Van Manen moves up
FORDE MP Bert van Manen has been given a promotion just weeks after he survived a shock swing against him in his northern Gold Coast seat at the July 2 election.
Mr van Manen, a backbencher, has been named a government whip, replacing Ewen Jones, who lost his seat.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull also announced that fellow Liberal MP Rowan Ramsey had been appointed.
Mr van Manen was elected to parliament in 2010. BIGGERA Waters designer Ingrid Bonnor already has Taylor Swift on her list of clientele and is hoping to take the world by storm next month when she shows her collection at New York Fashion Week.
Swift visited luxury Southport boutique Another Love in July, which stocks designer labels such as Alexander Wang, Zimmermann as well as Ms Bonnor’s bridal robe and sleepwear line, homebodii.
“She bought a number of our pieces, including a robe, two dresses, a cami set and a PJ set,” Ms Bonnor said.
“I’m always checking Instagram to see if she posts something in on one of our designs.”
Rochelle Miller, owner of Another Love said Swift was the “most beautiful” person.
“She was a huge fan of Australian designers and loved the homebodii aesthetic,” she said.
Ms Bonnor said she found a gap in the market about five years ago when she couldn’t find a robe to wear to the hospital when pregnant.
“Robes have been available forever but I wanted to create something with a feminine aesthetic, something that myself or my girlfriends would wear,” she said. “I’m not traditionally trained – my background is actually in modelling and public relations but I created homebodii to serve as a brand for all types of memorable occasions, whether a bridal party or in hospital for the birth of your child.”
A born and bred Coast girl, Ms Bonnor was selected by Australian fashion agency Fashion Palette which acts as an international springboard into the US market via New York Fashion Week.
“Fashion Palette look for really niche brands,” she said.
“It’s a great opportunity to showcase Australian designs on a world stage and also represent the Gold Coast.”
The former Miss Magic Millions of 1999 said she learnt the industry ropes while working in PR for a French beauty company, LPG.
“The job allowed me to travel throughout Europe to learn the ropes of corporate business – I worked it from the ground up,” she said.
“Learning from industry professionals I saw how important it was to produce a product of quality which gave customers a genuine sense of intimacy with the brand.
“It was just the education I needed to serve as the foundation for creating homebodii.”