theINSIDER Ingrid Starnes

“We just opened our store on Jervois Road. We are sharing a space with Tessuti which works really well, it’s great to be able to share some of the costs but also have such beautiful things to compliment ours. We’re not online yet – not sure when that will happen. For now we just want to concentrate on retail and slowly grow into the Australian market. Our goal is to get the company to a point where it pays for itself [laughs].

I studied fashion design at AUT for four years, then I worked with a wedding dress designer for a wee while before getting a job at Kate Sylvester. I started as a sample room junior and then became a pattern maker. There are so many advantages to starting as a real junior – sure there were times when it was frustrating but now that I am running my own business and doing everything myself I know a lot going into it.

I make most of my samples myself; I find it much quicker that way. I also work out lots of things as I create the garments – lots of details from mucking around with them. If the pieces were in production then I wouldn’t know, I wouldn’t see what is happening in each step of the process.

I’m not one to do big themes for each collection, but for the next there’s lots of colour, lots. It’s quite strong and I’ve done my own print.

When it comes to my beauty regime, I’m pretty basic but I do love using nice products and I especially love having nice hair. I have three sisters, we were all into makeup, so was our Mum. She once encouraged me to dye my hair platinum blonde – it looked like a volcano had erupted on my head, it went orange and then white. Lucky I was young! My mum laughed hysterically and I was crying. I don’t think we imagined it would turn out like that. I must have been about 18 or 19 at the time. That’s the only serious faux pas I can think of. Oh I did try going brunette once – that was terrible, didn’t suit it at all, I think my face is too pink or something – didn’t suit brown. I don’t tend to use too many hair products; my hair is quite thin so they tend to make it go greasy. It can go quite curly if it’s cut short, it’s kind of in-betweenish at the moment.

I use a lot of Jurlique products – they just seem to work. I love the moisturizer, it’s kind of thick and creamy and feels really good. I also really love the cleanser and the almond and rolled oats scrub. I’ve used Jurlique for a while, I guess I’m open to change, but I do really like this brand.

I don’t wear heaps of makeup – just foundation, blusher, eyeliner and mascara. At the moment I am using an Estee Lauder mascara, Lancome eyeliner. I actually use Elizabeth Arden lipstick as blusher – always have. I like the way it blends in. I use a Revlon New Complexion foundation religiously – I love it and have literally used it for years. Sometimes I freak out that they might take it off the market. What I love about it is that people don’t even know I’m wearing foundation – it’s not too powdery.

I’ve been working with Shirley from MAC – she’s creating the makeup look for our New Zealand Fashion Week show. It’s great because she’s got the show experience. I give her references and ideas but at the end of the day she knows what will work on the catwalk and what won’t.”

- as told to Tamsin