KEY POINTS:
A new star shines in the local fashion firmament after day one of Air New Zealand Fashion Week.
And not before time too, as Cybele has carried the girl-most-likely-to succeed tag for several seasons, but with this collection, appropriately called Eclipse, she stepped out of the shadows of
our best talent and showed she, too, deserves her turn in the sun.
The opening day was predicted to offer the week's freshest, but most runway-ready talent. With nearly 60 designers showing to media and buyers this week, the trick is picking those who are market-ready from among the crop of rising designers, newbies and ring-ins that join our established names on the schedule.
Creativity and the ability to put together a coherent collection do not always go hand in hand. When they do it's time for fashion watchers to get excited and when this happens for several seasons in a row, the buyers start signing orders.
Cybele and Adrian Hailwood - who again showed he can rock - should expect wider interest than from their mainly Australasian outlets.
The day opened with Deborah Sweeney, who toughened up her often girly vintage styling, with a 70s trash trucker look.
Cropped black leather biker vests were shrugged over stirrupped metallic leggings. Grey marle tops and leggings underpinned fluoro pink pinafores and faded denim dungarees. But the pretty underpinnings remained.
Aucklander Cybele Wiren then supplemented her usual fluid easy-to-wear tunic shapes with garments that had a more assured structure. The Eclipse collection featured a cosmic explosion of a print meant to echo the shadows and lights of the lunar event. It was a lean, moody and bold look.
As Wiren says: The Eclipse girl walks tall into the light and casts a long shadow.
Knits, newly added to her range, carried a bold blue-on-black moon print, wrapped round the body.
Shadowy shapes screen-printed onto jersey knit and organza shifts were in subdued colours: bronze on black, silver on cream. Her signature curved bodice detailing was this time picked out with zips, used also on skinny jeans. A standout was an electric blue silk shantung opera coat, with pin-tucked back.
Long sleeveless satin anoraks worn over patterned leggings and puffy little minis and puffa vestas rounded out a range that was grownup, but still fun.
Adrian Hailwood showed his subverted 80s prom dresses, and slinky retro favourites, including a fluid silver number that would have done Deborah Harry proud back at Studio 54.
The silver boiler suit and PVC dresses are a tricky look to work, so too the giant white and black check trapeze dress .. but on the runway they were fun.
More saleable, though, is the pinstriped suiting, worn with frill-neck blouses and colourful T-shirts.
Hailwood's menswear was particularly wearable: skinny but slouched pants, long-line vests over T-shirts and retro jackets, asymmetrically zipped. Michael Pattison's Yoko Homo range showed he should concentrate on menswear. Less overt than in the past, the clothes were tailored but coloured with confidence.
EDITORS' PICKS
Viva fashion editor Ana Macdonald:
Brilliant start to the week, standard of garments gets better each year. Elements of classic rock' n' roll in Deb Sweeney and Hailwood, who had great tailored pieces, perhaps influenced by his mentor Annah Stretton. Standout was Cybele, beautiful floor-skimming liquid satin gowns, more muted colouring in bronze and navy - a more mature range. Great dresses from Juliet Hogan, as always.
Canvas fashion editor Alice Rycroft:
For me Cybele's show was standout. It was full of fresh ideas that were driven along by her original prints. These were used to great effect, especially on the full-length strapless gowns. Her zip-trims were also fresh and new, especially when stitched into a suspender-belt shape on her skinny black jeans.