Shop The Best Resortwear Trends From Australian Fashion Week

As you begin to book summer trips and input OOO requests, it’s also time to start filling your cart with fun vacation looks. Getaways, after all, are the perfect opportunity to experiment with unexpected, new pieces — things that you may not be as apt to try while running errands or picking up coffee. Enter, the 2023 resortwear trends at AfterPay Australian Fashion Week. This season, designers shone a spotlight on optimistic and daring styles, including rainbow prints, body bags, fringe details, tropical motifs, and triangle bikini tops. (Sydney is well-known for its beaches, surf culture, and swimwear, after all.)

The driving look of the moment? Big, bright, and bold. Elements such as ROYGBIV color schemes, embellishment, and hothouse florals reflect a mood-elevating, hopeful type of dressing that so many people are embracing after a long stretch of wearing loungewear. This enthusiasm for nostalgic fashion and more maximalist sartorial endeavors is the ideal energy for a vacation aesthetic.

On the Australian runways, a few standout designers did a particularly great job at pushing this adventurous vibe forward, giving us the escapism and inspiration that we want from both fashion and travel. For example, see Wynn Hamlyn, who combined bright knitwear, sportswear, and modern tailoring, and the duo behind Bassike, Mary Lou Ryan and Deborah Sams, whose collection brilliantly married bold color blocking, tropical prints, and layered beachwear.

Ahead, TZR details these brands and more to keep your resort wardrobe inspired. Keep scrolling to shop our favorite vacation-ready trends that will have you booking your flights and packing your bags.

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She’s A Rainbow

Optimistic, post-lockdown dressing is here and summer is the perfect time to embrace it in your wardrobe. Painterly prints in vivid colors are taking over everything from ready-to-wear to accessories. Afterpay Australian Fashion Week was no exception: Brands like Auteur, Erik Yvon, and Romance Was Born did not shy away from rainbow prints in statement dresses featuring ruffles and cut-outs. These happy-making hues were carried throughout the Erik Yvon and Romance Was Born collections with a focus on artful patterns.

This may seem like an ambitious way of dressing, especially if you usually opt for more simple looks in neutral tones... but what better place to switch things up than vacation? If you are hesitant to wear eye-popping shades all over, opt for a vibrant bag instead to pop with a neutral fit.

Free Hands

Warmer weather always means less pocket space, so picking just the right bag is key. You want to balance fashion, function, and (if you’re anything like me) room in your brimming suitcase. The Sydney runways made a case for bags that attach to the body for ease, efficiency, and travel safety. Swim-forward brand Matteau showed belt bags worn with a variety of resort looks, including over elevated one-piece swimwear, while chic label Bassike paired a necklace bag with a sporty turquoise look — complete with a neoprene catsuit!

Many luxury brands offer versions of these hands free pouches and purses, whether the drape around your neck or cinch on your midsection. Pro tip: Go for a neutral shade that will match a majority of your travel wardrobe. And remember, these bags also aren’t limited to summertime, so invest in one that can take you through the year and that can be worn multiple different ways.

String Things

This resort season made a case for free-spirited trimming that feels elegant enough for an after-dark occasion. Brands like Esse Studios and Aje debuted long, layered fringe on midi dresses and floor-length skirts — all dressed up with refined silhouettes like blazers and heels — to elevate the tactile touches. The playfulness and movement of the fringe added animation to the otherwise serious looks, making for ideal summer-night looks.

To wear this trend throughout the warm-weather months, try a fun skirt or dress in a classic, understated shape — that way the fringe will be the main event! Look for fringe that is short and swishy or long and stringy; those feel most modern. And to dress the statement detail down for daytime, pair it with sneakers or flat sandals.

Flower Bomb

Of course, florals always lend themselves to vacation wear. But this resort 2023 season, the motif felt extra special in the form of oversized hothouse blooms. For instance, just look to Aussie-favorite Aje (who bedecked their gowns and suiting with head-turning florals) and New Zealand-based designer Wynn Hamlyn (he focused on cool-girl hues smartly paired with sensible Salomon sneakers). This trend was also seen scattered throughout the spring/summer 2022 runways and is quickly becoming synonymous with this summer’s kitschy, surfer-girl aesthetic.

These sort of tropical-chic pieces pair best with playful shell jewelry and colorful crochet. Think back to the puka-shell necklaces you brought back from a family vacay or your totally-validated obsession with the movie Aquamarine for the vibe.

Triangle Tops

In true early aughts’ fashion, triangle tops are back. But according to the Australian runways, they’re not just for trancing around the pool or the beach. Designers provided new styling notes on the triangle top for the resort 2023 season by pairing it with full ready-to-wear looks for beach-to-bar style. Both Australian brands Matteau and Bondi Born are well-known, especially to the US market, for their luxury swimwear. So, it comes as no surprise that they effortlessly incorporated swim into their runway looks.

Triangle tops are the perfect, vacation-ready twist on the bralette top and exposed bra trends that we saw covering the runways for spring summer 2022. For vacation, trade in your pretty satin bralette for a cute triangle top to stay beach-ready at all times. Wear it under a silk set, crochet dress — or with just a skirt if you’re feeling extra daring.