Albus Lumen’s Marina Afonina was one of the early authors of the easy, minimally inclined resort look that’s become synonymous with Australian fashion. It makes her eschewing all things linen and cotton for pre-fall an interesting swerve in the story of her brand, which was founded on undone daywear. “It’s hard sometimes to make linen feel elevated,” she said at a preview of the collection. “It can look quite basic. It crinkles. Now there’s so much of it out there, it’s hard to stand out.”
Elevated was the headspace she tapped instead, a slinky evening mood prevailing in light silks and delicates. “A bit more elegant than what we’ve done before,” she said. Staying one step ahead of the resort pack who’ve trod in her footsteps, she presented a considered spectrum of liquid gowns in loosely 1930s shapes and slender column dresses, embellished and more lavish than anything that came prior but never outside her core. It was glamour with the low-key Albus Lumen treatment.
There was an easy opulence to a double-faced chocolate opera coat, like a modern peignoir, with a matching dress, both scattered with black crystals. Afonina doesn’t do prints, so she debuted a polka dot done her way—via hand-applied jet stones on ivory. Even the showiest of the pieces had a beachside mood: The second-skin iridescence of dresses and a shimmering coat in seafoam was achieved with sheer sequins, suggesting the glassy Sydney waves glinting in the morning sun. “It gives you a sense of fluidity and shimmer, but nothing is too much,” she said. Silk made up the majority of the collection, from roomy trousers to sheer chiffon and satin paneled skirts. A top-marks deployment: a cape top that can be worn separately from its matching dress to cover the arms on cooler nights.
Celebrating 10 years of her label this year, Afonina remains attentive to the brand DNA; that’s why a silhouette that’s years-old, a drop-waist batwing gown, returned in black with a spray of embellishment. It’s at the highest price point but a top-seller. As are her netted pearl pendants and, she hopes, a to-come capsule collection in jersey, plus accessories drops outside of seasonal collections, like the north-south crystal net bags. Ideas are coming fast after difficult pandemic times. “This year feels like freedom,” said Afonina. “We’re doing our thing, and it’s working.”
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