ELK x BANGIN' HANGINGS

 To celebrate ELK featuring at this year's Melbourne Fashion Week and showcase our latest arrivals from the GLEAM collection, we decided to have a bit of fun with our window display at our Little Collins store.

We called on the inspiring Sarah, owner of Bangin Hangings, to help transform our city store into a colourful playground of streamers inspired by our Arden Print, an original design created in house at ELK HQ.

We chatted to Sarah to hear about how Bangin Hangings began, her creative inspirations and sustainability journey.

What sparked your curiosity to start working with streamers?
Our wedding! Mike and I are naturally colourful individuals, so the project was born out of a desire to bring colour to our love party. My buddy Cassie from @firecrackerevents encouraged me to make something of it and we joked about the name Bangin Hangins over a late-night drink. It stuck!

Your installations are full of colour and fun, where do you draw your inspiration?
Lots of places! I do love a spot of gardening, so plants, floral arrangements and landscapes can be quite inspiring. I also love a good Pinterest sesh ogling colourful fashionistas and edgy interiors that indulge the colour spectrum. If you really want to get me excited, show me some colour blocking in any format. Watch my pupils widen!

Alongside your streamers are often the likes of balloons, confetti, floral arrangements and even doughnuts from other creatives. Do you have any other mediums you enjoy working with?
I've always been a hands-on kind of person, so I've tried lots of things. I studied fashion back in the day, I love playing with florals, and I spent a few years learning pottery with the lovely Ilona from @cone11ceramics. These days I'm continuing my obsession with colour in the form of blocking shapes and patterns. Its a work in progress!

What steps do you take in your business to be sustainable?
We've developed a range of pieces that we offer for hire. When we first started out, we used to sell our pieces, but we found it was very expensive for the client, and they didn't get used very much after the initial installation. We find the hire setup gives our clients a more achievable price point and allows them to mix and match the colours between events without having to commit to a set. We also feel better about our impact on the environment as we are not contributing to the single-use plastic cycle. 

On that theme, we have also developed a range which has specifically been made out of recycled plastic bags. These pieces are translucent in nature and beautiful in an aerial application. 

Describe your perfect hanging. What are the elements? 
I love a windy installation. Some of the best installs have been amazing purely just because of the activation the wind brings to the piece. I could watch it for hours. A good example of this was a mega piece we did on the front of Pentridge Prison in Coburg. The contrast in colour to the heritage scape setting was pretty rad. 

What is your favourite ELK piece from the GLEAM season and why?  
I'm not biased or anything, but the Arden Print Top is pretty Bangin! ... I'll take a pair of the Medby Emerald Green Sneakers too! They are so comfortable and my feet are so happy they go up to a size 42.

Visit us at 182 Little Collins Street to see Sarah's awe-inspiring display during Melbourne Fashion Week.

Receive a free gift with purchase at our Little Collins store between Thursday 28th August until Wednesday the 4th of September on full-priced items. Click here for the full terms and conditions.

Our new GLEAM collection will feature at the Town Hall Runway 6 on Wednesday the 4th of September at 8:30pm. To purchase tickets, click here.