Ana Steele's ANZFW debut was a raging success, with front row V.I.P.'s loving her pretty grunge vibe. We saw funky fresh dresses and comfy-looking separates strut down the catwalk, accessorised with flying helmets and ‘take-no-prisoners’ black leather bondage gloves.
Ana's collection 'How to Become a Muse - the Story of Lil' tells the fantastically wacky tale of a latex-clad-ballet-dancing dolly called Lil. [You can hear Ana explain Lil's story in our video on the previous page]. A beautiful video of Lil opened the show, along with the metal / fairy-tale sounds of a song mixed exclusively for Ana's show by local band Battle Circus.
The collection’s purple, grey and black colour palette included prints of Lil on dresses and hoodies. However Ana's strong point was her floaty dresses, which were glam but somehow casual at the same time. The bodices fitted perfectly then flowed into roomy dresses with big feature pockets.
I adored her evening overalls which left no room for playful games. Oh no, these were tight, sexy grown-up overalls in a dark, shiny fabric. But best of all was Ana's 'Pretty Heavy Metal' skirt, a very hot acid wash black and white look that I want to wear right now!
Ana showed her imagination has no boundaries; her pieces all had colourful names such as 'Death Trap Culottes' and 'Dumpster Divin Tee'. Apparently Lil was a busy dolly and Ana was a busy designer! She may not have won the $10,000 grant from Verge but she definitely gets our vote.