EVENT: Cairns Amateurs
The Cairns Amateurs Fashions on the Field is on again this year with many categories over two days of the carnival on September 6 and 7. Having attended Amateurs for the past two years I'm very excited to see what everyone is wearing! No one else does colour quite like the ladies and gents of Queensland and as it's the first major carnival of spring, all eyes will be looking to see what racewear looks are strutting down the stage. Over recent years there have been a number of women from Cairns who have been very successful at the Melbourne Cup Carnival Fashions on the Field so the standard is very high and the competition attracts many competitors from interstate.
The categories for 2013 are as follows-Ladies Day (Friday), September 6· Open Ladies Racewear· Millinery Award (judged from entrants in both Open Racewear categories)· Gold Class (Ladies 50 years and over)· Best Emerging DesignersThis category is open to any person without commercial design experience and encourages outstanding racewear design. The Garment and Millinery component must be designed and made by the entrant. There is a first prize for Best Emerging Designer and a runner-up for Best Emerging Milliner.
Amateur Cup Day (Saturday), September 7· 25 & Under Ladies· Open Classic Ladies Racewear· Best Dressed Couple categories· Open Men's Racewear
For full details of the judging criteria and for pre-registration click hereIf you're thinking of entering I would suggest making sure you have a good look at the judging critera. Having judged at Cairns Amateurs previously it was certainly pulled out and referred to when making decisions on who would take home the sash. This year I'll be a spectator but I will be posting a few tips from a couple of the judges and what they will be looking for this year. I'll also be snapping photos and posting updates on all the fashion action during the carnival.If you haven't been to Cairns Amateurs before and wish to fully enjoy the Fashions on the Field, you might want to look into booking a seat in the Garden Party Marquee. The heats for Fashions on the Field are held here so you have a great view of all the fashion action. As a bonus it's airconditioned inside if you can't cope with the tropical heat. For details click hereThe Carlton MID Amateurs Carnival has a number of events and functions on too. Jessica Mauboy will be guest performer at the annual ball. Check it out
The categories for 2013 are as follows-Ladies Day (Friday), September 6· Open Ladies Racewear· Millinery Award (judged from entrants in both Open Racewear categories)· Gold Class (Ladies 50 years and over)· Best Emerging DesignersThis category is open to any person without commercial design experience and encourages outstanding racewear design. The Garment and Millinery component must be designed and made by the entrant. There is a first prize for Best Emerging Designer and a runner-up for Best Emerging Milliner.Amateur Cup Day (Saturday), September 7· 25 & Under Ladies· Open Classic Ladies Racewear· Best Dressed Couple categories· Open Men's RacewearFor full details of the judging criteria and for pre-registration click hereIf you're thinking of entering I would suggest making sure you have a good look at the judging critera. Having judged at Cairns Amateurs previously it was certainly pulled out and referred to when making decisions on who would take home the sash. This year I'll be a spectator but I will be posting a few tips from a couple of the judges and what they will be looking for this year. I'll also be snapping photos and posting updates on all the fashion action during the carnival.If you haven't been to Cairns Amateurs before and wish to fully enjoy the Fashions on the Field, you might want to look into booking a seat in the Garden Party Marquee. The heats for Fashions on the Field are held here so you have a great view of all the fashion action. As a bonus it's airconditioned inside if you can't cope with the tropical heat. For details click hereThe Carlton MID Amateurs Carnival has a number of events and functions on too. Jessica Mauboy will be guest performer at the annual ball. Check it out
By Angela Menz
Once you've decided which day you'll be attending the races to enter Fashions on the Field, it's a good idea to see what categories will be open on the day. Check if there are any rules you must adhere to for entry. Millinery for ladies is always a requirement, and sometimes there might be more specific rules about hem lengths or colour themes for example. I'm all for breaking the the unwritten rules of Fashion on the Field but if there's specific rules of entry you must follow them, or you might find yourself turned away at the registration desk. Check any judging criteria listed, because that's what the judges will refer to when trying to decide on their winners. I also find it good to see if there's any extra details in the local newspapers about Fashions on the Field competitions.
