I am super excited that my good friend Zuhal Kuvan-Mills from the internationally recognised label Green Embassy which has graced the runways of London, Paris, Vancouver and more is supporting the Eco Fashion Runway at Hutt Winter Festival with a capsule artisan haute couture collection.

Green Embassy is created using handmade organic Australian alpaca, merino, silk and recycled natural fibres ensuring that each garment is beautifully unique.  Each item is entirely hand crafted and hand dyed and the knits are made from hand-spun yarns.

Each clothing item in very collection is designed, knitted, spun, felted, stitched and embroidered from scratch by artist, designer and earth ambassador Zuhal Kuvan-Mills at her sun-drenched farm in the Western Australian bush. This ‘organic aesthetic’ brand offers multi-purpose garments which strike a fine balance between sophistication, sustainability and contemporary slow fashion.

Zuhal's eco-fashion items are 100% created by hand in Australia and certified by GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standards), the leading standard for quality assurance in organic textiles manufacturing worldwide. 

Modern, minimalist, functional and alluring, her work is for the discerning consumer who values the beauty of hand-crafted things fashioned from earth-friendly methods of production.

This year Zuhal will present a capsule collection from the ‘’Ngoolark’’ Series (The Aboriginal Name of Western Australian Black Cockatoos).  The inspiration for the collection has come from the Cockatoo being declared as an endangered species due rapid urbanisation of Perth and destruction of their natural habitat of bush.  Created with recycled and up-cycled silk, to emphasise their fragility , beauty , embroidered with wool to create drawings to display their outstanding majestic looks.

Photo Credits – Aidan Green
Model- Dene Selby Modeling Agency

It isn't often these days that I get over into Lower Hutt to look around the shops with running a full time retail business and I was pleasantly surprised when I stumbled across Lagi on High Street in Lower Hutt, Wellington.

The brightly displayed window featuring pacific fashion which would be appealing to most cultures drew me in and it wasn't long before I struck up a conversation with store owners Radley and Regan.

I was impressed with the stories behind the garments, learning that most of the stores stock items were made in the Pacific Islands providing much needed employment for locals, and some of the fabrics used in the garments were even hand painted. I instantly fell in love with the recycled packaging clutch purses in bright reds, yellows and purples and the lady who makes them to support her income in Samoa. I knew instantly that these amazing young business owners needed to present a range at the NZ Eco Fashion Runway at Hutt Winter Festival on the 15th August. Lagi fits perfectly into the ethical, locally produced and artisan category and it is with enormous pleasure that we have them presenting at ouruo and coming runway show

Radley and Regan have never been involved in an event like this before and really didn't know where to start so I offered to help them style their runway collection. I know attendees to the runway will absolutely love the array of bright colourful garments, teamed up with bold accessories that they will present.

Lagi owners Radley and Regan are a family of first generation New Zealand Samoans, who have stepped out in faith to re-open LAGI – a renown Pacific store serving the greater Wellington region for the last 30 years. Their parents migrated in the early 1970’s and worked tirelessly to pave the pathway of opportunities that they now have. "We honour them and all of the Pacific pioneers in this journey of bringing the best of the Pacific to you"!

Their vision was to update the store to meet the style needs of urban Pacific peoples and their families. This means that they have totally renovated the interior to reflect the new direction they are heading in. They have also selected products that fuse Pacific and contemporary styles together, while still providing traditional handmade crafts.

Their brand is also proud to promote sustainability. They have products in store that are 100% organic, jewellery made from natural resources, clutches made of recycled packaging and artisan hand painted garments. They continue to introduce new products to their range including fashionable but dateless clothing and art pieces, some made by their very own creative team right here in Lower Hutt.

Afio mai, Maliu mai, Haere mai and welcome to your local Pasifika store!

You can find out more about Lagi by linking to their website or by visiting their newly renovated store at 233 High Street, Lower Hutt, Wellington.

Blog by Denise Anglesey
NZ Eco Fashion

Four years seems to have flown by since NZ Eco Fashion held their last Eco & Ethical Runway show at Sacred Heart College in Lower Hutt, New Zealand.   After running the event at the college for three years the size of the event had out grown the space available.  With what had grown to a  team of approximately 100 crew comprising of models, makeup and hair teams, back stage dressers, helpers and designers we had no choice to postpone the event until the new Lower Hutt Events Centre and Town Hall were completed.

I was privileged to have attended the opening of the new Lower Hutt Events Centre & Town Hall with my husband Vinnie and son Jeremiah in July 2018.  The moment I walked through the door I knew that this was a venue that could cater for the Eco Runway and attendees manning the front desk and reception that day recognising me asked - "are you bringing back the show".  At that point I have to admit I felt a twinge of excitement and my desire to revisit the runway was again stirred in August when I entered the "Mix Pimp My Jacket Competition"

The competition was to be part of the Hutt Winter Festival and knowing the Mix Team well, I set about to do a little marketing via my online networks to help them spread the word about the event,  all while designing two jackets for the competition myself.  One being a team entry for MP Chris Bishop and the other entry being my own.  

Seeing Mayoral entry featured on the front page of the Dominion and the Local Hutt News featuring local mp's Chris Bishop and Ginny Andersen was really the topping on the cake so to speak in bringing back the show.  The Pimp my Jacket Competition was a fantastic event held in the new events centre and event attracted 90 entries for their inaugural show with plans in the pipeline to bring the show back bi-annually.   The standard of the jackets was exceptional, far exceeding whatever expectation I had and the show was a fun event that attracted a large audience.

