Pacific Resort Wear Show 2017

The much anticipated for Pacific Resort Wear Show opened Fiji Fashion Weeks 10th anniversary on quite a high note. From my "I'm not attending this year" to "OMG what do I wear" attitude, I was gifted Row A tickets by a dear friend who insisted I attend. And luckily I did. While getting my brows drawn and my lashes 'fleekin' up to the heavens, I started feeling nervous for no reason. It was so weird how Fashion Week has arrived and not a bit of me was stressing out. And then it finally hit me. Since 2013 I've always been blogging for the platform. I'm talking 250 words in real-time for an average of 4-5 designers per night. I'm talking Snapchats and Instagram to even Facebook coverage (so hectic, I know) . So if that was 'standard' for about 4 years, then you can imagine what tonight must have felt like for me. One word - FREE. I'm not saying it was a bad thing being tasked with a workload of things, it was an absolute game-changer for me and a learning experience too. But this is really it. No more 'shackles' and stressful nights trying to meet deadlines. I pleased myself what I wanted to post, where I wanted to post and how I wanted to post it. It felt so good to finally focus on THREE GOOD LANE for once. Okay now back to the show. So you know how on the radio and TV ads you'd hear "bigger and better year"? I think tonight's designers brought it bigger and better then ever. It was a plethora of talent, style, trend and creativity all in one night. It was a playground for creative ideas and Pacific fashion and I am so happy with what most of the designers put out. It's been a long time coming since we had designer reps from our neighbouring Tonga and Solomon Islands. PNGs Sarah Todd was back again paying homage to her country through her designs and colour choices. It felt like the South Pacific was present at the Arena last night. Out of all, I had my eyes hooked on three designers especially. Their designs were close to perfection for me. Their story was evident through the flow of their collection on the runway and each piece came to life. They kept it trendy and at times leaned more towards an Avant Garde look, but they still aced it and it was as every bit of entertaining as it was fashionable. 1. Kini Zamora Just WOW! It's almost as if I was watching a show in New York. But what more could I say? Kini is an established designer and comes from a family of seamstresses and who also was a finalist on the TV show Project Runway. He closed the show with such class and elegance mixing formal flow with a bit of side-walk fashion. I spotted little leafy motifs printed on most of his flowy maxi skirts layered with tutus and more fabric. Kini accessorised using long fluffy mink tags with oversized cardigans, caps and tassel details. A definite NEED.

2. Haus of Koila

What better way to open a show like this but with some traditional Fijian chants and Fijian warriors seated along the runway to welcome the models. Koilas collection had to be a part of my top picks because of her eye for detail. She emphasised dramatically on shimmer and lace accents and went straight into detail with her unique cuts and fine weaving incorporated in a few of her pieces. Very great opening for a show!

3. DMF - Dane Fabricius Well Talofa Samoa! DMF didn't have to try to get my attention. It was all theirs the minute their first piece was on the catwalk. Shells and sequins over netting and feather details was what the opening gown was all about. What followed was literally the icing on the cake. There was a whole range of trendy cuts and his signature prints splashed across kaftans and gowns. Beautiful colour choices as well. If he's an emerging designer in Samoa, he's without a doubt an established designer in Fiji. Great job DMF.

It was a great start to the show nights and I can only imagine how exciting Friday and Saturdays shows would be.

As promised on my Instagram upload lastnight, I'd go into detail with you on my #OOTD (outfit of the day) from yesterday's show.

Just like last nights collections, my entire outfit was a mix and match of labels. From the high-end to the op-shops. I wore a Zara trench over a plain white T which was $6 at Kmart. Grey tight jeans ($15 at Kmart) accessorised with Payless brown pointed shoes, a vintage leather bag, jewellery from Colette and Prada clear granny-glasses. It was fun trying to get the pieces together.

This was my first time going to Fashion Week in a very minimal ensemble. There was nothing extra. Just black, whites and grey with a touch of metallics.