Muse the Label is the family-run brand creating a seasonless capsule wardrobe

“Muse the Label is bold colour combinations, subtle femininity and architectural silhouettes.”

Sarah Kourim grew up watching her mum Christine sew garments for her and her brother, with school friends constantly talking in admiration of Christine’s talent. Following in her mum’s sartorial footsteps, Sarah went on to study fashion, eventually accumulating over ten tears of industry experience.

It wasn’t until 2016 that Sarah and Christine decided to join talents, combining their mutual love of fabric and form. Muse the Label was launched from the mother-daughter duo’s Melbourne studio, featuring a collection of made-to-order, thoughtful womenswear pieces.

For more fashion news, shoots, articles and features, head to our Fashion section. 

Seven years on, Muse the Label is still locally produced, with each range released in small, seasonless batches. Christine and Sarah prioritise slow fashion principles, with each design carefully considered. Below, Sarah reflects on the duo’s journey so far.

Tell us about you. What’s your fashion background?

Muse the Label is a mum and daughter duo. Christine has been sewing and patternmaking ever since I can remember; she was always sewing for me and my brother growing up. I was lucky to learn so much from her… she’s always been ahead of her time. From a young age, I can remember kids at school would talk about mum’s school pick-up outfits. I loved that. She’s my biggest inspiration.

I followed in her footsteps and studied fashion at RMIT. I’ve worked as a womenswear designer in the industry for around 10 years now and had been toying with the idea of starting something of my own for a while now.

How did the label get started? Talk us through the process and the challenges.

I’d always wanted to start something with Mum, but we never had the time to focus solely on a new project. When Christine [mum] quit her job and started sewing again, it was only a matter of time before we decided to do something together.

We had humble beginnings, starting out by selling handfuls of our pieces at different markets. After a period of doing that, we started selling out every weekend. That was the sign we had to start taking it more seriously.

Then when the pandemic hit, we had to change our approach completely. We had to take our entire collection online and really look at where Muse the Label was going.

We were able to reimagine our label over lockdown. I see Muse as finding itself through this time, it was a really lovely time to reconnect with each other and the design process.

How would you describe Muse to someone who’s never seen it before?

I’d say Muse the Label is bold colour combinations, subtle femininity and architectural silhouettes. I think Muse is effortless and fun to wear.

What are you most proud of in your work on your label?

The fact that we do pretty much everything ourselves! It still baffles me how we have enough hours in the day to do it all. And, of course, working with the incredible women who have helped Muse to become what it is today.

What do you wish you knew when you started?

How much time and energy running a fashion label can take. Making time for a life outside of work has been a big challenge for us both. We’ve both felt ‘burnt out’, but are slowly learning how to balance it all.

Who do you think is most exciting in Australian/NZ fashion right now?

So many labels are moving manufacturing back to Australia. This creation of more jobs and demand for skilled workers in the industry is really exciting. I think it will encourage creativity and allow the Australian industry to really grow.

Dream Australian/NZ collaborators?

Holly Ryan.

What’s in your wardrobe right now?

A mix of designer vintage and Muse pieces, Aeyde orange Mary-Janes and a Glen Prentice glass beaded belt.

How can we buy one of your pieces?

Online and one of our many lovely stockists! Our newest is the Brunswick-based store Better with Friends. It carries so many of our Capsule 8 pieces.

Browse Muse the Label’s Capsule 8 collection here.