MyPetsQuare loves you, and you will love them too. Two Sydney girls with a desire to design and create form the basis of this label. Vicki Lee and Angelique May-Bennett play with the idea of individualism and the longing to stand out from the crowd. MyPetsQuare can be found lurking in inner-city streets and on the backs of kids dancing the night away. This label is easy to wear (I mean, in the sense that you can throw it on and look good without trying) and it is taking over the Sydney fashion scene one pet lover at a time.

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I breathed a sigh of relief when I first discovered menswear label, Saint Augustine Academy. Since its inception in 2002, the Sydney-based team have risen to cult-status amongst individuals with a keen eye for sophistication and intelligent design. Playing on the lifestyle of a modern rock and roll star, the designers at Saint Augustine Academy are heavily inspired by the rock nouveau ethos that surrounded bands like The Jesus and Mary Chain. Designers Alvin Manalo and Adrian Amores met in the mid-90s whilst studying economics at Macquarie University (not exactly feeling destined for fashion design). As chief designer, Alvin had no fashion design skills before beginning the label, but has since created consistently contemporary and sought-after designs each season.

Abstracted tees with off -centered cuts, tailored tuxedo jackets and skinny denim are key staples of the Academy’s aesthetic. Saint Augustine Academy focuses upon an underlying elegance with a strong emphasis on sharp cuts and unexpected prints. The limited colour palette that the label uses insists upon maintaining the rock star lifestyle in darker, night-life tones. The latest collection to come from the Academy is Psycho Candy 08/09. All I can say, is boys beware; this could change your outlook on fashion, in a very good way.

Pioneering Australian designer Kara Smith can definitely give Urban Originals a run for their money. She creates the most innovative handbags for those that truly want to stand out. Detailed with lovely pockets and vintage buttons, Smith’s retro inspired designs literally transform original vintage fabrics into ‘one-off’ clutches, handbags, totes and accessories. I’m in love with her clutches! But yes, if you missed her over the week end at the Blue Mountain’s Leura Village Fair, she’s stocked in Glebe and Sydney’s Todae store, as well as at a variety of online outlets.

If you’ve ever wanted to work your alter ego’s dark side without looking like a total emo, now’s your chance. New kid on the block Ben Pollitt is shaking things up with his label Friedrich Gray. And the best part about it? Pollitt’s androgynous range has a little something something for everyone. From skinny legs and low crutch pants, to long-length T-shirts and tanks – this is gear that’ll have you looking all discreet and mysterious. These garments are just as luxurious as they are dark. But don’t go getting all melancholy on us. With a bit of luxury in your life, dressing in black has never looked brighter.

There’s a fun range of prints up on the Boo Ware site, a Sydney based t-shirt label that began selling at the legendary Paddington Markets in 2003. You can still find them there every Saturday morning. Their tees are ‘soft and comfortable with original, quirky prints’.

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