The Mina Obom Blazer and Mali Pant
Today at 5 pm fashion fans all over the country are stopping and shopping from 5 pm to midnight at togethertoday.co.nz, celebrating the best of what New Zealand fashion has to offer.
We profile two New Zealand designers in support of Together Today, Natalie Procter of Mina and Caitlin Crisp from her namesake brand.
Like most designers around the country, for Mina the COVID-19 lockdown was terrible timing. They had just launched their long-awaited winter collection ‘Walking The Bushveld’ which they showed at their New Zealand Fashion Week debut in 2019.
Natalie is proud that Mina is a part of Together Today; “now more than ever we need to come together as an industry and unite. And what better than some hot deals from your favourite NZ designers…as NZ made often comes with a high price tag, I see this evening maybe being a more accessible way to support your local designers.”
Mina’s ethos is about being thoughtful with purchasing choices and making and investing in quality pieces. Mina supports the local manufacturing industry, putting community before profit and mass production. This comes with its challenges. Natalie says “our numbers per style are small so until you are producing larger quantities per style the production cost remains high. In terms of fabric, as a brand that is committed to using only pure fabrics we are quite limited to the offering that is available here in NZ”.
For Caitlin Crisp, the lockdown has also posed several challenges, but she’s been able to take some time out to reflect on how the rest of 2020 will look. She is grateful to be young in her career, allowing her to adapt quickly to the COVID-19 situation.
Innovation in fashion is everything, and Caitlin sold a selection of curated patterns during the lockdown. The idea came about after growing a following of aspiring designers from her time on Project Runway. She receives a lot of messages asking how to start, and Caitlin always responds with “construction and patternmaking skills”. “There’s no point in drawing a pretty dress if you can’t make it or explain to someone else how to make it”.
Caitlin has also partnered with Designer Wardrobe in the name of circular fashion, where you can rent from a selection of Caitlin Crisp dresses exclusive to the platform.
We ask Caitlin what we can expect from Caitlin Crisp for the Together Today shopping night tonight, and she says to get our season one wishlist ready!
To shop with Together Today, head to togethertoday.co.nz from 5 pm to midnight tonight.