Collection 4: 2019 | Curiosities

In August 2018, Silk Laundry’s founder and designer, Katie Kolodinski moved with her husband and two children to Montréal, Canada and along with her came her entire design process. Collection Four is born from this new adventure and the experiences it has allowed, being the first collection conceptualised and created in Silk Laundry’s second home of Montréal.

Present in Collection Four is the influence of Katie’s natural environments, with exciting new styles that are suspended somewhere between the Australian and Canadian climates. The crocodile-texture jacquard, pearl detailing and bright, coral colour found in the collection draw subtle reference to Australia’s oceans and reefs. Inspired by the nature of the north, the collection also features shades of sea green, eucalyptus and ivory that emanate the feeling of being near freshwater.

The collection presents a juxtaposition of soft silhouettes and structured lines, providing both a sense of utility and femininity. A strong, pronounced collar contrasts a light and feminine cut in the sharp collar shirt. Pearl buttons combine fragility with functionality and crocodile jacquard offers an imposing texture in flowing sandwashed silk fabric. Our new Animalia print is playful and sophisticated, composed of pastel painted animals printed against dark sandwashed silk. The print was inspired by Katie’s copy of the book Cabinet of Curiosities, which she brought from Silk Laundry’s head office on the Gold Coast to her new office in Montreal.

Moving to a new city has meant new opportunities for collaboration. For this collection we worked with two young Montréal creatives, Garrett Naccarato (art direction) and Alexis Belhumeur (photography), that helped bring the pieces to life. The shoot took place in a downtown loft with large windows and a flowing white backdrop. Following the guiding theme of the collection — curiosity — we used the natural light of the space to play with shadows, bringing in a pair of Marcel Breuer chairs to extend the lines of the garments and create new shapes.