MARVELOUS MOUNT LAWLEY

Located a stone’s throw from the city, Mt Lawley is one of Perth’s most vibrant suburbs, home to numerous boutiques, restaurants, cafes and bars.

INSCENTED

On cold wintery nights there’s something very satisfying about filling a room with warm candle light and sweet scents, but having an exposed flame or oil burner can pose problems for those with curious children or pets.

TALL POPPY SYNDROME

All too often, talented West Australian designers decide to pack up their possessions and move over east but not so for Poppy Lissiman, a local, emerging designer who is as passionate about Perth as she is about her label. A Perth girl born and bred, Lissiman launched her self titled label back in November 2008, and since then, she has delivered beautiful collection after beautiful collection.

Lissiman hasn’t always designed for women, revealing that her first foray in design catered more for felines than females.

“My mum taught me to sew when I was about ten; I started off making tiny quilts for cats (laughs) and when I was 13 I became a lot more interested in clothes, so I started making my own.”

A self taught designer, Lissiman is adamant about keeping all of the behind-the-scenes aspects of her business within WA, including the design and manufacturing of every garment.

“All of my manufacturing is done here in Perth and I expect to keep it that way. I want that to be part of the label’s ethos. [A lot of designers have their garments made in Indonesia and] you hear horror stories of people ripping off designs and when you pay people peanuts to work for you, you’re going to get crap.

“It is expensive to have stuff made here in Perth, it’s not cheap at all, but I find the quality is better. I like being able to finish a day’s work then drive to my manufacturer’s house and oversee what’s going on and if there’s something I’m not happy with, it’s easy to send back. If you want to get your designs made off-shore, you really have to be there 24/7 for quality control.

So no plans to move the label inter state or overseas?

“In the last two years I’ve been working towards getting the fit of the clothes right, finding good manufacturers, finding good pattern graders – all these things that I thought would be so easy but they take time. I had to find the right people to do everything because I don’t want to show at events without being entirely confident in the quality of my clothing. At the moment my focus is getting all the right people in the right places.

“Just finding the right people has taken me this long and I’m really happy with the people who do all my sewing and stuff but it’s taken me over a year to find them and the thought of going some place else where I don’t know anyone and I have to start from scratch would be too hard. I love it here in Perth and I think for now, I am very happy to continue working here. I think Perth is really under rated in terms of fashion; there’s a lot of talent out there and it’s a shame when you keep seeing them move over East!”

Featuring modern silhouettes with striking patterned fabrics, Lissiman’s designs appeal to women who don’t want to blend in to the crowd, and aren’t afraid of lashings of colour.

“I source my fabrics from Italy and China; I love digital prints and they’re really on trend at the moment. You can get away with quite simple silhouettes when there’s such an amazing print. In my last few collections I’ve found that my prints are the best sellers. I love prints and colour and I think digital printing is the way of the future.”

With her designs already stocked at Zara Bryson (Subiaco), Method Clothing (Mt Lawley) and Brownies (Claremont), Lissiman is slowly but surely raising the profile of her fantastic label. One can only wonder what great things lie ahead for talented young designer.

_EMMA BERGMEIER

UP THE ANT!

If you love designer labels but loathe designer price tags then chances are you’ll be pleased to hear that West Australian purveyors of style, Ant!pod¡um, are holding a massive sale this Sunday, May 30. Taking place at Unit 7/3 Pakenham Street in Fremantle from 10am ’til 4pm, the sale will offer shoppers the chance to take home beautiful garments from the Ab-Fab collection at cut-price costs. Be there or be sartorially square.