It's only fitting that the return of legendary fashion label Carla Zampatti to Australian Fashion Week should be on a runway named for the late, great designer.
Under new creative director Karlie Ungar, Carla Zampatti presented its Resort '25 collection at the event's opening night runway show in Sydney on Monday.
It's been four years since the label has shown at the biggest of Sydney's fashion events, and the hope is to catch the attention of global buyers.
"It's a milestone for the brand as we launch internationally," said the label's chief executive Alex Schuman, announcing the show earlier in 2024.
The catwalk models stepped out on the Carla Zampatti Runway, named as a tribute to the designer who died in April 2021.
The looks on show were so sophisticated, they were not so much a resort collection as one for a boardroom or glamorous cocktail party.
High necklines became a power dressing statement, along with bulky metallic bangles and earrings, not to mention vertiginous heels.
They featured across a slick procession of long-line belted gowns and separates, in olive green and mustard, azure, and glossy black.
The perfectly tailored layering of sheer fabrics was also on show across the collection, with several looks exposing gauzy skirts under long belted vests.
One standout was a goddess-like gown in buttery tones, constructed in cascading ruffles trailing to the ground.
Fans will be delighted that Carla Zampatti is back at Fashion Week, with Ungar's designs retaining the spirit of the label that has dressed generations of Australian women.
Carla Zampatti was a single mother who built a business from scratch, despite the bank refusing her loan application after she got divorced.
She established her eponymous fashion label in 1965, forging a path for women in business.
