Melbourne Mania

On a recent trip to Melbourne, I made it my mission to finally discover just how good Melbourne shopping really is.  Word on the street is that Melbourne is the fashion capital of Australia..  

Chapel Street and Toorak Road 

I was fortunate to stay in South Yarra, right near Toorak Road and Chapel Street!  Melbourne is renowned for Chapel Street, not only as a place to shop, but as a place to be seen. (Yes I was fortunate to see the crew from Neighbours!) Chapel Street consists of amazing cafes and gorgeous shops.  This includes the original flagship Bettina Liano boutique, Sass and Bide, a two level spectacular Kookai boutique, a Tony Bianco store (which you cannot find in Sydney), Wittner, a massive Country Road, two Sportsgirls, Alannah Hill, Witchery and the list continues!  Chapel Street to me is the equivalent of Paddington.  However, Paddington has more shops, whereas Chapel Street has more cafes and has the 'social' scene. And Toorak Road, the place with exclusive, up-market boutiques, consisting of high end international designers.

The original flagship Bettina Liano boutique on Chapel Street

Level 2 of the Kookai store on Chapel Street

The City 

I loved Melbourne's City that much, I went back for a second time!  Whilst Sydney has the amazing new Mid City Centre, Strand Arcade, QVB and Galleries Victoria, Melbourne has Collins Street, Little Collins Street, Arcades, Lanes, Centres and the list continues.  Starting with Collins Street.. the street with the International Designers including Chanel and one of two Tiffany and Co stores in Melbourne. 

The Tiffany and Co store on Collins Street

Little Collins Street...the street with the local designers such as yes another Bettina Liano boutique! 

Bettina Liano boutique on Little Collins Street

Bourke Street... Centrepoint Mall which is pretty much the equivalent of Pitt Street Mall in Sydney.  This is where Myer originates from, not to mention a huge David Jones and retail stores like Sportsgirl, Forever New and the list continues!  This then joins and leads us to Lonsdale Street which consists of Melbourne Central another amazing shopping centre. 

Myer and David Jones on Bourke Street

Sportsgirl on Bourke Street

But.. of course you knew I'd leave the best place for last....the corner of Bourke Street and Elizabeth Street..Melbourne's GPO!  I entered Melbourne's fashion heaven!  This is an exquisite federation building with never ending Australian designers...Zimmermann, Sass and Bide, Wayne Cooper, Lisa Ho, Willow, Manning Cartell, Akira....it was a place I will never forget!   What I also love about Melbourne's City are the little arcades and lanes, which consist of the cutest little cafes and stores. 

The corridor to fashion heaven!

The Zimmermann boutique - GPO

The Akira display - GPO

Richmond      

Bridge Street Melbourne... The outlet shopping place, which consisted of pretty much every retail store you can think of.  Witchery, Country Road, Bardot, Sportsgirl... Definitely a must in outlet shopping.

Chadstone

I'm guessing you were all waiting for Chadstone!  Pretty much the biggest shopping centre in Australia.  It reminds of Sydney's Chatswood and Bondi Junction.  What I love about Chadstone is the size of the stores and the 'areas.'  The biggest Witchery store I have ever seen.  When I mean areas, I mean stores are segmented according to their target market.  There is an area for Australian designers such as Bettina Liano, Zimmermann and Lisa Ho, another area for international designers such as Prada, Chanel and the second Tiffany and Co and another area for retail stores such as Witchery, Sportsgirl and Kookai. 

The entrance to the Sportsgirl (The size and detailing of just Sportsgirl is amazing!)

What to look out for!  

Tilkah, Tilkah, Tilkah!!! Why does Sydney not have one of these stores?  It reminds me of Mimco, but better!  Gorgeous and feminine bags and amazing jewellery.. I visited everyone of these stores and had to resist buying the whole store.  Every time I head to Melbourne, I head straight to Tilkah.  Where can you find Tilkah?  One on Chapel Street, Chadstone, and Melbourne Central.

Tilkah store Chadstone

Green With Envy.... If you love Australian designers then you will love Green with Envy.  Pretty much any Australian designer you can think of.. Rachel Gilbert, Nicola Finetti, Dion Lee... I loved this store and we need one in Sydney!  Where can you find it?  There are only two stores, Bridge Street Richmond and Flinders Lane in the City. 

