In 1996, a collaborative vision brought two designers, Joy Liakis and Natalie Fowler together during their studies in Fashion Design at RMIT and McCabe Academy.
United in their love of historical design and modern innovative fashion, (they were especially inspired by the art of corsetry), the duo embarked on a wonderful journey across 17 years under their own vintage-inspired label, Vicious Venus.
The girls are passionate about empowering women of all ages to enhance their own natural beauty with the best of vintage styling. Specialising in sophisticated classic clothing they are committed to creating original vintage inspired contemporary dresses, corsets and separates that celebrate the female form.
Dedicated to reviving the golden age of Hollywood glamour when curves were not a sin, Vicious Venus designs are always flattering, feminine and honour a woman’s independent spirit which never goes out of style!
We took five with the Vicious Venus designers to talk inspiration, the story behind the name, and exhibiting the range at upcoming Fashion Exposed Melbourne.
Where do you source your inspiration? And how do they drive you and influence your design?
Old Hollywood films and glamour, vintage clothing and images we’ve collected over the years. Looking back over the ground breaking designers like Chanel, Dior, Vionnet, Balenciaga, Mugler, Galliano, Gaultier, Westwood… I could go on!
The intricacy of design and detail of past fashions is inspiring in itself and translating that into more wearable fashion for today is very rewarding. The availability today of high quality innovative stretch fabrics also greatly influences the execution of our work.
How do you transfer these inspirations into design? Talk us through your design process from drawing board to in-store/online?
Inspiration is a maddening muse! Often I find myself suddenly awake at 3am reaching for the sketch pad beside my bed to capture an idea before it vanishes in the cold hard light of day! Both Natalie and I live and breathe each one of our designs. Vintage market hunts are a favourite and a treasure trove of inspiration, along with something as simple as the colour palette of an Autumn day or a beautiful fabric which can dictate the evolution of a design.
We always begin with a sketch and if we are particularly lucky, a special vintage piece to draw inspiration from. We then take into consideration the demands of a day in our modern life and create our designs to make them wearable yet still retaining a high level of detail.
Drafting a pattern, we make a garment toile. And from here it is altered for fit and style until we are satisfied with the final product. Our tailor then manufactures our samples so we can finalise production. Manufacturing a small run, we then test the reaction of the public in the store.
Can you tell us the story behind the name?
All those years ago, our passion revolved around a merging of traditional corsetry and punk ideals and so the vision of Vicious Venus was born. As we have evolved so has the concept.
It invokes images of strength as well as classical beauty, which pretty sums up our philosophy.
You will exhibit the brand at Fashion Exposed trade event, why did you choose this event and what do you hope to gain? Tell us what visitors can expect to see when visiting your stand.
We chose Fashion Exposed because we believe it is the best forum to showcase our work to the appropriate audience: buyers serious about stocking classic, quality pieces in small runs. As we appeal to up market boutiques, Fashion Exposed is the most appropriate exhibition to attract these buyers.
We have visited the trade show in past years buying for our boutique and have always been impressed by the high quality of exhibitors involved. We hope to gain more stockists with the aim of inspiring women to embrace their curves and look stunning in our vintage inspired clothing.
Without giving too much away, we have a beautiful stand planned, it will be a stage to show off our garments to their utmost potential with a touch of 50’s whimsy!
What’s in store for the future – where do you see the brand heading?
We love what we do and the source of our inspiration is endless. Our classic styles make up the core of our product range, but as we inject new designs into the catalogue every quarter you can expect a plethora of new designs every year.
We aim to clothe women of all sizes and currently our range goes up to size 22. Our customers LOVE this as the dresses not only fit, but flatter.
We eventually plan to broaden our range to include more cots, suits and tailored pieces in keeping with our classic styling. Upwards and onwards!
View the Vicious Venus collection on stand 3318 during Fashion Exposed from 25-27 August at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre.
For more information visit, fashionexposed.com