To celebrate the launch of her latest collections, Hunter + Gatherer and The Bowerbird Collective, the stunning Samantha Wills hosted an evening at FortyFiveDownstairs, where guests could preview the latest ranges and hear the inspirations behind the collections from the designer herself.
General Manager of Samantha Wills, Sarah Moore, ran through the details of the new ranges. Samantha’s muse this season has moved to Paris and is inspired by her journeys and the whimsical Parisian lifestyle. Both Hunter + Gatherer and The Bowerbird Collective reflect Wills’ love of the bohemian luxe aesthetic. Based on a colour palette of peach, stormy tabacco, earth tone, antique gold, and Wills’ signature turquoise, each piece has been carefully constructed to reflect the collections’ inspirations of travel and all things exotic. With the average sale price of $140 for the Hunter + Gatherer collection and $118 for The Bowerbird collection, Wills’ pieces aim to give consumers a beautiful, quality product at an accessible price point.
Wills spoke about the design process behind each collection. Splitting her time between Sydney and New York, Wills does her designing from her New York loft, located in the trendy Meatpacking district. Wills spoke of how her designs are bohemian inspired with a modern luxurious twist. The bohemian element of her designs are focused on spirit, travel and the gypsy lifestyle. The luxury aspect focuses on polish and the finish of each piece. The brand has masculine and feminine elements weaving through it. Wills’ pieces are presented in beautiful, wooden boxes with a masculine edge. When the owner opens the box, inside is a gorgeous, feminine pieces of jewellery, encased in a soft, velvet pouch.
Wills also spoke about her Bridal Collection, entitled Evening Dreaming. The inspiration behind this collection came from Samantha’s time spent in New York during the hot summers. Wills recalls spending evenings with her partner on the roof of his New York apartment to escape the humid weather, waiting for that time in the early morning when the heat would break and the cool breeze would come through. She said the collection was inspired by their conversations, particularly the time spent planning future adventures. Evening Dreaming has a distinct art deco feeling, and was designed with Wills’ core followers in mind, who had grown up with the brand and were now getting married. Bold statement stones were replaced with crystals to give the pieces a more bridal feel.
Currently Wills is working on incorporating her beautiful handwriting into her stationary range illustrated by Kelly Smith from Birdy & Me. She also has plans to launch a homewares collection which will no doubt be as popular as her jewellery line.
You can shop Hunter + Gatherers and The Bowerbird online at Samantha Wills.
Images by Katherine Ng
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