item details
Arlo Edwards; graphic designer; 2005; Wellington
Overview
Debutante glamour meets sporting practicality
This singlet and skirt are from Laurie Foon's Miss Mary Marle collection. For the collection, Foon combined aspects of debutante glamour, such as decorative bows, with sporting style garments and fabrics such as singlets, netball skirts, grey marle knit and cotton eyelet fabric.
Throughout her career, Foon, the founder and head designer of the Laurie Foon and Starfish labels, commissioned designers to create unique prints for her collections. This singlet features a print by Arlo Edwards, a Wellington-based artist.
This actual ensemble was owned and worn by the designer, who was committed to making clothing for the New Zealand lifestyle.
'I walk to work, I cycle to work. I've always envisioned clothes having a look, but having a function about them'. Laurie Foon, 2009
Laurie FoonLaurie Foon founded Starfish in Wellington in 1993. From 2003 until 2009 she also produced an eponymous label -. She closed down her Laurie Foon label in order to focus on Starfish.
Throughout her career, Foon sought to take a sustainable and ethical approach to fashion, and to continue to make in New Zealand rather than off-shore. In 2007 Starfish became the first fashion company in New Zealand to receive an NZI National Sustainable Business Award for‘commitment to key sustainability goals, including energy, waste and transport issues as well as social responsibility and family friendly employment policies’. Where possible, Foon sourced locally-produced, organic fabrics, used dyeing and treatment processes that had a far lower environmental impact than the conventional alternatives textiles and used recycled elements such as belts and buttons. Aiming to be transparent, Starfish provided their clients with an eco-folder in all their stores which constained organic certifications, dying and printing standards and fabric information.
Starfish closed in 2013.