It’s the 30th year of Melbourne Fashion Week and on the streets of the city there are hints of 1995, the year it all started.

“I’ve seen a little bit of PVC action coming back in; I’m all about that and lots of other nineties-inspired looks,” creative director Matthew Flinn said.

“It’s great to see some of the trends and themes and subcultures that we were celebrating in the nineties back on the runway.”

The merits of nineties style aside, Monday morning offered a sneak-peek runway ahead of Fashion Week’s first catwalk show in the evening.

It opened with a casual outfit from ALPHA60 constructed with pleated panels – a loose orange top over flowing black pants.

James McKerracher’s menswear look featured a white dress shirt with an exaggerated collar, above a structured skirt with the features of a suit including the pocket square.

Then the “rite of spring” began: Aje offered up the ultimate peony party dress – a short, hot pink number with massed whorls of fabric below the shoulders.

A stand-out from Sean Rentero was a structured symmetrical dress that could have been an orchid, with protruding petals of silky fabric and colours graduating from light grey to blueberry.

A bridal look from Wa-ring ticked all the boxes for a traditional white gown with gloves, a bow and panels of lace, but managed to be utterly contemporary with its use of off-white and a spectacular headpiece.

As often happens, Melbourne’s weather did not get the fashion memo but the VIPs turned out in outfits inspired by spring, replete with flowers both embroidered and printed (and no PVC in sight).

TikTok influencers Ginger and Carman were enjoying the show: Ginger in a white crochet top, harem pants and a long silvery printed coat.

Carman was sporting sparkly pants, a green shawl and lace top with designer sunglasses.

Were they Gucci? Op-shop Gucci, she emphasised.

They weren’t saying whether the nineties were back but agreed that fashion was about feeling good regardless of the era.

“Anything goes, I don’t care what decade it comes from as long as you love wearing it,” Ginger said.

Fashion Week features 100 events across seven days at venues including Melbourne Museum, the Victoria Market, the city’s town hall and Little Bourke St.

Participating designers include Aje, ALPHA60, Bec + Bridge, Clothing the Gaps, Erik Yvon, Grace Lillian Lee, INJURY, J’Aton, MAARA Collective, Mariam Seddiq, nevenka, Ngali, Oroton, Rebecca Vallance and Reigner.

This post was originally published on Michael West.