Bold  and daring was the theme on Tuesday night as LMFF Runway 2 took to the catwalk at Central Pier.

Romance Was Born kicked off proceedings in a manner that only they can.  Model Samantha Harris strutted her stuff in a incredibly detailed red knit dress, signalling RwB’s them of bold colour, structured pieces and plenty of cute and quirky embellishments.  It is easy to see why they were the recipients of the LMFF Young Designer Award in 2009.

Ant!podium ensured that they did not repeat an facet of their previous collections, as they appeared to aim for a very country, palatable and cruisy collection full of those oh so important ‘little’ details, such as crochet hems and richly textured fabrics.  Not to mention the stuffed animals that models adorned their necks with, I’m thinking some sort of Iguana?

Never steering to far from the classics,  Arnsdorf showed that an investment piece can still be right on trend, with their use of bold colours blended to perfection with nude tones, and modernising of simple shapes by enlarging shoulders, tapering pant hems and throwing in the odd full piece silk play suit.  This upcoming label is certainly one to watch, and you’re guaranteed to make a lifelong purchase with almost any of their designs this season.

LMFF Young Design Award winner, Dion Lee kept it ultra chic and very futuristic this season.  With his trademark cut out blazers, heavily embellished trousers and classic cut blouses.  Lee kept hemlines short, sharp and business like making for a very ‘grown up’ collection.  Congrats on a well deserved nod from the team at Style Melbourne!

It’s all about layering this season, and the ultra talented Friedrich Gray ensured that he played on this fascination with candy wrapper dressing, by providing us with every imaginable basic, with a twist.  Tones were monochrome, with splashes of moss green and pink, with the odd sequin thrown in for good measure.  Silhouettes were kept body conscious, apart from his Rodarte inspired spiderweb knits which I’m sure will be a massive hit this Winter.

Gary Bigini is also a master of the basics, using fluid jersey fabrics cut to perfection in order to create beautiful and very wearable designs to suit a myriad of body types.  Bigini’s use of draping, over sized knots, folds and pleating make his ‘plainer’ pieces stand out.  I have one eye very firmly on a steel grey t shirt dress featuring amazing folds and knots…it truly is perfection.

In contrast to what was a primarily androgynous collection, was the peach fuzz pretty designs of Therese Rawsthorne (formally Youthworld).  Therese relied heavily on feminine prints and cuts ensuring that her collection stood out from the rest.  Despite the colour palette primarily consisting of blacks and nude tones, it screamed girly girl and will appeal to those on the hunt for a quirky cocktail dress, or ultra womanly basics.

So, in summary…the bolder the better, embellish EVERYTHING, accessorise to the max and most importantly, steal your boyfriends suit jacket.

Witty Words by Bronwyn Miller

Super Snaps by Hannah Caldwell