Behind The Seams - Glimmer

Where do magical ideas come from? For Kelly Coulter, Sylvia P’s Senior Fashion & Brand Designer, they’re found in the soft shimmer of sunlight on ocean waves, the bold burst of colour in a fairy’s wing, or the fizz of a raspberry soda on a summer day.

Introducing Glimmer, Sylvia P’s latest collection inspired by the small, sparkling moments of everyday joy that light us up from the inside out. In this exclusive Q&A, we go behind the seams with Kelly to explore the creativity, colour and pure magic that brought Glimmer to life.

What is your role at Sylvia P?

My name is Kelly Coulter, I am the Senior Fashion & Brand Designer here at Sylvia P. I have been in the fashion and design industry for over 16 years, building an exceptionally creative career since finishing high school in Brisbane. I went straight into the TAFE Qld Fashion Design programme and have worked at various brands across Australia and in London, UK. A few of my specialities include print and textile design, designing for the activewear market and conceptualising creative concepts. My drive is to live a life in full colour, to treat to world like it is a runway and inspire the younger generation to be unafraid to pursue a creative life.

Where did the idea for the Glimmer collection come from? What inspired it?

The Glimmer Collection sprang from noticing glimmers in my own life, those small moments of happiness, a small spark of hope and love or fun. I am the girl who is always taking one million photos, and always has her head in the sky, looking up at the rainbows, the clouds, the moon, noticing how a flower shimmers in the sun with a light breeze, how the light sparkles on an ocean's wave crashing. Colour is the biggest inspiration to me. I wear bright, bold colours and patterns every day, and I wanted to create a collection that is full of glimmering moments of joy for our gymnastics community to enjoy. When you see or notice a glimmer in your daily life, that happiness and joyful energy follows you around all day long, just like magic.

What does the word ‘Glimmer’ mean to you? Why did you choose that name?

To me, the word glimmer means a spark of joy. It means happiness, it means love, and it means creating magic deep within. It is looking out at the turquoise ocean, with the palm trees swaying in the breeze and the sun on your face. It is reading a book that you cannot get your head out of. It is wearing something absolutely frivolous, sparkling and fun just for the pure joy it brings you.

What three words would you use to describe Glimmer?

Dreamlike, Magical and Happiness.

What makes Glimmer different from any other collection Sylvia P has done before?

I wouldn’t say that this collection has been treated differently from any others that we have designed before. The process is the same; each time we design, we turn an idea over and over on its head until we create something purely magical. The Glimmer Collection is no different. We wanted to play with ombre, sparkle and colour with this collection. Many of the prints I have hand-painted or hand-drawn. The way we blended colour in our ombre gradients we did to maximise the way it fades on the body. We also paid extra special attention to our sequin motif designs that are featured on the leotards. We wanted them to be playful, obsessively sparkly and to melt into the design.

This collection features a lot of bold colours and ombres. Can you talk us through some of your favourite prints and colour choices?

I wanted to create an ombre playground for our gymnastics community, which is why we have so many different fading gradient and ombre designs. It’s hard to pick a favourite as they all have such a special meaning.

The Pink Sprite Leotard and Crop Top + Short have been created to feel like wearing a fizzy raspberry drink, oozing with movement and colour.

The Aphrodite Leotard was inspired by goddess energy, the mythical Greek goddess Aphrodite herself. I wanted to create a harmonious blue-tinted dream-scape that shimmered across the body in an asymmetrical design. 

The Pixiebell Leotard all started with thoughts of Tinkerbell from Peter Pan and Tinkerbell’s movie franchise, where a bright, strong-minded fairy proves to the world she is more than capable of anything. We used stronger and deeper colours to feel powerful and radiate energy, with lines coming from the centre like the sun.

The Iridessa Leotard, similarly, started with the idea of a different fairy in the Tinkerbell realm. We wanted this to feel hyper bright, golden and a play on light.

Even the Midnights Leotard and Crop Top + Shorts have that more mysterious feeling, darker and dreamier. Evoking dreams from a child’s dream state, the name itself is inspired by Taylor Swift.

The Fairy Dust Leotard is super special, swirls of hand-drawn fluorescent colours crisscross across the body in a fluid motion, like a fairy’s wings that shimmer with sunlight.

Do you have a favourite style from the collection? What makes it your favourite?

My favourite style, tricky to answer! A tough one, split between the Apple Blossom Leotard and the Aphrodite Leotard. Apple Blossom has these stunning watercolour blooms that I drew and combined with gorgeous blue and green tones. I wanted the colours to really melt into the background and have lots of fresh white lifting the whole design to make it feel springtime special. To add that extra touch of sparkle, I added a shimmering translucent sequin design on top. No matter which way the light shines, the sequins take on a different golden colouring.

What advice would you give young designers or creatives about finding inspiration?

Look everywhere, you never know where you will find it. Collect buttons and ribbons and coloured papers. Always look up into the sky, spend time just drawing and sewing or reading. Listen to music. Immerse yourself in anything that you are passionate about. You are your own inspiration.

What part of the creative process lights you up the most?

Creating the idea, those first moments when you can feel a niggling in your brain and the idea just keeps calling to you, it snowballs and the vision just appears. The creative process is just that. It’s a process, sometimes you think wow this is amazing and other times, well, not every idea works. I also love working on textile prints, creating something special and one-of-a-kind from nowhere. That is pure creativity to me.

From hand-painted prints to ombré playgrounds and sequins that dance with light, Glimmer is more than just a collection; it’s a feeling. A reminder to seek out life’s small sparks of joy and wear them proudly. Whether you're drawn to bold colours, soft gradients or just the spirit of dreaming big, there’s a piece of Glimmer made to reflect your own spark. Find your glimmer, and let it shine.