Drawing together art, fashion and magical whimsy, Romance Was Born are a fashion label with a meticulous eye for detail and a unique perspective that leads inevitably to brash, daring collections season after season. Even when all the others have forsaken colour and ostentation for more somber, practical collections in the current oppressive economic climate, Romance Was Born never fail to proverbially ‘stick it to the man’, and remain steadfastly as bold and creative as ever.

Constantly pushing boundaries, Romance Was Born’s high impact clothing is fast becoming a household name in their native Australia, and having just won the prestigious L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival Designer Award presented by Woolmark, the young label is set to take on the world. Bursting with not only imagination but with master craftsmanship, proud Romance Was Born designers Luke Sales and Anna Plunkett (recently named Yen magazine’s Young Woman of the Year) take time out of their busy schedule to talk to Dazed Digital about their plans for world domination, their relentless attention to detail and that simultaneously simple yet confusing philosophy of ‘more is more’…

Dazed Digital:How old are you?
Romance Was Born: Anna is 26, Luke is 27.

DD: How did you meet?
RWB: At college, East Sydney Tech, we saw each other as competition!

DD: What prompted you to start designing together?
RWB: We entered a competition called ITS #4 after graduating and we were selected,so we went to Europe and it sort of opened our eyes up about the possibilities of what you can actually do!

DD: What inspires you?
RWB: Music, film clips, dogs, animals in general, books, stories, lies, the truth, mermaids, mythical anything.

DD: What is the Romance Was Born philosophy?
RWB: More is more.

DD: How important is producing your clothing in Australia?
RWB: It's essential for us to have full control on every level with our clothing. If we went off shore it would be very complicated because some of the things we do are so detailed!

DD: What does winning the Woolmark designer of the year award mean for Romance Was Born?
RWB: That we are recognised within the Australian Fashion Industry as credible designers. It's important for us to be seen as designers that are passionate about what they do, not just "successful" if you measure that in dollars.

DD: Are there plans for world domination?
RWB: Definetly, first stop Tokyo!

DD: What's the biggest fashion faux pas someone can make?
RWB: We don't know if there are any... You know when sometimes something is so bad it can be really good! (Or maybe just in our eyes?)

DD: Can we buy Romance Was Born anywhere in Europe, the UK or online?
RWB: Yeah man! Go to Ksubi in NY, Diablo Rosso in Panama City, Children Of Vision in NZ, Know It Nothing in Singapore or Sevenohseven in Indonesia.