My choices for Best Newcomer were simple; these were the designers that have appeared over the past year and just left me astonished with their ingenuity, approach and body of work.  Let’s start with Malt Fashions; a superb fashion house in a great build which houses some of the neatest off the peg essentials I’ve seen in a while. If you like dresses and swishy fabrics Malt is an excellent choice, but the range extends to jackets and separates that no virtual wardrobe should fail to be without.  I was lucky enough to attend a fashion show held at the HQ, and I must confess that it was one of the best that I have ever attended.  The clothes on display were a real treat, and I think that Khea Karas really has hit on a winner with her choice of colour palette..Malt is bright, funky and absolutely essential viewing, so good that it even got me wearing a babydoll! 2008 also saw the arrival of Street Magic and blimey did this one drop a serious amount of fresh funky design and then some on the grid! The outfits I tried and tested left me so hyper that I basically had to go and buy practically the entire store…and this was December, which meant I was supposed to be saving my pennies for pressies! The ‘Black Sunday Red Set’ is an absolute must for your wardrobe, and Street Magic also produce amazing hair, jewellery, footwear and poses too..a veritable one-stop shop if you will!
It’s a team effort and it’s working folks; they’re producing above standard fashion at great prices and may well give the more established brands a serious scare during 2009!
But my winner is Runo Runo. What can I say about this label that I haven’t already? Nothing;it’s just the most amazing place. The dogs cogs. If you haven’t found your fashion nirvana, you may well just find it in these designs, but don’t expect reams of them. This is a capsule wardrobe and then some, but it’s quality at an amazing price. The pieces are quite simply head and shoulders above anything else that’s out there right now. The dresses alone are sublime..some are amazingly simple, such as the beautiful silk dress ( perfect for Valentines Day if you ask me), others such as the linen dress and the glorious Hyperkinetic dress are more complicated, a tad avant garde and just bloody wonderful. I need more from Runo Runo..more shirts, more pullovers, more skirts and stockings and above all else more fantastic dresses please…
Congratulations Runo Runo, you’re my ‘Newcomer of the Year!’  Please make some new nicies soon!!