Behind the Mercedes Benz Sydney Fashion Week 2018 swimwear parade
“IT WAS so refreshing to see some bums on the runway”. Model Nikki Phillips’ comment summed up the reaction to this morning’s Fashion Week show, which featured a gamut of derrière sizes, tiger stripe stretch marks and even a smattering of cellulite.
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IT MIGHT be 12 degrees in Sydney today, but backstage at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia, things are heating up.
Clad in fluffy pink and white robes and matching slippers, lithe, bikini clad models are being put through their paces ahead of the first show of day two.
The upbeat tones of Because I’m Me by The Avalanches blares as they take to the runways, perfecting their walk and pace.
“It was so refreshing to see some bums on the runway,” model Nikki Phillips said as she summed up the reaction to this morning’s Swim show, which featured a gamut of derrière sizes, plenty of tiger stripe stretch marks and even a smattering of cellulite.
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Bree Warren, one of the stars of the swimwear showcase and a special guest of Sydney brand Duskii, looked like just another hot model as she shared the catwalk with women of all shapes and sizes.
Wide hips, Amazonian legs and athletic physiques were some of the shapes which donned designs by Pam Pam swim, Camp Cove, Fella and Duskii, more closely resembling a twenty-something Sydney beachgoer than those seen in previous years.
“I think it’s such an important thing for young girls and women to see, body shapes of different sizes, on the runway and in magazines. I grew up with only one body type in fashion and those days are gone and I think its time that we celebrated diversity and different shapes were accepted and acknowledged.”
Warren believed social media had changed the game when it came to how designers marketed their brands.
“Gone are the days when they would book a model because she was a size six, people are booking a model because she’s amazing for whatever reason, but not just based on her size.”
Warren said for aspiring plus sized models, the key was staying true to your size. “Don’t start trying to change the way you are naturally, because that’s when I think you run into problems,” she said. “I can’t speak for everyone else but this is the size I’ve always been. I’ve always had hips and been taller and a bit bigger than other models, and this is my natural shape.”
Phillips was joined by Anna Heinrich and Ksenija Lukich at the show, which kicked off day 2 of MBFWA.
Another of the show’s model Ellie Gonsalves said that beauty was no longer the main prerequisite to a successful modelling career.
“I was turned down by a lot of places because I wasn’t a typical runway girl,” the 27-year-old, who walked in the MBWFA Swim showcase for swimwear label, Fella, said. “But there’s not one way you should look like, and I think the industry is starting to see that.”
Gonsalves said consumers wanted to see women they could relate to. “We’ve been seeing beautiful pictures of one body type in magazines for 50 years, and I would have loved to see different (shapes) growing up as a kid, because I was a tomboy and grew into these big boobs and I was not OK with that.”
“I didn’t want body type; I wanted to wear bonds singlet tops forever.”
Gonsalves, 27, now has 1.6 million Instagram fans and is now one of Australia’s most successful fashion faces. She has also launched an online fitness program and is a global ambassador for the Steve Irwin Australia Zoo Wildlife Warriors.
Gonsalves has now set her sights on acting and will star in her first Hollywood movie - Fighting With My Family alongside Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson – next year.
“I’m one of the divas and I get to throw down my wrestling skills in the ring,” she explained. “I did a lot of training in London, and it was freezing and I got quite a lot of bumps and bruises because I wanted to do a lot of my own stunts,” she said. “I didn’t lose any teeth, though, and everything’s still in tact,’ she added, laughing.
Despite her passion for clean eating, the beauty revealed she was going to indulge at the end of the event. “I’m going to eat raw cookie dough or cake batter -something like that,” she said. “Everything needs to tighten up so you can walk the runway, so I cut those things out, but it’s my little treat at the end I get to work towards.”
Earlier this morning, things were a little chaotic, with the show’s venue changing last night due to the city’s wild and windy weather.
But it was a controlled chaos, and there was a buzz of anticipation ahead of the show, which featured designs from Duskii, Pam Pam, Fella and Camp Cove.
“Tight, tight, tight, sharp turn when you get to me girls!” Shouts one of the organisers as they’re asked to run through the show once more.
It’s 20 minutes to show time at this point, and being the first of the day there’s pressure to run on time to avoid the entire schedule being thrown out.
But late editors and delegates can also throw out the timing, and generally most shows run 30 minute late, no matter what time of the day.
Volunteers are counted and delegated to designers, with their role to dress the models in their ensembles.
A whole trestle table has been dedicated to nipple covers and fashion tape, to avoid any major fashion fails mid-show.
There’s also plenty to eat, with natural energy bars, Bircher muesli, dip and vegetable platters and an entire fridge of Acqua Panna water.
Jo, a volunteer, said thing could get quite interesting if there were multiple changes, but this show was quite straightforward. “
We help the girls get into their clothes, and give them any accessories they need, like earrings,” she explained.
“It can get very energetic if you need to put them in different clothes.”
Actor and Model Ellie Gonsalves has time for a quick impromptu shoot before showtime, and poses on an office chair as half a dozen photographers snap away.
Bianca Spender, Lee Mathews, Albus Lumen, Alice McCall and Michael Lo Sordo are among the designers set to show today.
Originally published as Behind the Mercedes Benz Sydney Fashion Week 2018 swimwear parade
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