Jason HarrisThe first-ever AMFF (Australian Multicultural Fashion Festival) is set to hit Sydney on Saturday, March 27 and we can’t be more excited.
AMFF is a platform pioneered by StarCentral Media Group and The Australian Millionaires Business Network. It provides a sustainable platform for international and emerging designers that effectively engage with Australia’s diverse communities and presents an opportunity for designers to showcase their uniqueness and cultural nuances. Meet the designers and brands who are collaborating with the Australian Multicultural Fashion Festival below:
Lepou
Lepou was founded in 2001 by Failepou Peni. The invaluable experience gained from working within this environment and community inspired Failepou to fulfill her lifelong dream and launch her eponymous line alongside her co-workers/daughters Maisyann and Judy-May.
When Failepou is designing, she is inspired by shape, nature, and color. Every design focuses on how she can flatter a real woman’s body and thoughtfully design clothing that every body type can wear. Failepou’s technical knowledge of a garment’s proper fit and design, combined with her innate creative abilities, results in an effortless and wearable line that reflects the kind of woman she is herself; strong, sassy, fun, and fearless.
Failepou believes in the importance of community involvement, inspiring others, and giving back. When she is not designing, she is an ambassador for speaking and encouraging many young adults, in getting in touch with their ability to create and find their place in this day and age.
Failepou is of a strong Christian foundation and gives all Glory to Our Heavenly Father in Christ Jesus, for her inspiration and where she was yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
You can catch Lepou’s latest collection at the 2021 Australian Multicultural Fashion Festival on March 27. You can get tickets via this: link
Villoni Boutique
Established in 1981, Villoni Boutique has become one of the most prominent evening wear fashion boutiques in Australia. Their first shop in the ’80s was located in Double Bay, then moving into the exquisite building, The Queen Victoria Building for over 20 years, holding their legacy of exclusivity and originality. They’re now located at 137 Parramatta Road, Annandale, and Top Ryde Shopping Centre. Clientele from all providence have shopped at Villoni Boutique for their formal gowns, plus size evening wear gowns, bridesmaids, mother of the bride, cocktails, and other formal occasions.
Villoni has sponsored many celebrities such as Kate Ceberano and Ricki Lee on “It Takes Two” Pop Star Tiffany Woods, also Mamma Mia, Anna Woods, Christine Anu, and the famous (Channel Ten) Sandra Sully for the 2008 Logie Awards, as well as TV shows such as The Biggest Loser for 2010, So You Think You Can Dance, Wheel of Fortune, and Australia’s Next Top Model. Sponsoring many beauty pageants since 2005. Miss Globe, Hawaii, Miss World Australia, Miss Universe Australia, and Miss Earth Australia. For over 33 years, the boutique provides for every kind of special occasion, bridesmaids, brides, mother of the bride and groom, school formal, 21st birthday, parties, pre-wedding parties, and more. Villoni Boutique is highly recognized for plus-size women who love to dress up!
During 2006, Villoni Boutique became widely known from top Australian Magazines, such as Bride to Be, Cosmopolitan, Dolly Magazine, Cosmo Bride, Wedding Magazine, even being featured on Wheel of Fortune.
You can catch Villoni Boutique’s latest collection at the 2021 Australian Multicultural Fashion Festival on March 27. You can get tickets via this: link
Leatheron
Leatheron is a premium leather fashion brand, emerging in 2013 under head designer Tommy Ge.
Originating in Sydney Australia, Leatheron has to set out to accomplish a new way to wear leather and truly elevate your confidence. Characterized by its directional and visionary designs, the soft quality leather and fur fashion, are what truly encompasses their signature aesthetic. Each time you wear a Leatheron piece, it continues to develop with your own unique personal exploration of style. Designed in Australia for a global market, collections are inspired by worldwide trends, film, TV shows, event purposes, and life experiences. The brand offers a full range of women and men’s ready-to-wear leather and accessories.
Currently stocked in various stores in Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth. The brand aims to be recognized worldwide. Leatheron aims to deliver its customers flawless online shopping experiences with flat $10 global shipping for every purchase and ongoing service support.
About the designer (Tommy Ge)
Tommy Ge started to learn and experience designing in his dad’s factory’s sample room. In his childhood years, he lived with his grandparents and his grandma used to make him lots of cloth with her manual machine that she still uses today. They used to go to the fabric shops together and bargain for the prices. He was always interested in fine arts and loved the notion of uniqueness. So he designed his first jacket when he was 12. He used to cherish anytime he had with his dad as he only got to see him on the weekends. So his dad would take him to the factory and he would find himself in the sample room drawing, creating, learning, and cutting. Fast forward 17 years, he has designed 4 collections and 2 of them are ready to wear and on his current website. Leatheron.com.au. His first collection was inspired by his favorite movies. The second collection was influenced by his travels. The third is Guns n Roses, which emphasis a contrast between military raw strength and a feminine flow of contoured silhouette. He used raw suede and distressed leather. The newest collection is 11Kingdoms, which is inspired from the show Game of Thrones and movies such as Lord of the Rings and Hunger Games. Tommy wanted to recreate those armor pieces and modernize them for today’s warriors and heroes. The pieces are all about bestowing power and confidence to the wearer.
Visage Boutique
Visage Boutique was created with the everyday woman in mind.
They believe in integrity, exceptional customer service, and making sure that each customer knows how valued they are. They aren’t simply here to sell you a product. As certified image consultants and stylists they will dress you to perfection and have you leaving feeling nothing short of utterly fabulous.
Visage offers their fashion-forward customers the most sought after styles from world-renowned designers such as Mac Duggal and Jovani, at competitive prices!
They deliver value and quality to their customers and live by the Motto “People will stare, Make it worth their while”.
Sassy & Co
So how did Sassy & Co, a magazine about up-and-coming fashion designers lead down to a road filled with preloved clothing? Well, with statistics becoming more readily available they are able to fully realize just how damaging the fashion industry can be to our environment. This doesn’t mean they have to stop all fashion production and cancel clothes! All it means, its that like everything else, we have to move forward which means to just do our part where we can. Don’t know where to start regarding your fashion addiction? Start with just being more aware of what the environmental problems are in our textiles industry. Did you know that Australia fills more than 500,000 tonnes of textiles and leather in its landfills annually? And can you believe that 20% of the world’s water waste comes from the fashion industry? With fast fashion producing mass amounts of low cost and often low-quality items a consumer feels less attached to the clothes they buy and more willing to buy things they’ll never wear or throw out in 6 months.
Does this sound like you? Well, your next step is to discover what you can do to help limit the waste, and can you believe it? It’s shopping! By changing your shopping habits from buying brand new retail in bulk to buying preloved clothes. This means clothes that have previously been owned before, sometimes worn but are still in good condition for use. Now, before you get grossed out or feel ashamed to be wearing secondhand, think about all the clothes in your wardrobe that you haven’t worn or have even given away or thrown out. Would you offer it to your friends and family to wear? That’s how it should feel.
Re-using, recycling, or even upcycling our preloved fashion is not only clean for the environment but can be fun, adventurous, and they promise sanitary! How do we know this? Because they have made it so! Sassy & Co is taking that dingy op shop feel and turning it into something more luxurious and fun. All of their products are not only ethically sourced and washed but they are treated as if they were a treasure we have just had the pleasure of discovering. They believe preloved clothes can feel as exciting and glamorous as buying things brand new, except it comes without the guilt of how it will affect the environment. They are committed to finding unique, glamorous, and beautiful items from a range of designers at a range of prices.
Jason Harris
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