BEACH.

LAMINGTONS. (raw!)

/Vogue Australia & Sadhana Kitchen 

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An unlikely source of inspiration helped make the Ellery show stand out at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia.

Kym Ellery’s guilt over discarding a soft toy from her childhood, a bear named Delicatessen, was the driving force behind the collection, according to the show notes.

Apart from Mickey Mouse-style silver ear headbands, one could hardly tell - the inspiration was subtle, but clearly inspired Ellery in all the right places. Fabrics were folded unexpectedly to give the gentle impression of a tummy while boldly rounded shoulders took their cues from the cuddliness of a bear to give tailored pieces a sense of intrigue.

The result was a collection that was directional and sophisticated, not saccharine, as nostalgia-inspired collections can sometimes be. Perhaps the guilt played into it? Whatever the case, the show was certainly a stand-out in a week of Not Another Floral Print. I asked Ellery to tell the full story after the show: 

So this resort 2012/13 collection was inspired by Delicatessen, your teddy bear. Can you tell me more? How old were you when you first got him/her?
Well he was one of a collection. I used to collect all these bears (which I haven’t really told anyone yet) and he was one of them and he was the one I saved up for the longest. I went on a trip when I was about 11 and purchased him.

What did he look like?
He was brown, and he was…. he was perfect. He had a pointy nose.

Aw. Where did the name Delicatessen come from?
There’s a famous bear named Delicatessen and I was so into him at a young age that I named him after the famous bear Delicatessen.

Oh! I’m a big bear person too but I didn’t know that. So what, when you were 18, you just thought ‘time to move on’?
Well I just went through a phase of cleaning out my life, I’d just moved to Sydney from Perth and tossed everything out. I was heartbroken.