Retail therapy: Flying high in fashion

It's been a big week for Trelise Cooper and her staff. First, two huge shows at Fashion Week, followed by a night out in Wellington last Friday when three of her workroom staff enjoyed individual creative success at the World of Wearable Arts awards.

Rodney Leong's The Love of Icaruswon the event's supreme award. His giant disc-like garment, inspired by the moon, was made of more than 20,000 collar-stays.

Tracey Smith and her partner, Chris Koole, won the best illumination illusion award and Andrew Trott was a runner-up in the avant-garde section.

The team partied in Wellington, before Trelise returned to fashion duty on Saturday night at the Air New Zealand-sponsored Fashion Week's final event, the Westpac Red Collection.

This showing of work by five designers to a corporate audience ended with a mix-and-match styling session featuring five labels - Zambesi, Liz Mitchell, Huffer, Adrienne Winkelmann and Cooper.

It was the first time the designers have let their clothes be styled together.