Designer Andrea Moore.
Known for her use of colour, impeccable tailoring and perfect fits, Andrea Moore has been successfully forging her place within New Zealand fashion since 1999. The Andrea Moore brand is proudly designed and made in New Zealand and this month we caught up with the woman behind the label.
Tell us about your latest collection?
The latest SS 14/15 collection is called “It’s About Time”. It’s based on a 16th Century art form known as Vanatas. It originated in Holland and is symbolic of mortality and time running out. Images of insects, skulls, locks, keys, jewels, crowns dominate. My collection gives Vanitas a Pop Art treatment. The embellished Treasure Chest dress is a great example, as is the Dutch tile print incorporating a running horse – this represents the Ride of Your Life.
What do you love most about being a designer?
I love creating a story and translating that into fashion pieces people want to wear. I also love colour, designing my own prints, collaborating with other creatives, and the challenge of each new season.
What inspires you?
Art, colour, shapes, interiors, and pieces from previous sesasons that I would like to work on and develop. I enjoy the momentum of fashion too – season to season there is so much change.
Describe your personal style?
Casual and colourful. I like to juxtapose colour, pattern and print, and it’s fun to clash jeans with a structured coat, or a masculine pieces with a feminine frill.
What is your all-time favourite fashion purchase?
A vintage Celine dress from a store in Melbourne called Madame Virtue
What wardrobe item should every woman invest in?
A Coat
Do you have a style rule you always obey?
Push some boundaries, but ultimately you have to be comfortable in your own skin.
What made you become a fashion designer?
After studying History at University I went to Japan to teach English for a year. It was a good experience, but I just didn’t feel it was right for the long term. As a teenager I had wanted to become a designer and one morning in Japan I woke up knowing that’s what I needed to do – it was my light bulb moment. So I returned to NZ and enrolled at Wellington Polytech design school.
What piece of advice would you give someone starting out?
Work for someone else first and learn the industry. Be brave.
What is this season’s must have item?
A colourful dress that finishes just above the knee. Show your legs.
Finish this sentence – you would never catch me wearing….
Stiletto shoes – I would fall over!