Lulled out of sleep by the dreaded sounds of my iPhone alarm, I knew it was getting out of bed time.
I also had the realisation that 6.30am was no longer the time one arrives home and gets INTO bed... it seems I'm really not a student any more!
Hotel St Clair looked beautiful with the cloudless Dunedin sky as its backdrop and calming ocean waves as its soundtrack. Once inside the lush breakfast room, I see it's not a bad view to have to look at daily, as our friendly waiter pointed out.
A delicious spread of breakfast foods were arranged for us to help ourselves to: croissants, danishes, muesli, fancy yoghurt, fresh fruit and even chilled champagne. Once I passed the intelligence test of pouring myself a coffee (possibly a task much less challenging after consuming said coffee?), I settled in to listen to the talented designers from local label Undone.
Elise Barnes and Rachel Webb were great speakers and accompanied their talk with a multi-media slide show showcasing their collaborations with local artists and film makers.
They told us a bit about their backgrounds (both grew up in the deep South, graduated from Otago Polytech School of Fashion) and how after a late night chat decided their different design aesthetics would really complement each other. Together they have formed a strong brand identity for Undone - soft and hard, sweet and androgynous, romantic v bad ass.
This year sees the Undone ladies showing their designs for an impressive third time at iD Dunedin Fashion Week's main event, firstly as graduates and now as an established fashion label. Not bad considering they have only been out of study for two years!
After this morning's taste tease, I'm looking forward to seeing more of their AW13 "Mustang Running" collection on the catwalk. We're talking wild west influences, cowboys and bikers, good girl gone bad, conveyed through heavy knits, hand-crafted leather jackets and sweet printed velvet. Delicious...
My fashionable breakfast experience: sure beats marmite on toast any day!
Jennifer Hughson, ODT Fashion-i