On Thursday evening, Commercial Bay’s annual Solstice celebration kicked off with a showstopping runway show curated and styled by New Zealand creative Sammy Salsa.
A sea of New Zealand creatives, tastemakers and fashion industry insiders descended on the precinct to usher in a new season of fashion, with the evening beginning over cocktails and canapés in the Little Queen laneway before guests took their seats.
Then it was time for the main event as the Bay’s ground-floor laneway was transformed into an open-air runway, shining a spotlight on the new-season collections from the precinct’s local and international designers. Think, Zambesi, Juliette Hogan, Oroton, Coach and more. Adding to the electric atmosphere, legendary New Zealand DJ P Money set the vibe, with a set that created the perfect fusion of fashion and music.
Stylist Sammy Salsa said his inspiration for this year’s runway began in-store, working directly with each individual brand. His first thought? How to elevate each piece and create a memorable moment during its appearance on the runway.
“I looked at the different patterns, textures and shapes that were in-store to create a cohesiveness to the collections as a whole but also made sure to keep the integrity of the brand and their identities true to who they are,” said Salsa.
That meant finding common ground between labels that, at first glance, might occupy very different fashion worlds. For athleisure brands such as Lululemon and LSKD, Salsa looked for ways to elevate familiar sportswear silhouettes into a more high-fashion realm, allowing them to sit seamlessly alongside the likes of Zambesi and Coach without losing their individual identity. The challenge, he says, was striking the right balance between commercial retail, high fashion and personal style.
That sense of individuality carried through to the beauty direction, too. For the hair, Newton Cook, Creative Director at Rodney Wayne, wanted a look that complemented rather than competed with the clothes. The result was a mix of envy-inducing blow outs and sleek, subtly textured buns, personalised to each model.
“I’m loving the homage to a lot of 90s fashion in today’s looks, so I wanted to channel a bit of that with a deep side part,” explained Cook. “I still wanted this look to have a modern, elegant feel, by keeping it sleek with a bit of texture, but still glossy, gives the hair trends of gloss and health their shining moment.”
For Salsa, much of the joy of styling Solstice came from the sheer breadth of inspiration on offer, with Commercial Bay’s extensive mix of brands providing endless possibilities to experiment with styling and push the boundaries of personal style.
“What I want to portray with this year’s show is the fantasy of dressing and how that is achievable in the real world. Like I’ve always said – Fashion should be fun, whatever style you roll with!”
Want to experience the Solstice runway for yourself? The Bay’s laneway will be turned into a runway again at 1pm on Saturday 26 September and will be open for the public to watch for free from Levels One and Two of the precinct.
