Essaye

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Australian designed and made women’s clothing

Essaye is the off-shoot clothing label of Surface Art which is best known for producing Australian-designed and Australian-made homewares and original screen-printed fabrics.

I created the Essaye women’s clothing label when the Surface Art A-line skirts, tunic dresses and tees started to take centre stage over the homewares and by-the-metre fabrics.

Simple designs that are clever with colour and form

Essaye clothing is about simple designs that are clever with colour and form. Essaye is unapologetically a “clothing” not a “fashion” label. Essaye is built around some staple styles that have proven popular with loyal Essaye customers year upon year - with some style variations added with each range. The clothing is made to last, so it can be worn and loved season after season. Essaye is an alternative to fast fashion, you could say it is “slow fashion”.

The clothing is made primarily from natural fibres; most are 100% cotton fabrics with some linens, and perhaps a small percentage of spandex to provide stretch and form.

Essaye ranges with original prints and complementary plains

There are two seasonal Essaye clothing ranges each year, spring/summer and autumn/winter. With each range, I introduce new original prints and complementary plains. My prints are inspired by nature, art and design movements, 1950s retro, Scandi design, and everyday objects, such as a patterned plate.

Wear season after season and all year round

Essaye also maintains an all-year-round, AYR, range which showcases perennially favourite prints and styles. The AYR range is curated bi-annually.

Many styles layer well. Add some tights and a long sleeve knit top under a tunic dress for those cooler days, and team with a woolly cardigan or your favourite jacket and boots.

Original digital and screen printed fabrics

Essaye is now producing digitally printed fabrics in addition to screen printed fabrics. Digital printing uses less dyes and pigments than screen printing, and less energy and chemicals than preparing screens, and there is no need to wash screens.

Digital printing has enabled Essaye to offer a wider range of fabric types, as well more colours in the designs.

Essaye will continue to produce a selection of original screen-printed fabrics as the screen-printing technique offers some advantages over digital printing; the ink is applied more thickly and colours are more vivid and more durable. Screen printing is also better suited to printing placement prints on dark tees, tops and skirts.

Dresses, skirts, tees, tops and pants

Essaye ranges regularly include printed dresses, plain dresses, A-line skirts, denim skirts, placement print tees, plain tees and tops, and pants. Wear Essaye with your wardrobe staples or find complete outfits to mix and match.

Australian made women's clothing

When you buy Essaye you support Australian industry; the screen printing and making happens in the local neighbourhood. Essaye is committed to making garments in Australia. Read more about Surface Art, Essaye and Theadora Jones Sustainability and Ethics.