Territory rig
The future of fashion in the NT is bright, with plenty of young designers sharpening their pencils and unrolling their measuring tape
The fashion industry is like no other in its constant search for the coveted ‘next big thing.’
Worldwide, it champions identifying the latest and greatest; new fabric, technique or personality. It therefore makes sense the next generation of fashionistas are nurtured thread by thread.
One of the key platforms for emerging talent is education and knowledge sharing. In the Territory, opportunities are limited, so those provided are warmly embraced like a new trend hot off the catwalk.
Last year the Territory hosted its first NTeen Fashion Festival, the NT branch of the Apex Australia Teenage Fashion Awards (AATFA).
At this year’s event earlier this month, Darwin’s Jade Forwood, 15, was awarded the Lord Mayor’s 2016 Designer of the Year award. Her gown, which she describes as “pretty girlie”, also won her the formal category — and a trip to Melbourne for the national AAFTA final. This is the second dress Jade has made — the first she created at age 10, from a pattern.
Jo-Anna Egart, NTeen Fashion Festival Chair, said the experience is not just about fashion, but about providing opportunity for young people.
At the NTeen event, young designers joined student hair and make-up artists, event and production crew, and front-of-house staff in a rare experience where they could, quite literally, run the show.
“We hope these opportunities are a pathway to a job, education and training in a workplace,” Ms Egart said.
But the call continues to provide further education and more permanent options for those with a passion for fashion. Unfortunately, some secondary schools have removed textiles (sewing classes) from the curriculum, which means access to fashion-flavoured study is even harder for students.
Celebrated Darwin-based fashion designer Matilda Alegria was a technical and runway judge, and hosted a runway confidence workshop at the festival this year.
She was thrilled to be involved and said it was wonderful to see the calibre and variety of work showcased.
Matilda recognises the challenges — and opportunities — of being a young designer; she started clothing production as a 16-year-old and hopes events like NTeen “develop each year into something bigger and better to really get a push behind young designers”.
One such young talent is Kailey Coble, 16. She was the producer of the festival and thinks it is amazing to help provide a platform for the next generation of the industry to launch their careers — she also said “we are losing valuable designers because they do not have the opportunity to flourish right here in the Northern Territory”.