Leopards, Rococo and recession-core: Highlights from the Student Collections Runway

A feast for the senses.

Friday night was undoubtedly my most-anticipated event on the Melbourne Fashion Week (M/FW) calendar: the Student Collections Runway. 30 fashion design graduates from five of the city’s top institutions gathered alongside family and friends, tutors and fellow classmates, influencers and industry guests to witness their hard work culminate on the runway.

Held inside Younghusband, a converted red brick woolstore in Kensington, the M/FW producers had managed to make the back of house a star of the show. With the backstage area boxed off and smack-bang in the middle of the venue, guests took their seats around it and watched projected footage of the models lining up in their outfits for their final checks.

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The sounds flitted between orchestral piano and violin, with backstage audio directing the models (“Model one, walking,” it ordered). Hearing and seeing these rare glimpses behind-the-scenes in real time from the front row only added to the excitement swelling in the room.

After packing my phone away and smugly telling my friend, “I’m taking the show in with my eyes only,” I had to almost immediately go back on my words. There is simply not enough time to take in all the incredible, meticulous attention to detail that goes into each collection during its 20 seconds of fame on the catwalk.

Throughout the show, I lost count of the number of times I heard audible gasps coming from the crowd. And while it’s impossible to summarise every collection from 30 students in 800 words, these were the highlights and recurring themes I furiously noted down while trying my best to stay present.

Playful, imposing shapes

Among the many jaw-dropping looks of the evening were the ones that physically took up the most space. I almost couldn’t believe the giant loofahs of tulle by LCI student, Leah Wilkinson, who turned to topiary techniques when designing her exaggerated silhouettes.

Another student who sent imposing shapes down the runway was Margaret Hogan from LCI, whose sculptural vases fully contained the statuesque models in matching bodices underneath. LCI student Valentina Barrios‘ collection was inspired by furniture design, resulting in dramatic looks that merged velour evening gowns with wearable foam headrests (they did look comfy).

I couldn’t help but smile when I saw RMIT student Iris Christke‘s playful take on Knight’s armour, juxtaposing militant structures with the softness of a doona was exactly the kind of whimsy I’d hoped to see.

If we’re talking maximalist stand-outs, then LCI student Ella Atkins might have taken the cake, with her leopard print collection, which included a duo-model dress moment, butt-plug headpieces and plush velvet cats. “I wanted to create something dramatic, show-stopping and even a little controversial,” Ella told us a few weeks before the show. She definitely delivered.

Unexpected upcycling

Elements of upcycling are always present at a student fashion show but this cohort’s use of reworked junk (for lack of a better word) felt particularly fun. Think items you’d find at a mechanics or in the office stationary cupboard: car number plates redesigned into a handbag, a motorcycle helmet reimagined with sexy black fringing, a giant bulldog clip bag and a dress adorned with strips of red dot stickers.

Speaking of office sirens, all eyes were on the model wearing platform heels wrapped in phone cords and computer mice. Another student upcycled flannel shirts and vintage tees into structured peplum tops – “it’s giving recession-core” was the acute observation in my Notes app.

Childhood nostalgia and Y2K

The runway fed the inner child on so many levels. There was the literal doll’s house bag by xxx that had everyone swooning. LCI student Caroline was also inspired by her childhood doll’s house, merging girly escapism with the woodwork – she collaborated with a local boatbuilding studio to bring a giant wooden bow to life. Then there was RMIT student, Ineska Harrison, who encrusted platform heels with old Nokia brick phones, footwear I can 100 per cent see Julia Fox wearing.

Footwear fantasies

Speaking of shoes, footwear can often be an afterthought for a creatively burnt-out student but this was by far my most noted-down accessory during the show. I was floored by RMIT student Tilly Rice’s heel-less hooves, inspired by ballet pointe shoes. I’d personally love to see more creative footwear designers in Australia – while it’s an incredibly tough industry to make commercially viable, it’s clear the art of shoemaking brings joy to many students.

The Student Designer Award winner

As a media partner of M/FW, this year I had the privilege of being on the judging panel to help pick the winner of the Student Designer Award from a shortlist of five finalists, selected by stylist and mentor, Stuart Walford.

Among the shortlist were those whose concepts and processes had stood out to Stuart as exceptional, worthy of consideration for this year’s coveted prize, which includes a one-year mentorship with local design institution, Strateas Carlucci. The finalists were Flora Bellemo, Dedo Sarik, Helen Manuell, Ella Atkins, and Jessica Micheline Pangestu.

After some passionate deliberating, the panel awarded the prize to RMIT’s Helen Manuell. Her zero-waste collection, ‘A Slow Mindset’ was a total pivot from her background as a bridal couture designer. She didn’t touch sewing scissors or a sewing machine making this collection, instead embracing the slow, old-school techniques of knitting, crochet and weaving to make her one-of-a-kind creations, designed to be genderless and free in size.

For more on the student runway, try this.