Marnie Skillings is known for her use of natural fabrics and original prints.

Marnie Skillings debuted her eponymous label in 2000 at Australian Fashion Week, as part of a ready-to-wear group show with three other graduates of Australia's industry incubator, the Fashion Design School at East Sydney Technical College. That first show revealed Skillings's singular abilities to combine a sophisticated feel for cut, colour, print and texture in her work with a very definite sense of fun - all underpinned by a strong narrative thread.

The label is known for its use of natural fabrics - be that soft, washed silks, Italian merino wools, or hand-loomed lace made in France; for its original prints, which the designer creates herself; for its blending of modern shapes and moods with hints of vintage styling; and - perhaps most importantly - its wearability. These clothes have personality without being intimidating or dictatorial. You wear the clothes; they don't wear you.

What the designer calls the "Marnieness" of her garments is perhaps best described in terms of their versatility. "It is a way of dressing that is based around great pieces that can be worked in lots of different ways, for several seasons. It's for a woman who wants to think about what she's wearing, to take an intellectual approach, rather than be told: ‘bang! this is the look of the season, and this is how it's worn.'" 

Skillings and her work have been featured in editorials for all the major glossies, including: Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Nylon, Marie Claire and In-Style, while her celebrity fans include Kylie Minogue and Mischa Barton. In 2006 Skillings was asked to dress rock star siblings The Veronicas for red carpet appearances. Soon afterwards, she was named Pantene Young Woman of the Year in the Fashion category.

Marnie Skillings is stocked in prestigious boutiques throughout Australia, and internationally, in Indonesia, Italy, Canada and the US. In 2007, the Marnie Skillings boutique opened in Sydney's Woollahra, and since then has acquired a niche range of local and international labels that are sold alongside Skillings' own collections.