Best Designer – Men’s

These men’s labels are not afraid to push the envelope, designing beyond the typical boundaries and letting the boys have some fun with fashion. These are the nominees for Best Designer in Men’s Fashion for 2010.

VOTE NOW!	Beat Poet Beat Poet is a Sydney-based label that aims to deliver a practical modern wardrobe to our clientele. All pattern-making and sampling is done in-house allowing constant evolution and innovation. After ten collections as in the beginning, the cut of the garment is the focus, constantly trying to strike the perfect balance between fit and movement. The palette is kept neutral to allow a full integration between seasons and with any other garments in the wardrobe. Over the years, Beat Poet has won the GQ Man of the Year Designer Award, showed as the only solo menswear label RAFW, appeared in blogs and magazines and stocked locally and internationally in selected boutiques and department stores.
VOTE NOW!	Billycock Denim & Co. Billycock Denim & Co. is one of Sydney’s best kept fashion secrets. Based in Bondi, Billycock was established as a sleek alternative to the mass-produced denim labels which have sprung up over the last decade. Each pair of Billycock jeans are individually hand made in Australia using only the most premium and artisan Japanese fabrics which are considered to be the best in the world. Every wash and finish is conjured by hand and each pair crafted is a completely individual creation – the look and feel of each Billycock piece is as individual as a pair of tits.
VOTE NOW!	Eleventh Commandment Eleventh Commandment is a premium Australian-made Men’s and Women’s denim and apparel label. Established by designers Henry Holland and Joshua Oldfield, the brand has acquired more than 30 of the best stockists nationwide as well as representation in Sweden, Norway, New Zealand and the UK since launching at Sydney Fashion Week in August 2008. With a passion for producing forward-thinking street wear with a concerted focus on quality jeans, this young label is laying the foundations to become one of Australia’s most prominent purveyors of style.
VOTE NOW!	Jamie Fame Jamie Fame is the gritty sartorial brainchild of Queensland designer Brad Pengelly. Taking inspiration from all things dark and gothic, Pengelly’s collections carry moody and somber vibes complete with subtle handiwork and tailoring. The result is a complete look and lifestyle to be worn with a twist of carelessness and a drop of irony. Pengelly’s talent for creating individual yet wearable collections has seen him receive wide acclaim from the Australian fashion and music industries. His Australian-‐made aesthetic and use of organic and natural fibre fabrics result in wearable pieces synonymous with both eco-‐friendly style and edgy comfort.
VOTE NOW!	Saint Augustine Academy Saint Augustine Academy is a fashion label born from music, and all of its subcultures. As a regular fixture in Sydney’s art and music scenes, designer Alvin Manalo draws inspiration from the wealth of creativity that surrounds him. Each season, Alvin designs his collections with an underground, obscure musical pop-culture reference in mind, which results in truly stylised and memorable women’s wear. Saint Augustine Academy are a cult-favourite fashion label which is stocked in some of the world’s best boutiques, including Opening Ceremony in Tokyo.
VOTE NOW!	Song for Mute Song for the Mute is the merging of the creative talent from award winning graphic artist Melvin Tanaya and Parisian-born, Italian-trained fashion designer Lyna Ty. Exploring the fragility and harmony of the sea, AU CLAIR takes you to the light at RAFW with pieces that are raw, unique and storytelling – the antithesis of corporate uniformity.
VOTE NOW!	Subfusco From conception to creation, Subfusco offers excellent quality and craftsmanship to every garment. Built upon the cross-cultural ideal of European elegance and Australian comfort, Subfusco essentially seeks the contrast of sophistication and raw detailing, delivering customers a cutting-edge and unique product. The Subfusco Homme client is a creative professional who has an eccentric and individual personality. He is confident and likes to explore the boundaries of fashion without overdoing it. His confidence lies within himself and his fashion is an added feature to his persona.
VOTE NOW!	The Academee Brand The Academee Brand was formed in 2007 for the forgotten man- the guy that wants his fashion made easy. He’s the guy who likes looking good but doesn’t want to try too hard doing it. He’s the guy that hates looking the same as everyone else. He wants his own fashion identity. The Academee delivers a range of premium street and casual wear that allows guys to create their own looks. Clean styling with a focus on quality and wearability gives guys the chance to be on trend, without being on mass. And most importantly, you don’t have to pay an arm and a leg to look the goods.
VOTE NOW!	The Twelfth Letter To sum our label up in a few words, I would have to say simply difference at an affordable price . . . unisex.” The Twelfth Letter to us has definitely been envisioned around the ideas of a clean cut/ comfortable/ appealing, and affordable wardrobe fit to be placed in anyones room regardless of their gender. With strong desires to soon be packing our bags and jumping on a plane over to Europe, the label most definitely has a strong influence from a vast collection of styles throughout europe’s scandinavian countries as we try to work them back to our own level of comfort suitable for the local streets of sydney
VOTE NOW!	ZANEROBE ZANEROBE’s design ethos is deeply entrenched in traditional street wear, synthesized seamlessly with non-conventional, contemporary retrospective themes and applications. The love of framing vintage sporting eras, reviving precious design and social elements, and restoring them faithfully in collections for ‘au courant’ commercial audiences. “ZANEROBE” is implicitly significant to the brand’s design ideology. “ZANE” embodies strength, innovation and success whilst “ROBE” represents the propensity and willingness ‘to wear’. In this regard, ZANEROBE collections are specifically designed to champion confidence, popularize individuality, stimulate examination and nurture responsibility.