Dressed up: Magali Pascal

French-born, Bali-based designer Magali Pascal on style, shopping trends and why she loves Paddington

Magali, tell us about your personal style and what influences your work.

My style is reflective of where I am, but I will always embrace the French nonchalant approach to fashion. Less is more. In Bali, my go-to is a high-waist pair of denim shorts with an oversized or relaxed fitting white blouse, like the Giselle top from my new collection. The lace details elevate the look and mean I can easily transition it from day to night with a few accessories. In Paris, I’ll often wear a pair of high-waist dark denim jeans with heeled boots and a classic white blouse on warmer days. On the cooler days I’ll pair the look with a chic, plain turtleneck. And of course I will always wear a red lipstick.

You live in Bali but have a single retail store in Australia. Why did you choose Paddington for this space?

Paddington has always stood out to me as the place for high fashion in Sydney, so when I was ready to take my brand international I knew I wanted our flagship boutique to be in Paddington. I love the terraced houses around Paddington, each in different colours, with balconies featuring heavy use of cast iron ornaments. The intricate details remind me of Paris. Opening our Paddington boutique is one of my proudest achievements for the brand as it helped us reinforce that we are an international brand.

How have you found people's spending on fashion has changed through the pandemic?

At the beginning of the pandemic everything sort of hit a standstill in terms of shopping for fashion, as people didn’t really know how long this was going to go on or what it meant. Once things settled we began to see an increase in sales online, and once we were able to open our Paddington boutique again (while respecting social distancing and health protocols) we saw our customers shopping for our more casual styles. But by the end of 2020, with most of Australia back to normal, our evening styles were so popular. I think people were ready to wear nice dresses again, and dress up for occasions after spending such a long time working from home.

What do you see as coming trends in women's fashion we should look out for?

Voluminous, blouson sleeves are definitely on trend this season and I think that’s a testament to people wanting to have fun again with their clothes after 2020. I think we will also see more traditionally masculine shapes and cuts for women. We have some incredible styles coming in our 2021 collections which I can’t wait to share with our Paddington customers.

Magali Pascal

Shop 14/2, 16 Glenmore Rd

magalipascal.com