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| ©SarahWhite |
We sat down to a warm latte on a chilly Saturday afternoon and Sarah, wearing an awesome fringed tee, admitted to me that it was given to her by her current intern label, Lee.
Born in a small country town 2 hours from Newcastle, Sarah moved to the Hunter region straight after finishing year 12. She completed her Diploma of Applied Fashion Design and before she knew it, was watching her own label showcased on the catwalk in front of 500 people - Go girl!
“I created my own label which is called 'Sarannie'. I’ll spell that out for you,” she laughed.
It’s not surprising that Sarah has found herself so involved in the industry so soon. She revealed to me that as a child, she would create dolls dresses by safety pinning material together and sketching designs in a book.
“One day my
best friend found it (the book) and said ‘Oh my god Sarah, these are really
good!’ She made me look into fashion and it all sort of spiralled from there,”
she said.
She even
admitted that she didn’t know how to sew before beginning her course here
in Newcastle. But of course she learnt fast!
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| One of Sarah's 'evening wear' pieces ©SarahWhite |
Through her course, she was given the opportunity to be an insider at this year’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, working as a volunteer. Each day at MBFW they’d be assigned to work either 'front' or 'back' of house. 'Front of house', they would set out goodie bags for all the biggest names in the industry, lay out name tags, usher guests into the show. 'Back of house' would involve steaming clothes and prepping the models for the show.
“Back of house is quite intense because the models obviously have quick changes... Front of house is a little bit more relaxed, but they’re both really fun,” she said.
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| One of three pieces from Sarah's 'A Golden State of Mind' Collection ©SarahWhite |
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| Two of three pieces in Sarah's 'A Golden State of Mind' Collection ©SarahWhite |
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| The third and final outfit in Sarah's 'A Golden State of Mind' collection ©SarahWhite |
I took the opportunity to speak to Sarah about her incredible label, ‘Sarannie’ and the three-piece summer collection she designed and showcased at the Newcastle town hall titled ‘A Golden State of Mind’.
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| Hunter Designers are showcased at Newcastle Town Hall - 'Sarannie' summer collection. ©SarahWhite |
“The nude, black
and white trends were really big at the time. I liked that but I wanted to put
my own little spin on it,” she said.
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| ©SarahWhite |
Before we wrapped up, I asked her 3 quick questions on clothes, working in the industry and advice for aspiring designers. Check it out:
1. What’s your favourite item of clothing that you own? – “I have this pair of Shakuhachi
shorts that I am in love with. I was wearing them yesterday, even though it was
so cold…” (We laughed about this for a while, I think we can all relate – How
many times have you ever worn a certain item merely because you love it?
Guilty!) “They’re silk, high waisted,
with a floral print.”
2. What are 5 items you couldn’t live
without? “Jeans,
shorts, a good coat - I recently bought this really good Anarak coat which is
good for anywhere - comfy tee shirts and a nice dress.”
3. If you had one message for someone wanting to get into the fashion
industry, what would it be? “Get ready to work really hard, because it is really, really hard work…
Don’t listen to people if they tell you not to do it... Just be creative and
work hard.”
Thanks to
the stunning Sarah White for letting us into her world as a fashion student and designer.
I'm sure we're going to see 'Sarannie' in stores in the future!
-
Mads
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