A Queenstown woman is about to help show Maori fashion on the world stage — but she needs some assistance to get there.
Next month, Misty Te Huna will be walking runways in Paris and London as part of London Pacific Fashion Week, showcasing Kahuwai — a Maori clothing line by Dunedin designer and friend Amber Bridgman.
"I’ve been doing a bit of promo work on her website with her clothing and stuff ... [Bridgman] was sort of just saying, ‘sissy, I’d love it if you could join me’," Ms Te Huna said.
She began "manifesting" and imagining herself there, before Bridgman called to tell her to pack her bags.
"I was like, ‘how the heck am I getting there? I don’t even have a passport’."
It is a dream come true for Te Huna, who said she had been through a lot of hardships in her life.
"It’s just showing people that you can overcome a lot of things and end up in really good spaces ... and to represent myself, my whanau and my community, and also New Zealand as a whole, and Maori at that, you know, it’s huge, it is really huge."
She had about 24 hours to pay a $770 registration fee, so pushed her Rongoa Maori products, which she makes and sells as part of her Te Huna Ora business, on social media.
"[I] managed to probably get the best sales I’ve ever had in that small amount of time, so it’s amazing what a bit of hard work and pressure can do," she said, laughing.
She had set up a fundraising page to help raise $7000 for the trip, and had events planned in Queenstown and in Dunedin.
"It’s really important to me that I can be a part of this kaupapa," she said.
