The perennially chic Carla Zampatti is an Australian fashion icon. The designer, best known for her elegant eveningwear, created her first collection in 1965 and Carla Zampatti remains one of Australia’s most wanted labels.
At this year’s Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Australia, Carla Zampatti’s runway show was the opening event, and we were thrilled to sit down and chat with the designer before the show.
From Businesswoman of the Year, to winner of the Australian Fashion Laureate and Member of the Order of Australia, Carla Zampatti has received many honours during her illustrious career, but was still thrilled to be opening fashion week. ‘It’s so exciting,’ said the designer. ‘It really was such a thrill to be asked.’
The mother of three (including fellow fashion designer Bianca Spender) created a collection for the 2014 show that was as exciting as ever. ‘We’re going to see very beautiful garments, naturally,’ said Zampatti of the collection. ‘Some will be simple and strong and there will be a body emphasis, and others will be romantic and quite feminine and ethereal.’
But what makes her designs remain so popular, and why do women continue to wear her dresses season after season? ‘It’s a compliment, that women can’t bare to throw things out that they’ve bought from me,’ says Carla Zampatti.
‘After ten years, they’ll wear them, and they’re almost embarrassed when they see me, that they’re wearing something that I know has been around a while, and they say ‘it mixes with other things that I’ve bought from you, and it really enables me to have maximum results with minimum expense.’
We couldn’t sit down with Carla Zampatti without asking for her golden rule for dressing stylishly. ‘Buy quality, would be my advice. Simply because you will feel better in it, and it will last longer, and you will look better.’
Watch our full Carla Zampatti interview in the video below:
