From armoured corsetry and hand-woven craftsmanship to liquid eveningwear, wearable art and a riot of sequins, Couture Carnival made a persuasive case for fashion with personality.
At Melbourne’s iconic Luna Park, fashion took a decidedly individual turn.
Presented as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival, the runway moved between the romantic and rebellious, artisanal and extravagant. Emerging designers appeared alongside established names; artists treated the body as canvas, while couturiers made a compelling case for glamour without restraint.
Produced and presented by designer Aron Katona, alongside Vicoola Popovski, Fashion Director, Model Management and Runway Choreographer, the show resisted a singular aesthetic. Its strength was in the contrast.
These designers defined the runway.
Luna Gypsyy Couture
Handmade pieces carry an intimacy, and Luna Gypsyy Couture understands its value. Founded by designer Kahlie Johnston, the Australian label is known for intricate hand-woven designs that celebrate texture, movement, and a distinctly bohemian femininity.
Johnston’s craftsmanship speaks for itself. Tactile, individual and beautifully considered, her work is a reminder that in a world increasingly dominated by mass production, the human hand may be fashion’s greatest luxury.
Discover: @lunagypsyy_couture
AisoWalker
At AisoWalker, fashion begins on canvas.
Papua New Guinea-born, Perth-based artist Cornelia creates expressive paintings alive with colour, which are then reimagined as textile prints with the help of her granddaughter, Maria Lee.
The result is wearable art in its most literal form. Produced in small batches, silk scarves, dresses, kimonos and shirts can each be traced back to an original artwork. Here, colour carries something more meaningful: family, heritage and a story passed from one generation to another.
Discover: @suddenlyarty
Sepideh Couture
There is strength at the heart of Sepideh Couture.
Already gaining attention in Melbourne fashion circles — most recently dressing Layla Owen, partner of Melbourne Demons star Tom Sparrow, for the 2026 Brownlow Medal — Sepideh presented her latest collection, Dawn Unbound.
Armoured corsets act as both clothing and metaphor: protection giving way to freedom, vulnerability becoming strength. Inspired by the meaning behind Sepideh’s own name, Dawn Unbound is ultimately about becoming the strongest, most fully realised version of oneself.
Consider it power dressing, quite literally armoured.
Discover: @sepidehcouture
Natalie Hamblin Couture
For Natalie Hamblin, beauty can emerge from what others leave behind.
The award-winning Australian designer transforms repurposed household waste, discarded materials and existing garments into elaborate wearable art, challenging conventional ideas of what belongs in couture.
Her acclaimed Plastic Rain, created using discarded electronic waste, confronts plastic pollution and environmental degradation. Yet the message never eclipses the clothes. Sustainability here feels imaginative, directional and genuinely exciting.
Discover: @natalie_hamblin_couture
VIV Design Journal
If eveningwear is designed for a moment, VIV Design Journal knows how to make that moment count.
Sculptural silhouettes, corsetry and intricate detailing give the collection its sense of occasion, but it is the confidence of the gowns that lingers.
The eveningwear was simply breathtaking — beautifully constructed, glamorous and assured. These were gowns made not merely to enter a room, but to change its temperature.
Discover: @viv.designjournal
ÉLARA PRIVÉ
A great coat has always possessed transformative powers.
At ÉLARA PRIVÉ, statement outerwear is treated accordingly. Plush textures and generous silhouettes give the label its unmistakable sense of glamour, with pieces designed to be kept rather than consumed by a season.
The statement furs were timeless, luxurious and wonderfully indulgent — the kind of pieces that should be in everyone’s wardrobe.
Discover: @elaraprive | elaraprive.com
Maryam in Bloom
Maryam in Bloom approaches modest dressing with romance rather than restriction.
Influenced in part by the founder’s Central and South Asian heritage, the label works with florals, pattern and graceful silhouettes to create clothing that feels feminine without becoming predictable.
There is a softness to the collection, but never a lack of presence. Elegant, colourful and culturally informed, it proves that clothes needn’t reveal everything to make an impression.
Discover: @maryaminbloom.store | maryaminbloom.store
Joor Toon
There is nothing beige about Joor Toon.
Created by a graphic designer turned fashion designer, the label treats clothing almost as a moving composition. Colour clashes, energetic prints and an irreverent approach to convention are all part of its vocabulary.
For those who love bold colour and aren’t afraid to stand out, Joor Toon is fashion without the volume turned down.
Discover: @joor.toon
Fluid The Label
Where others demand attention through embellishment, Fluid The Label finds its impact in movement.
Founded by Australian designer Paula Duncan, the label specialises in contemporary eveningwear characterised by drape, fluidity and silhouettes that respond beautifully to the body.
The gowns moved with an ease that felt inherently luxurious. Feminine, polished and sophisticated, they demonstrate that sometimes the most effective eveningwear simply needs to fall beautifully.
Discover: @fluid_thelabel | fluidthelabel.com.au
House of ERA Couture
More is more at House of ERA Couture.
Created by Gigi Era, the handmade couture label revels in embellishment, shimmer and silhouettes designed with little interest in disappearing into the crowd.
Structure meets sparkle in high-impact looks that celebrate individuality above restraint. House of ERA isn’t interested in clothes that simply look pretty.
These are clothes that want to be remembered.
Discover: @houseoferacouture
Ollymacs
For Olga Blake McKenzie, clothes carry histories.
The artist, author and recognised costume designer behind Ollymacs approaches fashion through the lens of storytelling, exploring the relationship between clothing, character and memory.
It is a philosophy that extends to her forthcoming book, We Wear Our Stories – Timelines in Threads. McKenzie’s work offers a thoughtful proposition: what we wear may say as much about where we have been as where we are going.
Discover: @ollymac7591
Sofia’s Arthouse
Romance takes a more nostalgic turn with Sofia’s Arthouse.
Created in Melbourne by Sofia Lexa Mak, the handmade label draws on corsetry, delicate detailing, beautiful fabrics and vintage references, filtered through a decidedly youthful sensibility.
Feminine, intricate and unmistakably handmade, the designs occupy that appealing space between past and present.
Discover: @sofiasarthouse
Voay Australia
No runway is complete without the right accessory.
Voay Australia specialises in artisan handbags handcrafted in Darwin and Melbourne using distinctive crocodile and kangaroo leather.
Vivid statement shades sit alongside more classic natural tones, each celebrating Australian materials and craftsmanship. Luxury, but through a distinctly local lens.
Discover: @voayaustralia | voayaustralia.com.au
Aron Katona
Then came Aron Katona — and subtlety promptly left the building.
As both producer and designer, Katona celebrated the night in the language he knows best: hot pink, vivid purple, gold and an abundance of sequins.
His signature reversible sequins shift colour with the brush of a hand, while his Couture Carnival signature prints amplify the sense of spectacle. It is exuberant, playful and unapologetically glamorous.
Katona has never been afraid of shine, and why should he be? Fashion is allowed to be fun. It is allowed to glitter. It is allowed to make an entrance.
The king of sequins and all that glitters was firmly in his element.
Discover: @aronkatona_official | aron-katona.com
By Melinda Sullivan
Image credits – Fred Zinggl, Seamus Spillane, and Anu Chitrathomas.
