Anne was born to John and Lorna Lewis in Sept of 1958, in the provincial Victorian town of Ballarat.
She is the second eldest of six children and, at an early age, was already displaying a strong artistic and creative talent.
In 1976, she left Ballarat to study fashion design at Emily MacPherson College in Melbourne. Emily MacPherson merged with RMIT in 1977 and so Anne graduated in 1979 with a Diploma of Arts in Fashion from RMIT.
In her second year, she was awarded the Trevor B Kilvington award for Fashion and in 1979 she was awarded the Sir John and Lady MacDonald Award for Fashion Design. She went on to win numerous industry design awards.

After finishing college, Anne started making one-off haute Couture from home. In 1982, she produced her first commercial range to be wholesaled and has gone on to produce 2 collections a year ever since.
The sales soon became too great for Anne's small team to produce at home and a contract was established with Phillipa Frocks to be the manufacturer of the label. However, it wasn't long after, in late 1983, that the Phillipa Frocks business was put on the market and was purchased by Anne and her husband, Bob.
This label, which celebrated it's 25th birthday in 2008 continues to enjoy incredible success and longevity in an industry which can be very fickle. It now sells in all states in Australia as well as being exported to New Zealand.
The label is well known and respected for its very high quality of design, construction and material. Anne's label commands attention due to the deliberate mingling of patterns and rich textures. She excels in detailing her superbly constructed garments, often using exotic combinations of leather, jewels, snakeskin and applique and Cornelli work.
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