Evil Twin
By Karli Smith
Jodie Mckenzie made her mark on the Australian
fashion scene three years ago
with the launch of her clothing label Evil Twin. A mixture of vintage and
musically inspired pieces meets 70's and 80's punk and glam rock. The clothes
are a little off centre with a tough rocker edge.
The Evil Twin shopper wants to look
fashion savvy and edgy, but at the same time
they want to appear as though they don't care about the way they look. They ooze
attitude and confidence without taking fashion too seriously.
Jodie began her training at the prestigious
Whitehouse Institute of Design and
worked in the fashion industry for four years collaborating with Australian
fashion label MINKPINK. In late 2008 she was given the opportunity to
branch out
and start her own line. Her goal was to create a label that offered edgy,
fashion forward everyday clothing. The sort of stuff Jodie and her sister looked
for when growing up but couldn't find without a ridiculous price tag attached.
As a result, Evil Twin was born.
As a youngster, Jodie rebelled against being
dressed in the same outfits as her
twin sister, whom she has cited as inspiration for the brand as she likes to
wear a lot of bold punk and 80s vintage. Jodie has also infused her
own
unique sense of style and creativity into the brand. Pieces inspired by
punk/gothic influences and hard edges are contrasted with oversized tops and
maxi dresses with lace and delicate tailoring. She prides herself on designing
clothes for women of every shape and size and ensures that there's something for
everyone in each collection.
Jodie finds the most inspiring looks are created
by regular people who mix high
fashion with casual or vintage clothing and put their own personal spin on it.
"It's all about confidence and attitude in an outfit", she says, and finds every
day girls and women on the street to be her biggest influence.
The launch of Jodie's first collection for
Evil Twin was in February 2009, with
the label popping up in selected boutique stores around the country and since
then has became highly recognised for selling her line in General Pants. Amid
her overwhelming success both in Australia and internationally, Jodie counts
showcasing her work at London Fashion Week 2010 to be her greatest
achievement
to date. Not only has Jodie dominated the international market through stores
such as Urban Outfitters (UK), Lane Crawford (China) and
Fred Segal (USA), but
she has also taken on the online shopping world with her label available at
ASOS, ShopBop and Market HQ.
Jodie predicted one of the biggest trends this
season to be Mid-West Americana,
which can be seen in Evil Twin's second Summer 2010-2011 collection,
"Everything's Bigger In Texas". This range was all about, slashed overalls and
suede fringed shorts, splashes of bright blues and reds, snake prints, Western
American inspired tees and vintage denim. It's mid-west, hippy chic with a rock
edge.
Evil Twin's first collection for Winter
2011, "The Night Is For Hunting", is a
combination of animalistic prints and furs teamed with gothic mesh, black
leather and velvet. Oversized and mini shirts are styled together with maxi
skirts. Printed long t-shirts, anoraks and heavy ponchos, are balanced out with
tight leather pants and dark grey leggings embellished with leather crosses and
studs.
The Night Is For Hunting is the prelude
for the second Winter collection
Broken Are The Beautiful. It's Twilight meets The Craft, and is, what I would
imagine, would happen if a witch met a modern day vampire and their fashion was
fused together.
Think more black leather and mesh, midnight blue
lace, blood red velvet and
witchy inspired patterns. These ensembles are finished off with silver chained
armour hand jewellery, crosses and skulls and witchcraft themed pendants and
rings.
With the success of Evil Twin's previous
collections and growing population at
home and overseas, it's safe to expect even bigger things from Jodie Mckenzie
for many years to come!
Keep an eye out for Evil Twin's winter collection in
stores and follow the label on
Facebook for all the latest news and updates. Also be sure to check out Jodie
and her sister Sarah's joint blog Platinum Evil for a sneak peak at upcoming
collections, unique fashion finds and see from where Jodie gets a lot of her design
inspiration.
More articles by Karli Smith
- Anitra Metzler - Designer
- Four Ingredients: Series 2 - DVD Review
- Andrej Pejic: Australian Male Model
- Evil Twin Fashion
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