The buzz of seeing something you created modelled on the catwalk was the attraction for an Oturehua designer.
Part-time nurse Jo Ryan said she was entering WoolOn for the second time to show support for the event and the wool industry but it was also a thrill for her.
‘‘There’s a real buzz of seeing something you’ve made on the runway. That’s a real satisfying part of it, seeing something you have put so much work into being modelled by someone else.’’
Weaving was her preferred technique. For WoolOn in 2021 she entered the streetwear section using weaving and hand-knitting in the garment. This time she opted to enter a collection and the avant garde section.
Really understanding what avant garde was and the restrictions around that made it more challenging than she had originally thought.
‘‘I hadn’t even started making any of them until after the entries were in. It was a real frantic, crazy time of trying to get them done, but I got there.’’
Hand-woven fabric would feature again in some of her garments.
While weaving and sewing were time consuming, it was the planning and designing which took the most time in the process of creating the entries, she said.