If you can, prior to the event check out how the competition will run. Not all Fashions on the Field competitions involve lining up on stage in heats, although the majority do. Some competitions may require you to pose for a photograph, or be selected by spotters. For the bigger competitions you might be required to return for the finals at a later date. On the day details that might be handy to know include if you will need to line up for a long time to enter the heats? Or if you make the final will it be held much later in the day? Also will you need to collect votes if you make the final? This isn't about how to Win Fashions on the Field, but important if you want to place bets on the horses and try your luck punting. It also means you can plan out your day at the track. Knowing how the competition works might help you to relax if you're feeling nervous.
Check the registration times and give yourself plenty of time to arrive on course and make your way to the Fashions on the Field desk. If there is pre-registration, sign up prior to the event so you have one less thing to worry about on the day. I also plan out all my travel times to and from the track and allow a buffer just in case something goes wrong. This year I had a taxi not show up and another time there was rail works so my trip to the races took much longer than expected. Lisa and I both have examples of learning this the hard way. The first time I went to Mornington there was a delay with the trains and the trip from Melbourne ended up taking three hours with an extra half hour being stuck lining up at the gate. I just made the heat after phoning the club and telling them I was on the way, but now I'm always extra careful. For Lisa one Oaks day she was calling a friend and I from a taxi because there was a delay in traffic. Lucky she's a fast runner and she sprinted from the entrance at Flemington to Fashions on the Field and was the last contestant on stage for the competition. It was well worth it as she made the next round!Now for some of the nitty gritty details. I've had great discussion with many fellow contestants over the years about which heat to go in. Is it best to go in the first heat? Or is it best to go in the last heat? Should you stay away from certain contestants because you don't want to compete against them on stage. I've come to realise that it almost never matters. Certainly if someone was wearing a similar outfit you wouldn't want to stand right next to them but generally the winner is a stand out and the judges will spot the winner regardless of who or what is going on around them. Personally I try to separate in heats from good friends because then you have the chance to take nice photos and cheer for each other.
If there's two or more categories you can enter, should you save your outfit to wow the judges and only enter one category? I never know how someone else will see my outfit. So what I see as classic, might be contemporary for another. I enter what I can on the day because a judge might see your outfit differently to yourself.Familiarise yourself with the stage before your heat. Ensure you know where you have to walk to and where you have to stop and show off your outfit. You'll feel more confident if you know what you have to do onstage. If in doubt, follow the person before you and listen and look out for a friendly organiser to help you out with when to leave the stage.
Finally it's important to dress for the race day you're attending. Often I see stunning outfits but they have been worn on the wrong day. If you're a regular racegoer or observer of the races you'll know each race day has its own feel or theme to it. Back in 2003 Elizabeth Gaunt wore her outfit to Derby Day and didn't make it past the first round. She then (following the advice of a journalist) returned on Oaks Day in the same outfit and went home with the winners sash. Her feminine dusty pink and bronze silk outfit didn't look right for Derby Day, but was perfect for Oaks. If in doubt and don't know where to start have a look at photos from the previous years event. Many race clubs put photos up online and on their facebook pages.
Back to the competition, to enter I had to submit a photo online of myself dressed in an outfit I would like to be sketched in. From the entries received forty five finalists were invited into Westfield Doncaster to be sketched live by fashion students. Then from the forty five finalists one lucky winner would be chosen to be sketched by Megan Hess and take home a Westfield voucher. I was lucky enough to be chosen as one of the forty five finalists to be sketched. The outfit I chose to wear was one of my racing outfits I made that I wore to Warrnambool in May this year. My artist was Alexis who told me she was studying at RMIT. I was shocked when as we were chatting she said she was only in her first year! I studied fashion for three years, but drawing was never my strength so I'm always very impressed when I meet people that can draw and paint. I had to stand in the Sketch House in my outfit as customers walked past for about an hour as Alexis worked on my illustration.
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