Award winning Australian designer Kristy Lawrence has always had a definite design ethos and in her new label, Flannel, has found the perfect medium to translate her vision into a signature range of fashion and home wares.
A designer who is happier on the beach with her children than on the runway for her latest collection, her signature Flannel label is about lifestyle, about family, about effortless elegance and pared back style.
Summers spent growing up on the beaches south of the Western Australian capital of Perth, instilled an early appreciation for comfort, for simple luxury and natural beauty, which is very much reflected in her choice of fabrics and materials and in her desire to create a lifestyle range that is as relaxed and effortless as it is beautiful.
In 2007 Kristy began her new “family” business and was joined by sisters Brooke, Anna and Cath, who added their expertise in sales, marketing and production.
The success of the initial capsule Flannel collection combining luxury with casual. fine silks with lace trims, slips and shorts in embroidered cottons and delicate hand knits in a palette of milk and cream, was immediate.
Two Flannel concept stores opened in Perth in 2007 in quick succession to meet growing consumer demand and were followed earlier his year by the opening of a Sydney flagship store in the boutique village of Woollahra.
Each store is unique and housed variously in an old art gallery, corner store and butcher shop and with their white washed walls and vintage architectural flair, they reflect Flannel’s chic bohemian personality.
The Flannel collection is showcased alongside Kristy’s personal selection of homewares sourced from around the globe .
The Flannel 2009/10 Summer collection was previewed at the Rosemount Australian Fashion Week in Sydney in May where the positive reaction was instantaneous.
Flannel stood out immediately in an industry full of imitation and mass production with its hand crafted focus and attention to fine detail, with inspiration drawn not from following others but from a woman glimpsed in the street, a look, a gesture, a vision.
The Western Australian born label was catapulted into the spotlight after being awarded Fashion Week’s Rising Rock Star by celebrity designer Alex Perry and an international panel of fashion designers and judges.
Perry and the judging panel were impressed by the label’s understated European styling and high production values declaring “that was so beautiful, so beautifully put together, that we thought we can't leave it in Australia, it is export quality fashion that is incredible for the Australian market”.
Kristy returned from an extremely successful trip to the US in September this year with Agency and PR representation, floor space in Fred Segal Fun and an invitation to show as a premier designer at Coterie in New York.
From its earliest incarnation Flannel has been about creating and sharing the things Kristy loves to have
around her.
