Dress up …Yarraville designer Barbara Duggan is relaunching her fashion career with the help of daughter Ava. 64646 Picture: SARAH MATRAY
By Charlene Gatt
YARRAVILLE fashion designer Barbara Duggan is a firm believer that little girls should be dressed like little girls.
So it’s no surprise that after a six-year extended maternity leave, Ms Duggan is back to the drawing board, this time designing outfits for little girls under the label Sunshine and Daydreams.
The line is inspired by ballet costumes and a sense of fun, and five-year-old daughter Ava is a more than willing model for her mum’s designs.
“I want little girls looking like little girls, and not growing up too soon,” Ms Duggan said.
“I’ve noticed a few children wearing mini-skirts and tight t-shirts and I just think little girls should have fun.”
Ms Duggan will launch the label on 11 June at Yarraville Market.
The designer is no stranger to having her own label, running women’s demi-couture label Cicciolina between 1997 and 2004.
This time around, she is charting her progress through a blog, also named Sunshine and Daydreams, where she also writes about her love affair with Yarraville.
“I always thought I’d go back, but being a mum turned out to be a full-time job. I love it, but I’ve always had the urge to go back,” she said.
“I didn’t even have a computer when I did Cicciolina… but I just found it addictive. I just love it.”
Ms Duggan plans to restart the Cicciolina line later this year and open an online store.
Her ultimate dream is to have a store in Yarraville.
“I love Yarraville and I think it’s only going up and up and I’d love to have a studio upstairs as well,” she said.
