Melbourne's most fashionable time of year is upon us once again. ICYMI, Melbourne Fashion Week (M/FW) will return from October 19-25, putting a spotlight on the city's diverse fashion scene. Expect incredible outfits (both on the runways and in the audience, our city's street style scene is unmatched), lots of events and plenty of shopping inspo.
This year's theme is 'Wear the Moment', which is all about embodying self-expression and inclusivity – fitting for Australia's most stylish city (if we do say so ourselves). More than 300 local designers, big and small, will show off their latest designs over the course of the week. There's over 100 free and ticketed events including premium runways, independent runways, workshops, panel discussions and clothing swaps.
In a M/FW first, the opening ganbu marra runway, which spotlights First Nations designers including Atyene Clothing, Ebony Noire, Kaninda, and Marnin Studiowill be held at the NGV. The iconic Student Collections Runway will return to the heritage wool trade site Younghusband, where fashion design students from Box Hill Institute, RMIT School of Fashion and Textiles, Whitehouse Institute of Design Australia and LCI Institute showcase the three-piece collections they have designed and brought to life over the year. The City Square Runway, featuring designers including Clothing The Gaps, ELK the Label and HoMie has a combination of ticketed seats and free standing room – a great free runway to go to if you can get in early enough.
While the premium runways are always fun, don't sleep on the independent program, especially if you're working with a budget. Iconic Melbourne nighclub Revolver Upstairs is being turned into a fashion pitstop for the night with Soundcheck Runway, bringing together the city's music, fashion and creative scene. Or, if you're a bride to be, take notes at Luxury Bridal Runway: The House of Raffaele Ciuca, which will be held in The Long Room at the Immigration Museum.
Want to get involved in an event that's not a runway? Kowtow's AU & NZ Designer Clothing Swap is the M/FW pop-up that gives back. Throughout October, you can bring up to five pre-loved garments from Australian or New Zealand designers to Kowtow’s Fitzroy store. Then, for each piece that gets accepted, you’ll receive a token that can be redeemed at the one-day clothing swap event happening on October 24 at Younghusband.
There's a whole lot more where that came from. For the full program, check out Melbourne Fashion Week's website.