FAIRFAX & ROBERTS WELCOMES STACEY HEMERA ROBERTS FOR A CELEBRATION OF AUSTRALIAN CRAFT

As Sydney’s spring racing and social season approaches, Fairfax & Roberts is bringing two forms of occasion dressing together. On 5 September, the historic Australian jeweller will host Sydney milliner Stacey Hemera Roberts for her first in-store trunk show, placing hand-constructed headwear alongside fine jewellery in a considered celebration of craftsmanship and individual style.

There is a particular pleasure in an accessory that has been made with the wearer in mind. It can alter the character of an outfit without overwhelming it, introduce a point of colour or structure, or become the detail around which an entire look is composed. For Fairfax & Roberts, this understanding of personal adornment extends naturally beyond jewellery. On Saturday, 5 September 2026, the Sydney jeweller will welcome milliner Stacey Hemera Roberts to its showroom for her first in-store trunk show with the house.

Roberts is known for statement millinery with a fashion-led sensibility, creating limited collections of hand-constructed hats and headwear. Her work encompasses materials and forms designed to give each piece a distinct presence, while maintaining the precision associated with couture-quality millinery. Her collections include felt and straw designs, alongside individual styles that range from sculptural silhouettes to more expressive race-day shapes.

That relationship with occasion dressing is particularly relevant in Sydney, where millinery remains closely connected to the city’s racing calendar. Roberts has been featured by the Australian Turf Club as a milliner and friend of the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival, and her work has appeared within the fashion programme surrounding major racing events. Her designs have also formed part of curated racewear features, placing contemporary millinery within a tradition that continues to evolve with each season.

The Fairfax & Roberts trunk show brings this sensibility into a different setting. Rather than presenting a hat as an isolated fashion accessory, the event creates an opportunity to consider millinery alongside jewellery: two disciplines that rely on proportion, detail, material and the way a piece interacts with the person wearing it.

Both can provide the final punctuation to an occasion wardrobe. A sculptural hat can establish the silhouette of an ensemble from the outset, while earrings, a necklace, bracelet or ring can introduce smaller points of light and texture. The relationship is particularly effective when neither competes for attention. Instead, the pieces create a dialogue between scale and delicacy, structure and movement.

For Fairfax & Roberts, the connection is also rooted in the importance it places on making. The house traces its beginnings to 1842, when Sydney jeweller and optician Richard Lamb established a business after arriving in the city from London. Alfred Fairfax later joined him, and Lamb & Fairfax developed into a fine silver and watchmaking emporium. The business registered its maker’s mark with London’s Assay Office in 1858 and adopted the name Fairfax & Roberts in 1886 following the arrival of investor Oscar G. Roberts.

The company’s heritage is closely tied to Sydney’s development as a centre of Australian craftsmanship and commerce. Its early work included watchmaking and fine silver, before the house became increasingly associated with bespoke jewellery. In 1873, Fairfax & Roberts designed and produced the clock that remains a defining feature of Sydney’s Central railway station. Over subsequent decades, its workshop produced jewellery and objects for prominent Australian families, while its maker’s mark became a sign of the house’s workmanship and authenticity.

Craft remains part of the business today. Fairfax & Roberts maintains an in-house workshop where designers, jewellers and diamond setters collaborate on bespoke pieces, allowing commissions to develop directly between client and maker. The house’s current showroom, opened in 2025 at the corner of King Street and Sydney Arcade in Sydney’s CBD, incorporates both its retail environment and an artisan workshop.

It is this continuity between design and making that gives the collaboration with Roberts its relevance. Her hats are produced by hand in limited collections, with natural materials and individual construction contributing to variations between pieces. Fairfax & Roberts, meanwhile, has maintained a workshop tradition centred on the considered manipulation of precious metals and gemstones. Although the materials and techniques differ, the underlying principle is similar: an object acquires particular character through the decisions made during its creation.

The timing also places the trunk show within a season when accessories naturally assume greater importance. Race days and social occasions invite a more deliberate approach to dressing, and millinery offers one of the clearest opportunities to alter the proportion and mood of an ensemble. Roberts’ work, with its statement silhouettes and strong colour possibilities, is suited to that sense of occasion without requiring a conventional approach to formal dressing.

For visitors to the trunk show, the collection will be available to explore in person, offering an opportunity to see Roberts’ handcrafted pieces at close range and consider their relationship with the jewellery displayed within the Fairfax & Roberts showroom. Pieces presented during the event will also be available to purchase and take home on the day. The trunk show takes place on Saturday, 5 September, from 11 am to 1 pm.

The Fairfax & Roberts showroom is currently located at the corner of King Street and Sydney Arcade, Sydney, NSW 2000. The house’s official contact information confirms the location and current opening hours, while its website remains the definitive reference for showroom visits and consultations

Something is fitting about bringing jewellery and millinery into the same room. Both disciplines occupy a space between fashion and craft, but their lasting appeal lies in the details that cannot be separated from the hand that made them. As Fairfax & Roberts welcomes Stacey Hemera Roberts to its Sydney showroom, the meeting offers a quietly compelling reminder that occasion dressing need not follow a formula. Sometimes, the most distinctive expression comes from choosing pieces with enough character to speak for themselves.