Rabbits headed for iD catwalk

Dunedin designer Jane Avery will have her first shot at the iD Dunedin catwalk next year  with a...
Dunedin designer Jane Avery will have her first shot at the iD Dunedin catwalk next year with a capsule collection of her rabbit-skin fur coats. Photo: Peter McIntosh.
A clothing brand more associated with the outdoors and a Dunedin designer making use of an ever-replenishing Otago resource will take its  first steps on the catwalk next year.

iD Dunedin Fashion Week has announced its line-up for the 18th version of the show.

New Zealand brand Swanndri will join regular labels Carlson, NOM*d and Company of Strangers in the line-up for the March event.

Another designer new to the show at the Dunedin Railway Station show is Lapin, a range of luxury rabbit fur coats, designed by Dunedin designer Jane Avery.

Ms Avery, a former television reporter for the Holmes show, said she had been making clothes for the past 15 years, and had been keen to start a fashion business.

She moved to Dunedin in 2011, and her parents moved, too, from Templeton to Bannockburn.

"You go for a walk up there, clap your hands and the ground moves," she said, referring to the rabbit problem in the area.

The furs were a by-product of the South Island rabbit meat industry, and tanned in Invercargill. She hoped to turn the pest’s fur into a resource on a par with possum fur. Ms Avery said she was "delighted, thrilled and very happy" to have made it to the catwalk after applying.

The event’s show selector, Auckland stylist Sarah Stuart, said she was impressed by the quality of applicants.

Those chosen would create a dynamic and inspiring show.

"From dark moody layering to feminine florals and colour, what I love about this show is its absolute variety."

david.loughrey@odt.co.nz

Comments

Does anyone remember "United Furs"? The product was sable, mink, etc. They were European and mysterious, not welcoming customers lest they be commercial spies.