Green with Envy on Bridge Street

Green with Envy on Flinders Lane

Feeling a little hungry after all that shopping?  Be sure to check out Laurent Boulangerie Patisserie, especially if you are like me and have a sweet tooth!

The Crown...  This place is its own little city.  Restaurants, bars, pokies, nightclubs and another whole area of shopping!!

The Trams.. Don't catch a cab or train, get on a tram for the ultimate Melbourne shopping experience!

What I love about Melbourne's shopping, is that I always find what I want!  Half the time I'm shopping at the same stores I shop at in Sydney, but in Melbourne I find everything.  The size and architecture of the stores is exquisite, not forgetting to mention the quantity of stock.  I finally purchased the Ellery jacket, I've looked everywhere for!  A shopping experience in Melbourne is definitely a must! 

Fashion Weekend Sydney

The fashion frenzy ended with Shop Til You Drop's Fashion Weekend Sydney.  The last time I attended Fashion Weekend Sydney was back when it very first started about three years ago.  Since then it has evolved dramatically!  They have definitely become a lot more popular.  The best way to describe Shop til You Drop's Fashion Weekend is basically shop till you literally drop.  What started as a few hours ended in a whole day! Did I mention that the clothing was discounted?! Included with the never ending shopping was a catwalk show to completely tempt everyone to shop even more!  The catwalk shows were on the hour and included collections by Lucette, This is Genevieve, Fleur Wood, Hussy, Laurence Pasquier, Muccia, Shakuhachi, Little Joe Woman, Life with Bird, Camilla and of course the one and only Nicola Finetti.  The collections were supported by models from Vivien's Model Management, Make Up by NP Set, Hair by Toni and Guy, Nails by Essie and Shoes by Peeptoe.  Other designer stores included designers such as Ellery, Marnie Skillings, Maurie and Eve (where I bought a cute little dress), Ginger and Smart, Bracewell, Shona Joy, Seventh Wonderland, as well as my friends from Fashion Forward Weekend, the guys from Flipsters!  I love how there was a combination of established designers as well as new comers.

And if you got tired of shopping (that's impossible, well for me anyway!), you could sit back for a beauty makeover, get your hair styled, your nails done, have your photo taken, place yourself on the cover of Shop Til You Drop or just sit back and relax at the cafe or the Tempus Two Bar.  You were pretty much pampered to the max and well who wouldn't enjoy a day like that!  One of my favourite parts was the Shop Til You Drop Fashion Clinic.  Here you were given the chance to meet the Shop Til You Drop team, in which they gave advice regarding the seasons trends (yes I already knew the trends, but I love listening to the best and their interpretations).  The Fashion Clinic also included a Make Up Masterclass, Hair trends from the runway and designer interviews.  You could even purchase the latest Shop Til You Drop magazine at a cheaper price.  (Unfortunately this had to be the one issue I assisted on through work experience at Shop Til You Drop)  Apparently there was even a Nintendo stand to entertain all the male companions.  I didn't know about this, it took a male friend of mine to inform me.   

Shop Til You Drop's Fashion Weekend Sydney pretty much covered everything and gave everyone the knowledge and tools to cover them from this upcoming, cold, more like freezing, winter season.  I think the only thing that annoyed everyone was the payment system for purchases.  While the payment booths seemed like a good idea with regards to consistency, it became really frustrating!  Comparing the last time I went with this time, yes they have gone above and beyond, but I miss the goodie bags!  The one with the Shop Til You Drop Magazines and other ACP Magazines.  But what Fashionista wouldn't want to attend Fashion Weekend!  They are normally on about twice a year, so be sure to check out the next one!

The runway show

The Tony and Guy Styling

A few of the stores

 The Fashion Clinic with Shop Til You Drop's Editor and Fashion Editor

La la la, we love designer!

Designer Kym Ellery, is now stocking a limited edition line of her brand Ellery at Sportsgirl.  The collection is exclusive to Sportsgirl Bondi Junction, the City and also available online. The collection is edgy, fun, and wild with crazy animal prints!  I can't help but crush on a few of her numbers!

ROSEMOUNT UPDATE: Bloggers Susie of Style Bubble (www.stylebubble.co.uk) and Tommy of JakandJil (www.jakandjil.com) are set to attend Rosemount Fashion Week!  Even more exciting, Tim Blanks of www.style.com will be reporting on Rosemount Fashion Week.  Style.com is a renowned fashion website which features massive International fashion events and now Australia's very own fashion week will be featured!