Latest Accolades of a Korean Inventor and Three Fashion Designers

Korean fashion has influenced not just Asians, but also people in the West. This is why many 'fashionistas' are keeping an eye on Korean designers who will present emerging styles that will surely become a trend globally.

Take for example two Korean designers will represent the entire Asia in International Woolmark Prize. Munsoo Kwon (menswear) and J Koo (womenswear) - who both appear in Seoul Fashion Week regularly - will compete with other designers worldwide, according to CNN Style in an Aug 19 article.

Aside from the two, Suecomma Bonnie is also making a name in the fashion industry, particularly in accessories and footwear.

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The international acclaim of these designers show Koreans have a lot more to offer, as new trends emerge every now and then. And not just in fashion, but also in other fields - ingenious design concepts, in particular.

A good example of this is the creation of Korean designer Jang WooSeok who has come up with something to brighten up mornings.

A lot of people agree that a cup of coffee is always a good idea upon waking up in the morning. But how about getting a kiss from the coffee cup? Sounds lovely... and creepy!

Jang has invented a new coffee lid design, which he calls 'Coffee Lid: Take Kiss' Out.' He says the creation is different from the typical coffee lids that people are used to.

"Different from the other coffee lids, which have a usual hole to put a straw or to drink directly, Take Kiss Out looks like a human face," Jang says in his email to Mashable, as reported last week. "Therefore, a coffee drinker experiences a visually funny and emotionally different coffee when drinking."

Jang describes his creation: "I love both coffee and kisses. I always have coffee a day, but kiss can't. So I began to sketch the idea at the cafe. Funny, I imagined people have a pure joy when walking around kiss lid in hand."

"There is only mouth on the lid to start with prototype. However I felt like there was something missing in our early design concept. I realized that touch the noses is essential point in order to feel realistically while I kissed."

He went on, "So I add the nose and face muscle to the lid. Finally, it has the lineaments of that of a Greek statue as well as a friendly face. I am sure that it is an important point to get public attention."

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Missouri Style Week, a showcase for area fashion designers, expands to offer Columbia runway show

Missouri doesn’t typically top many lists for major fashion hubs. Paris, Milan, London, New York … somehow, this region gets overlooked.

And yet, fashion has been an important part of the state’s history. The lucrative fur trade played a major role in the founding of St. Louis in the 1800s, and both St. Louis and Kansas City once had thriving garment districts — think textile mills and shoe factories — up until the 1960s.

“Over the decades, we’ve grown away from that,” said Cillah Hall, publisher of Gazelle STL, a glossy lifestyle magazine in St. Louis.

Still, she said, there is a strong creative current.

“A lot of designers are graduating from Missouri universities,” Hall said.

To recognize the design talent in the state, she and Kristy Lee, an adjunct fashion marketing professor at the Art Institute of St. Louis and fashion editor at Gazelle STL, started Missouri Style Week.
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“We wanted an avenue that gives designers the opportunity to show their work and make connections that help them with their careers,” Hall said.

Missouri Style Week initially was called Missouri Fashion Week. Its first runway shows, held in 2013 in St. Louis, featured collections from 20 designers — most of them from Missouri. About 500 people attended the shows, which were spread out between Friday and Saturday dates.

Building on that success, Hall and Lee produced a second event in 2014, this time renaming it Missouri Style Week so as not to create fear of confusion with St. Louis Fashion Week, a retail-focused show that creates a stage for designers from other parts of the country who are reaching out to customers in the Midwest.

And now Missouri Style Week is expanding to include more designers and reach more viewers.

Last spring, Hall and Lee were invited to participate on the Stephens College School of Design and Fashion’s Jury of Selections, during which a panel of fashion industry experts, including designers, merchandisers and editors, reviews each garment constructed by fashion design students and selects the best to appear in the department’s annual fashion show.

Hall and Lee were impressed. The experience opened their eyes not only to Stephens’ fashion program, but to Columbia as a whole.

“We literally just said, ‘You know what? This is the reason we do Missouri Style Week,’ ” Hall said.

