Two Whangarei hairdressers have been working with top Northland fashion designers to stitch together support for organisations that help women find safety from physical and emotional harm.
Andrea McKay and Joel Hornell will stage a fashion extravaganza, Soo Tru ... Sew True: The Runway Show, on Wednesday evening in conjunctionwith Whangarei Art Museum's current exhibition, a tribute to original New Zealand fashion called "Home Sewn", and the soon to be shown "Make Do and Mend, the Recycling Movement in NZ".
The pair have chosen local women's refuge centres Tryphina House and Te Puna o Te Aroha to be the beneficiaries of Soo Tru...Sew True: The Runway Show.
Ms McKay and Mr Hornell held a similar high-octane, high-style event featuring cutting edge Northland fashion last February to raise funds for Project Promise Project Runway. The intended one-only performance at Whangarei Art Museum - also in conjunction with a fashion and fabric exhibition - proved so popular it was repeated at a second show several weeks later.
"We are so excited about this year's show. It's going to be every bit as funky and fabulous as last year," Ms McKay said. "We have lots of talented young designers coming through as well as names people will have heard before."
Many of the designers and models from last year are again donating their time and talent, she said.
The pair are again working closely with the creative and supportive team from Whangarei Art Museum.
Museum director Scott Pothan said the title of this year's show reflected the stories of the local designers and to allude to the wider stories of anguish and violence against women and children in the community.
"This will be a fun and fashion-forward event underpinned by a serious purpose," Mr Pothan said.
Among those showing a range or one-off garments will be Jessie Rose, Charlotte Davidson, Samantha Wakelin, Jules Pyle, Simon Richards and other designers from BY Design, Ruth Gayford from Mercy, Rua Paul and Kiri Peeni.
Other fashion businesses whose work will feature on the catwalk include Addiction Hair, Steve Haywood Jeweller and Persona Beauty Aotearoa.
