Wagin Woolorama: Locals set to shine at Wagin Woolorama fashion show and 50th anniversary merch on offer

Wool will once again be put in the spotlight at the Wagin Woolorama as the famed fashion parade returns for another year.

Local culture, fashion flashbacks and model diversity will be some of the highlights of this year’s event, as a new team takes the reigns on the catwalk.

Londa Finlayson will be joining Emma Kirk in running the fashion parade at this year’s event, having taken a break after running the show with Koshie Taipari in previous years.

For Ms Finlayson, it has been a learning curve.

“It has been quite an experience and a journey because we have never worked together before,” she said.

The theme for this year’s fashion parade is Community, Culture and Couture, highlighting the connections between identity and clothing.

Ms Finlayson said she and Ms Kirk wanted to bring something new to this year’s parade.

“I really feel that connection to culture, to community and doing it through the expression of fashion is going to be really highlighted this year,” she said.

The parade will seek to combine what the organisers see as the three most prevalent cultures in Wagin: Aboriginal, Maori and Caucasian Australian culture.

“We want to do that as respectfully as possible, but we also want to highlight that we are all one and I think especially with the range of models we’ve got, the lineup, the labels, the wool, we will demonstrate that really well,” Ms Finlayson said.

There will be 15 models this year, all Wagin locals ranging in age from 15 to 66.

Ms Finlayson said the parade this year would feature every shape, style and size.

“We really want to highlight all of those people who get up on stage to look beautiful and glamorous no matter what they’re wearing or what they’re doing up there,” she said.

Seven fashion labels will be highlighted at this year’s event, including Scanlan Wool, Williams Woodshed and Australian Wool Innovation.

Scanlan Wool has also donated three metres of wool fabric each to 10 student fashion designers in Perth to create woollen garments for the fashion parade’s Back to the Future show.

“It’s really exciting that we can be part of that journey for the student designers,” Ms Finlayson said.

There will be eight shows across the Woolorama weekend, including one on Thursday night.

For those who want a clothing memento for the 50th anniversary event, the Woolorama will also be selling merchandise throughout the weekend, with shirts selling for $50 and hoodies for $80.

The fashion parades will be held at regular intervals at the Wagin Woolorama Wool Pavilion.