Fashion Week: NZ's annual frock-fest

Fashion Week has helped New Zealand designers gain recognition both nationally and internationally. Photo / Martin Sykes

Champagne at dusk, blow-waves at dawn, ah yes it's Fashion Week again, replete with celebrities, wannabes and, of course, the frocks.

For many attending, the clothes are strictly an after-thought, except for the weeks of anguished cries of "what am I going to wear".

The hot-ticket today is an invite to Moet & Chandon's Be Fabulous drinkies before the official evening opening of the Air New Zealand-sponsored event.

All Black pinup and fashion shop owner Dan Carter is coming - again.

Things French obviously agree with him, and now it seems he's learned the value of being a luxury brand ambassador.

Apparently he may have a couple of other All Blacks in tow, let's hope they all lay off the bubbles until after the World Cup. (And please come dressed by Gas rather than in the team sponsor's gear).

New faces in the hardy annual crowd of designers, media, PR people and fashion industry types are always a welcome distraction.

The week's main eye-catcher, Pamela Anderson, doesn't jet in until Thursday.

Another old rock chick is already in town, with Rachel Hunter's people ringing round to borrow a dress to a charity do she's attending this week. Guess the Warehouse range wasn't ready.

Hunter did provide us with a Fashion Week highlight a few years back, and no I'm not talking about the launch of her swimwear range, but the photo-op that shows a supermodel when she scrubs up, will always look better than C-list celebs who do a bit of modelling.

For all the bitchy remarks, Fashion Week has a remarkable degree of camaraderie, for this is a small town after all. (As certain rugby players would appreciate, what goes on tour largely stays on tour).

Most in the industry recognise the week has given a tough business a touch of glamour and a much higher profile.

Scores of stylists, makeup artists and hairdressers have honed their skills in the pressure-cooker atmosphere backstage, readying hundreds of models for the runway.

I'm cynical about some of the claims about business generated and the value of media coverage, but there's no doubting that in the last nine years we've had our annual frock-fest, New Zealanders have added fashion patriotism to our national pedigree.

Of course, there was a local industry before Fashion Week, indeed it thrived before manufacturing largely moved offshore, but too often it looked overseas for design inspiration.

Those original early designers also dressed the socialites of their time, but in a less celebrity-obsessed world their name recognition was much less.

Now the designers themselves can end up on magazine covers.

Celebrities proudly proclaim they're wearing Trelise or Kate, First Kid Steffi Key chose Karen Walker for her dad's debut as PM, and All Black Ali Williams played a curious bit part at last year's Huffer show.

Today the circus begins again.

Cheers Moet for your little soiree adding much needed fizz before the obligatory speeches extol the industry.

Personally, I'll miss Helen Clark, whose cheerleading for the creative sector managed to elevate the opening event from prettily dressed trade show to grand cultural outreach, which is what us frock fans like to think fashion really is.

We want to be transported - so would you too if you had to stand around in heels in a warehouse in Grey Lynn until the wee small hours (that's tonight's installation by Lonely Hearts - it better be good, I forgot to stock up on Party Feet for my shoes).

For the hangers on, the week is about free drinks, people watching, and the hope of scoring a goody bag or three. (A front row friend of mine still cringes about the year she was caught on TV rifling through a bag, without the chance to explain she was looking for the show running sheet not a freebie).

Bad news for the liggers, there's a recession out there and while everyone pretends it's business as usual down at the Viaduct, expect a bit less loot and some scaled-back shows.

Still, credit where credit's due: against the economic odds there's a decent turnout of all but a few of our top names, plus some innovations like the Diet Cola Little Black Dress Show, which lines-up leading Australian and New Zealand designers for their take on that indispensable wardrobe classic.

There's also the chance to see what the city's most fashionable types actually wear in the real world, as many have volunteered for a five-hour stint on a building site, with a Habitat for Humanity house being erected outside the venue before it is moved to a section for a family in need.

For the public, unless you're a VIP client, or have industry or sponsor connections, your best ticket to the weekday invite-only shows is right here at nzherald.co.nz, in the daily paper and in Viva on Wednesday.

We've been covering Fashion Week since it began and will give you the inside word.

Fashion WeekEND (Friday 6pm - midnight and Saturday 10am - 9pm) is your chance to join the fun in person, to take in a show and do a little shopping.

The Herald Designer Garage Sale is the place to bag a bargain. For details see nzfashionweek.co.nz.