Silk is my favourite material. To me, it’s the perfect combination of refined, effortless, comfortable and fashion-forward.
You can wear silk for any occasion. You could wear it on your wedding day, to a fancy event, to the beach, or simply down to the supermarket after work. It’s no wonder that once I realised this, the amount of silk items I own has since grown exponentially.
With a rise in sustainable fashion, many Australian brands have been opting for sustainable silk. It’s also become a super popular material due to its diversity — it looks beautiful on everyone — and its comfortable. Bonus.
One Australian brand in particular — Natalija — has taken the diversity of silk to the next level, launching a made-to-order collection of linen and silk slip dresses called Anew.
Not only does Natalija offer sizing from 4-22, but its new made-to-size collection is customisable in every way, meaning that you can choose the actual fit of the garment, as well as the neckline, back, straps and hem length that makes you feel the most confident and cute.
Custom-order silk — it feels boujie, right? We’re all about this fancy but accessible vibe.
This incredible offering from Natalija really makes me question why other brands don’t do this. Understandably, there’s extra time, effort and money that goes into made-to-order pieces, but surely, it’s worth it. I don’t know about you, but being a girl with curves, I’d be happy to pay a little extra for a dress that fit me seamlessly.
It’s pretty shocking that less than 7% of Australian brands go past a size 16, even though the average dress size in Australia is a 14. It’s time we normalise bodies that go beyond the average.
And even then, the sizes in Australia don’t actually follow a fit standard, which leads to vanity sizing, confusion, poor fit, unhealthy expectations and a lot of returns for online fashion, which is a problem in and of itself. You know that moment where you take your size off the rack and then realise in the change room, that it doesn’t fit you? It’s not you, it’s the clothes.
Where many brands have a pattern formula and simply add extra numbers as sizes increase, Natalija founder and designer, Natalija Bouropoulos, worked closely on fit with women of all sizes to ensure the new collection was flattering on real bodies.
“I truly envision inclusive fit being the norm rather than the niche and with determination believe I am ideally positioned to contribute to pioneering a new fit standard where all women belong and feel accepted — online and offline,” says Natalija.
“I believe, as a fashion brand, we have the power to reshape the industry. Being a female business owner, entrepreneur and mother of two, I understand more so now than ever that brands can greatly impact the world for the better and use their influence for good.
“This moral imperative is embedded with care for the industry
we are a part of, care for the clothes we are designing and importantly, a deep care for the women who wear our clothes.”
The made-to-order Anew collection from Natalija, offers silk and linen slip dresses, skirts and camis in seven bright colourways. You can browse the collection and shop online here.