And so just three months away from their third series of runway shows, they decided to add a third evening in Columbia.

The show in Columbia will be held Wednesday at the Plaza Event Center at Parkade Center.

A preshow featuring ensembles from two local boutiques, Swank and Muse, will kick things off.

Anna Coleman, manager at Muse, said the event offers an opportunity to show off the shop’s fall looks.

“Muse has done a few fashion shows in the past, and they are always a really fun way to reach out to the community so we were really excited to be a part of Missouri Style Week’s show,” Coleman said.

The idea of community is integral to the event. Hall described a give-and-take between the designers and attendees. On the one hand, seeing new work can be exciting for fashion fans.

“It’s kind of like going to the movies. You’re not necessarily a movie producer, but you enjoy the art of it. It’s the same thing with fashion. You can shop or you can celebrate it,” Hall said.

And providing this excitement is rewarding for the designers.

“They have a lot of down times where they are doubting themselves. When you have an event like Missouri Style Week, it helps get them going,” Hall said.

The designer lineup that evening is Nasheli Juliana, a professor at Lindenwood University’s fashion design program who also has worked for such well-known names as Donna Karan and Oscar de la Renta; Kara Henry, a 2015 Stephens College graduate; Kechena Richardson, a Kansas City-based designer; Jaer Caban, a Puerto Rican designer who will be showing an entirely different collection in St. Louis later in the week; and Richard Cotto, a student at Lindenwood University and who also will be showing a different collection in St. Louis.

Hall said some of the designers will present ready-to-wear collections, but that many will be more conceptual in nature.

“Generally, the designers that are attracted to us are more excited about the more couture, avant-garde looks. Those are the designs that inspire,” Hall said.

While some might question the value in presenting garments for which a person would be hard-pressed to find occasion to wear it, Hall said these are the designs that inspire new fashions.

“Out of every avant-garde garment, something fresh gets created. It’s inspirational. Nobody wants to go to a fashion show and see something that they’ll see on the rack at a store,” Hall said.

After Wednesday’s runway show, the event moves back to St. Louis where it will resume with a couture show Friday and a conceptual show on Saturday.

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Meet four of Hong Kong's hottest young fashion designers

One of the local designers creating the most buzz at the moment is Kay Kwok, who despite launching his label just two years ago, has already shown at London Fashion Week, where he impressed New York Times fashion editor Suzy Menkes. Kwok is a firm believer in fashion education, which he says has improved drastically in Hong Kong in recent years. His fashion design studies at Hong Kong Polytechnic University gave him the confidence and the skill set to go to the prestigious London College of Fashion (alumni include Jimmy Choo and Patrick Cox) and then to work at Alexander McQueen. "Hong Kong gave me key skills, like pattern cutting and computer-aided design," says Kwok, adding that London further honed his creativity.

Kwok's aesthetic is avant-garde with his last autumn-winter collection featuring UFOs and extraterrestrials. His latest collection is influenced by the themes of futurism and technology, and combines computer-generated prints with asymmetrical cuts and a jaunty colour palette. Kwok says he values creativity over monetary gain, not an obvious choice for many up-and-coming designers. "I was first approached by Joyce after my degree show, but I turned them down as I wasn't ready," says Kwok.

It's an offer that most young Hong Kong designers would give an arm for, but Kwok turned down Joyce two more times before finally letting them buy and sell his collection in their stores. It is this willingness to be patient and learn the trade, he says, that has set him up for long-term success.

Great technical skill and buckets of creativity helped Whosthat garner international attention, highlighted by a nomination for the International Woolmark Prize. Created by designer Meiyi Cheung, the brand was singled out by a panel that included American designer Thom Browne and Cyril Rahon, head buyer at Milanese retailer 10 Corso Como.

