This story is part of Ensemble’s colour week, presented by Resene‍

There’s a long-held assumption that everyone in Aotearoa loves to wear black. Like most clichés, it contains a nugget of truth. You should live in the moment, remember karma’s a bitch, and always have at least one pair of black pants for emergency situations like watching the All Blacks, or walking through the CBD during office hours. 

That said, there’s a new guard of designers who are here to remind you that colour is fun, actually. From Baobei’s hot pink neck candy to Sleeping Profit’s noughties-inspired palette, they’re proving there’s a market for designs that don’t resemble a cold dark void. 

We spoke to a few of these bright talents about what inspires their colour-choices, the difficulty of finding fabrics in New Zealand, and whether everyone here still loves to wear black. 

Baobei

You’ve probably seen Baobei’s heart-shaped pendants all over hot girl instagram. They’re fun, glossy and make your neck feel like the star of a 10/10 noughties chick flick. 

What made you want to play around with colour? 

Baobei’s values are rooted in play, and what’s more playful than colour? We’d be in denial if we didn’t think colour sparked joy. The colour pink is also so ironic and iconic in pop culture, so I love exploring it. It’s fun.‍

What inspires your colour-choices? ‍

Chinese people wear jewellery with red string to bring them luck and fortune. I’m sentimental with my jewellery, especially the ones my grandparents have given me. They all have red string but I barely fit any of them anymore. I wanted to create something new for myself to wear that had the same sentiment – and the first original Love U Pendant was born – pink heart, red string. Colour comes from sentimental places first and aesthetics second, because aesthetics is cool for now but sentiment is forever.

Are there any external factors you have to consider?

My biggest external factor would just be simply what works. It’s easy to get carried away with colour and forget about readability and availability. For the most part “what works” is logistical and not aesthetic, because we lean into unconventional colour pairings and clashes.

Does everyone in Aotearoa love to wear black, or do you think this is changing? 

I think Aotearoa has become more daring – daring to step out of their comfort style and what is socially preferred. We’re in an era of striving to be different and we have more freedom and influences to express outwardly.

What’s your favourite colour to wear?

I’d be lying for this piece if I didn’t say black, however, it’s also pink. I love pink accessories and with a full fit of black and greys, the introduction of pink is very flirty. It’s like everyone knows the projected meaning of pink. It’s the It girl of the colours.

Adrion Atelier

Adrion Atelier is the brainchild of designer Adrian Williams, who’s making small runs of impeccably crafted clothes that are “bold, playful and a little bit extra.”

What inspires your colour choices? 

It’s a lot to do with my heritage – I grew up in South Africa and colour was everywhere, it’s just a normal way to express yourself. In Cape Town we have a festival called The Kaapse Klopse, and I always loved seeing it because it’s all sparkly, bright fabric, and all the districts are represented by a colour. There’s just so much fun and joy around it, and I think that’s the core of where my colour inspiration comes from. 

Are there any external factors you have to consider? 

Fabric availability in NZ is the core problem. I might want to design something in bright purple and it won’t be available, so I’ll have to find the closest thing. 

I also try to think about what people might want, and what they want is often neutrals. For example, I found this amazing orange fabric, and I was like – I know orange is not the most popular colour in New Zealand, but it’s the one that makes me happy. So I made an orange version, because that’s the vision, then a black and white version too. I try to lead people towards colour… You show it to them first, then give black and white versions as a safety net. 

Do you think people are more keen to embrace wearing colour these days? 

I think it’s slowly changing… But there’s not often as many colour options available at places that make high quality clothing. Colour in that way is important for small designers, because it helps make us not look like everything else. I still love my blacks and my beiges, but I love mixing it up with some colours. 

Sleeping Profit

Sleeping Profit’s designs bring together hand-painted pastels, clashing patterns and a DIY aesthetic. Don’t sleep on them. 

What inspires your colour choices? 

The colours I choose to use are inspired by my own wardrobe, I generally won’t make something unless I can see myself wearing it. I also take huge inspiration from what I wore when I was younger, I’m always trying to invoke a sense of nostalgia that will fulfil my inner child.

Are there any external factors you have to consider?

I do struggle to find a wide range of colour fabrics since I try using local textiles companies, but there's not a lot of options in this country so I either have to settle for my favourite of the bunch or look internationally.

There’s the old cliché that everyone in Aotearoa loves to wear black – do you think this is changing?

I think so! I only ever wore black as an angsty teenager until getting a grey malting kitten. I've never even made a black piece of clothing. 

I think since I studied fashion in Dunedin, where black rules the fashion scene due to the city’s gothic nature, I wanted to set myself apart from other local brands.

What’s your favourite colour to wear?

At the moment it's green, but since I was a young girl it's been purple. When I was a little girl I once wore a full purple outfit so cute that Suzy Cato drove past and had to pull over to tell me so.

Itchy Knits

Itchy Knits don’t look very itchy. They look like fluffy technicolour clouds to float on (or in), and are all one-off designs made from repurposed yarn. 

What made you want to make colourful knitwear? 

I put so much effort into each piece, so it just made sense to make them into quite a statement. I figured everyone has a colour they feel strongly for – so when they see that perfect orange vest from Itchy, it feels like it has been made specifically for them, which is so special. 

How do you choose the colours for your designs?

A huge part of my design process is resourcefulness. I source all my yarn secondhand, and I love the challenge of matching them together to create fun combos. Wes Anderson is a huge inspiration for me, fun food packaging from Japan, food and plants have so many great colours popping out at you – it’s easy to be inspired by nature! 

I definitely like to avoid combining green and red (Christmas), red and white (Santa), and yellow and green (my high school P.E uniform), but everything else is fair game in my opinion, as long as the tones are right! 

Are there any external factors you have to consider?

I like to make sure I have a varied fit on offer, and I consider how specific yarns will match with others. Sometimes I like to get different textures going into one garment on purpose. It is hard to take colour requests because I have limited stock of the yarn I find in opshops.

Do you think everyone in Aotearoa loves to wear black? 

I think it’s true. I wish I could find more black yarn for all my goth cuties but it is super hard to source! I used to wear a lot of black and it is very chic so I get it, but I like having the option to wear colour! 

What’s your favourite colour to wear and why?

Green, for sure. Mostly because I have green eyes – cliché but it’s true, colours bring out your eyes and eyes are so important! Catch me in an all green fit at least once a week. Brown and purple are tied for second because they go so well with literally all other colours.