"My parents are from New Zealand, but they migrated to Western Australia, where I grew up. My mum was an artist - she did everything from textiles and ceramics to print making. I remember once she went to the bush to make clothing dyes from resin. She was a big influence on my creative side.
I started designing dresses in high school, which would fund my escape later. I went to Perth to study fashion; I moved to Sydney when I was 20, and worked at a hip boutique called Scanlan & Theodore.
That was where I really got my fashion education, because I was dealing with clients, dressing people and discovering beautiful clothes. A lot of editors used to come in, and one day an editor at [fashion magazine] Russh offered me an internship. I eventually worked my way up to being an editor.
One day at work, I had an epiphany. I remember it clearly because it was January 2. I knew I really wanted to do something on my own in fashion. The year before I had styled a fashion show and made a pair of stockings which were featured in Vogue. They asked how I wanted them to be credited so I said Ellery. I already had the name of the brand so I decided to pick up where I left off. A few months later we launched at Sydney Fashion Week.
Because I was a market editor at the magazine, I knew what was out there, and I immediately saw a gap in the contemporary category. There was no Alexander Wang or Phillip Lim in Australia. For the first two years, I designed the collections as a hobby while I was working at the magazine. When it started to become serious, I devoted myself to it full time.
Every time I design a collection, I think about what I'd like to wear or what my friends would like to wear. My style is always mannish, dominated by loose, architectural shapes. We're famous for our flares, which we launched in 2010.