV projects, marae, houses and hotel lobbies.
She won the Manukau Villa Maria Cult-Couture Supreme Award in 2007, and two years ago the World of Wearable Art Awards bought one of her pieces for its museum collection.
