The monk in the amusement arcade was trying to win a giant plush condom (chocolate flavoured) from a claw machine.
City of Sydney, I thank you for richly weird moments like that. Monks aren’t supposed to have any use for condoms, and it’s unclear which marketing genius felt a happy, friendly contraceptive (complete with big eyes and love hearts) would make a great cuddly toy. They also got the, erm, proportions wrong – the man who could fit into a condom like that would have to walk like John Wayne.
I digress. In addition to its sometimes wacky charm, Sydney has a certain style. I’d say it is more relaxed than Melbourne’s – in the 30 degree heat of last weekend, one in two Sydneysiders in the city centre had opted for thongs. Dressier Melbourne in winter was full of women in perfectly coordinated ensembles topped off with chic little hats, the look being demurely sexy like Carla Bruni on a state visit.
That’s not to say Sydney doesn’t have women who look like catwalk models 24/7. In the Strand Arcade, a thin beauty in an immaculate white frock set off with tan coloured accessories looked like a devastatingly gorgeous Hong Kong movie star. Outside Chinatown’s Chat Thai, a hen’s night party all arrived in cute dresses and Gucci bags, a (literally) well-heeled urban tribe.
But Sydney also has a fun side when it gets dressed and it’s great to look at the punk rockers in their leather and chains, quite often spoiling the cheap ‘n’ surly look with brilliant smiles. Look for spiked blue hair or gaggles of girls arrayed in fanciful outfits and endless accessories that wouldn’t look out of place in Harajuku. Be prepared that, as a Canberran, you’ll probably be one of the most conservative people in sight.
But Sydney has its share of people gadding about in what can only be called style faux pas: trashy fringe dresses, blue denim vests over red turtlenecks teamed with jeans, tops that don’t quite cover a saggy muffin middle, and skintight camouflage print teamed with skintight camouflage print. And me. Boy, did I get it wrong. The Macquarie Bank was dripping dirty water last weekend and this meant an outfit change was necessary, so I put on a new Kylie Hawkes top. But long top + shorts = that unfortunate and troublesome look of having gone out sans pants.
I found Kylie Hawkes the brand and Kylie Hawkes the person on a sunny Sunday at the markets at the Rocks. Hawkes started her label in 2006 after winning a grant from Australian Business Ltd. The University of Technology, Sydney, graduate was nominated for the Design Institute of Australia’s graduate of the year award.
On the weekend, she was wearing a shirt of her own design matched with a necklace by New Zealand style queen Karen Walker. Her clothes – picnic perfect frocks in pastels with cheeky names like the “Hello Sailor” dress – are of a near flawless construction.
“I’m very fussy,” she said.
Her designs are currently stocked only in her stalls in Sydney markets, a shame as it would be nice if some of that sunny Sydney style could be accessed in the capital.