Expectations at NZ Fashion Week: Kahuria are high: staying stylish, unique and ensuring that your outfit bears a certain price tag. Yet for designers and brands, the real test comes after the show.
Auckland University's student magazine Craccum discusses maintaining that style and ethos beyond the runway through the timeless appeal of Nom*D's designs.
The trend cycle has become shorter than ever, making it difficult for designers to take creative risks without being labelled ‘cheugy’ in the not-so-distant future. This places minimalist fashion in a desirable position: block colours, simplified silhouettes and staple pieces can live in your wardrobe for years without running the risk of becoming outdated. With the rising popularity of sustainable fashion, this can seem like the only viable option – but also poses a risk to the creative capabilities of stylists and designers.
Walking the line between innovation and ethical design is an art, and here in New Zealand, we’re lucky enough to have multiple brands that have cracked the code. Curating a seamless blend of edge and wearability, Nom*D has been catering to the bold tastes of locals for decades.
As a long standing fixture in the local fashion landscape – it launched in 1986 – Nom*D has been able to reject microtrends while retaining its distinct aesthetic. Amidst the chaos of NZFW, where the brand presented its latest collection with a video installation and party, founder Margi Robertson explained what it takes to retain one’s artistic integrity when creating timeless designs.
Hailing from the student town of Dunedin, Nom*D blends the influence of local subcultures with Japanese utilitarianism to create what Robertson describes as ‘real’ clothes. Referring largely to wearability, she says this is a key priority in the brand’s design process.
Many of their garments are what the designer deems, “multi-purpose, with the potential to be worn day-to-night, inside out or back to front”.
One piece from Nom*D rivals the potentiality of multiple single-use garments you might buy elsewhere. A single piece can be worked into anyone’s wardrobe, and worn in a variety of different ways to avoid outfit repeating – this versatility being the cornerstone of sustainable fashion.
By investing in multi-purpose garments, the lifecycle of each piece is extended, and the need for further clothing consumption is dramatically reduced. This notion of adaptability extends beyond Nom*D’s design identity; it applies to their customer base too.
When asked how she envisions the quintessential Nom*D customer, Margi simply emphasises versatility, stressing how easily their garments can be reworked to fit in with a variety of different aesthetics.
“We like to think each customer leaves our store with their own look and are encouraged to mix up their wardrobe, wearing some previous season's garments mixed with current. Everyone is happy!”
When I was told I’d be wearing Nom*D’s latest collection to NZFW, I was a little intimidated. Despite being a fan of their work, I worried that, with my minimalist clothing preferences, I might not be able to pull off their punky aesthetic.
The traditional associations of Nom*D with very alternative aesthetics misled me; after all, I feel best in block colours and simple silhouettes (in essence, boring clothes). But when styling their pieces, I realised just how many outfits they could be easily integrated into.
The semi-detached shell top in mini-check worked just as well with jeans as it did with their ‘Subdivision’ skirt (which could also be dressed down with a classic tee), and the combination of both, while punky, didn’t make me feel like someone I wasn’t. I hadn’t seen myself as the quintessential Nom*D customer, as I thought my clothing preferences were just too basic – but I soon saw how their high-quality pieces and utilitarian aesthetic could be integrated into any wardrobe. The true nature of sustainable fashion.
This sentiment is what really underpins the brand’s timelessness: the way in which their clothes can be worked into a punk-rocker’s wardrobe just as easily as that of a minimalist. That philosophy allows their garments to be picked up and loved by multiple generations. Robertson mention how younger customers have been able to raid their parent’s wardrobes for Nom*D and still wear their past-season pieces to this day.
The brand has remained steadfast in its edgy aesthetic, closely associated with creatives and those striving for individuality. Robertson describes her own style as being informed by “the Japanese concepts of one size fits all and a strong presence of black”.
These personal influences spill into her collections, embedding each piece with personality and a strong sense of individualism. When expanding from her original knitwear line, Robertson mentions “taking influences from uniforms and repurposing those styles into new identities”.
These considered approaches to incorporating edginess into timeless designs are what prevent their collections from becoming dated. By reworking tried and true elements into fresh and innovative designs, the brand has stayed current for over 35 years, refusing to fall into the micro-trend trap.
