Local design label An Ode to No One has taken out the top prize at the 2011 Chambord Shine Awards today, following a stylish award ceremony at Sydney's QVB Tea Room.
The competition, which saw Chambord partner with fast-fashion chain Seduce and Toni & Guy hairdressers, aims to support emerging Australian design talent and asked the five finalist designers to construct a garment which would embody Chambord, Seduce and their target customer.
Guests were treated to Chambord-inspired cocktails, canapes and a two-course menu, and were asked to vote for their favourite design via iPad, following a live catwalk show of the creations by An Ode to No One and fellow finalists Saint Augustine Academy, Elliot Ward-Fear, Tali Roth and Tato and Memi.
As the overall winner, An Ode to No One will receive a mentorship with Seduce to have its dress produced and sold through Seduce stores nationally in September 2011. The launch will be celebrated with cocktail party at Seduce’s flagship Ivy store in Sydney, and the label will also have its own personally designed window displays throughout Seduce stores for a full month.
Hosted by media maven Melissa Hoyer, the award luncheon also provided an opportunity for the fashion industry to gather under one roof to celebrate the next generation of designers, with Peter Morrissey, Gracie Otto, Alyssa McClelland, Charlotte Gregg, Didier Cohen, Joe Farage, Bruno Schiavi, and inaugural award winner Carl Kapp in attendance.
An Ode to No One is the creation of designer and director Adi Setiadi, who describes the label's target market as a woman who is confident, intelligent, and strong; always well-presented, feminine and beautiful.
Setiadi studied at Sydney's Whitehouse School of Design, and worked for Akira Isogawa from 2002-2004, before gaining a position as head designer for Nicola Finetti's diffusion label 'Nylon Flocks' from 2004-2008.
An Ode to No One's autumn/winter 2011 collection “Evidence of Evolution”, which drew inspiration and motivation from Charles Darwin’s theories on evolution, used 3D digital printing on fabrics, producing one of Australia's very first 3D collections.