Come 2019 the applications for Festival appeared on my facebook time line, and very nervously I met with our modelling and back stage director David Duffy and we made the application to the committee to be bring the Eco Runway back as part of the 2019 Hutt Winter Festival.  Within no time we heard back from the organisers and arranged a meeting to iron out a few details and the planning and promotion got underway.

Almost immediately with the announcement of the show on facebook, the old excitement around the show began to permeate and applications from designers, requests from young people wanting to model, photography inquires and requests to be part of our makeup and hair team on the night began to filter through to my email account.

This years runway is to be a one night runway giving new and existing designers the change to runway their designs on an exciting professionally executed runway setting in two parts.  

Part one will comprise of the "Upcycled Challenge" - this is the competition part of the event for hobbie, home and student designers.  Designers can enter all or one of the four categories available.  

Part two will be "The Eco & Ethical Runway Show" for emerging and existing designers.  This is an opportunity for designers to showcase their collections with a maximum of eight individual looks.  A pop up shop will conclude the evening and the audience will be able to view up close the designs from runway as well as have the opportunity to purchase mostly one of a kind ensembles. 

The ticket price for the attending audience will be very affordable with the aim of the show being to highlight and make available environmentally friendly fashion in a much more accessible way.

Applications for designers are now open and modelling auditions will be underway shortly.  

We look forward to bringing back this loved show in a more accessible way for our local and regional designers and communities as well as those who live a little further away. 


Denise Anglesey
Director NZ Eco Fashion Runways

All designers please see our application process here:

All runway and sponsorship enquiries to:
Denise Anglesey
denisehlabel@hotmail.com
0223607437
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Some would say that starting a business with $300 is madness and it certainly seemed like that in the beginning when Gaylene and Denise decided to open their new shop/gallery Kereru Creative.

Situated in the Historic Homedale Village in Wainuiomata, New Zealand, they were inspired by fellow local Tralee Clark who had set up her remedial massage business in the village. Over many cups of coffee and discussions about how much potential the village had, the lacking of anywhere to buy a decent coffee, the potential could be seen for the once thriving village to be a destination shopping and cafe experience.  So with that in mind Tralee and husband Tim proceeded to refit the tired old cafe across the road into a modern cafe with a slight retro  theme serving great food and good coffee.

For Gaylene and Denise, the opportunity to rent the large space at 134 Main Road for Kereru Creative was one that potentially wouldn't last long. With revitalisation projects underway in the village by an enthusiastic team of volunteers including footpath park benches, planter boxes and fresh paint work for many of the shops, they needed to make an on the spot decision to proceed.

Of course Kereru Creative is not the first retail space that Denise has owned, but because the space was so large it had the potential to be more than a boutique shop. It was then it was decided to diversify the business to be a gallery for local artists, a gift shop stocking local arts and crafts along with quality niche NZ made products, a boutique for Denise's up-cycled clothing range and a workshop creative space for Gaylene to run her lifestyle and creative workshops.  Space for local visitor information including walking maps, accommodation options and activities were also included in store. ​

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With lease negotiations underway, Tralee made the pair an offer to start their initiative as a pop up shop next door in the front of her Ruru Remedial Massage Business so towards the end October 2018, Denise & Gaylene moved their business in and they got underway. With the doors open for business, the shop immediately began to buzz and locals started to call by to shop for both to gifts and also to bring their beautifully made arts and craft ranges into the shop as a potential product lines for the shop to stock.

While they traded in the pop up shop - they started to ready the larger space next door. The interior needed to be painted, old fashioned window frames needed to be hung, shelves needed to be put up and products needed to be sourced. Between the pair they fitted the entire larger space by enlisting helpers, borrowing shop fittings, up-cycling furniture, receiving donations of unusual shelving options and sourcing products from locals to stock the shop on a commission basis as well as creating new ranges themselves.

​By the middle of November 2018, the new shop was set up and ready to go and the doors of Kereru Creative - Gallery, Gift Shop, Boutique and Workshop Space opened to the public. Since then the business has gone from strength to strength. Part of the success has been the diverse nature of what is on offer when you walk through the door. The space is unique, has a peaceful, relaxing ambience and the products on offer are unique, well made and professionally presented.

The workshops on offer at Kereru Creative, cover a number of relevant subjects with a emphasis on frugal and environmentally friendly living include sewing lessons using recycled and donated fabrics, making beeswax wraps, cheese making, making your own bath bombs and are held fortnightly on a Wednesday and Thursday evening. Gaylene also offers a community arts and crafts morning on Wednesday's covering a variety of subjects which locals have begun to get involved in.

Kereru Creative is well worth making the time to visit. With the beautiful coast a further 20 minutes away, the Remutaka Forest Park, The Historic Wainuiomata Dam, Kotuku Cafe across the road - the area is well worth exploring. Tourist and Visitor information including local attractions, accommodation and walking maps are available in store.

Kereru Creative is a half hour drive from Wellington City and is open from Tuesday to Sunday with evening workshops fortnightly on Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Connect with their facebook page Kereru Gallery Gifts Boutique or visit their online store at www.kererucreative.nz for more information and updates.

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Find out more on how to make this refreshing tea at my Urban Homestead Website - Urban Homestead NZ

xox Denise H