Cheung describes her aesthetic as "genteel and exquisite", and says it has a young attitude and subtle sexiness. She's no fan of the fast fashion that dominates Hong Kong and believes that the mindset of Hong Kong consumers is still one of "MTR culture", meaning convenience and price still rule. But, she says, the situation is improving for local designers and will only get better, even if the city's future is becoming more uncertain. "To me, Hong Kong is a great place for business, yet it has been too safe and too comfortable for a long time to generate creativity," she says. "Great creativity always come from challenges and limitations."
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Cheung has, however, taken advantage of Hong Kong's location to help her brand grow. "The city is a fertile place for fashion start-ups, because it is a hub of major global brands' branch offices and sourcing centres, along with the fact that it's located next door to the world's factory," she says.

Hei Lau also made the short list for the International Woolmark Prize with a style that's both clean-cut and feminine. Its founder, from whom the brand takes it name, has shown at Australian Fashion Week, put on a catwalk show in Macau and was also selected to show at the Asahi Kasei Chinese Creativity Award Collection at China Fashion Week in Beijing for spring-summer 2015.

Despite its Hong Kong roots, Lau sees her brand as international. She relocated to Shanghai this year to explore the Chinese fashion scene, and she says her platform is in Europe.

"I meet all my international buyers in Paris three or four times per year and I travel with my collections to do catwalk shows/promotions around the world," says Lau, who this year relocated permanently to Shanghai to explore the Chinese fashion scene.

Grana became the poster boy for Hong Kong fashion start-ups after securing US$1 million in funding from investors that included fashion group Bluebell. The brand's co-founder, Luke Grana, says he decided to set up his company in Hong Kong rather than his native Australia, partly as it's a free tax port. "It's also the world's sourcing city for the garment industry," he says. "And Hong Kong is a huge distribution hub. There are five DHL planes that fly to Australia every day, 12 to the US and 16 to Europe."
Grana was able to secure a deal with DHL, and being based in Hong Kong has allowed the company to keep costs down. Being an e-tailer also means they don't have to deal with crippling rents. Like other Hong Kong fashion e-tailers such as A Boy Named Sue, Grana is thriving in international and local sales as Hongkongers take to online shopping in a big way.

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NISOLO IS HIRING A GRAPHIC DESIGNER & MEDIA ASSOCIATE IN NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

Nisolo is a disruptive, socially conscious lifestyle brand creating value for consumers and producers in the fashion space through the design, manufacturing, and direct-distribution of handmade leather shoes, accessories, and select apparel goods. We are recruiting a Graphic Designer & Media Associate to elevate the Nisolo brand story through strong visual communication online and offline.
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About Nisolo

We make the highest quality, most beautifully designed, ethically sourced shoes and accessories on the market. We are a young company composed of smart, driven teammates committed to constantly improving our work. We are passionate and compassionate, ambitious and pragmatic. In less than four years, we have grown from a handful of people with a good idea to 40 individuals passionately pursuing a common dream. With our eyes set on our long-term goals, we seek to build a strong company infrastructure and culture, performance, and social impact. As a Graphic Designer + Media Associate at Nisolo, you will work closely with our Creative Manager to create beautiful assets to communicate our story to our customers, manage those assets, and share them on our various channels.

About You

• Eye for design, clean + sophisticated aesthetic, and strong interest in fashion
• Strong voice, commitment to social impact, and always striving for excellence
• Highly motivated, self-managed, and able to think independently
• Crazy attention to detail, a perfectionist that can also make a tight deadline
• Responds positively to feedback and adapts quickly to change
• Thinks with both sides of the brain: creative vision and strong organizational skills
• Takes initiative and doesn’t need to be asked anything twice
• Listens well and no task is too small
• Innovative thinker always seeking to grow and push brand direction forward
• Strong interpersonal skills and enjoys working with a team

Responsibilities

• Design lookbooks & printed materials for events
• Create weekly fashion forward marketing emails
• Photography Photoshop retouching
• Assist in photography selection
• Design website layouts, packaging, store assets, online ads, & social media assets
• Develop fresh content for our social channels and handle day-to-day management of Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, Tumblr and several others
• Manage organization of assets and flow of assets between creative and social

Skills & Qualifications

• Previous experience at a top end lifestyle or fashion brand, or creative agency is preferred
• Adobe Suite wizard
• Clean + sophisticated design sensibility
• Solid creative portfolio with design, typography, and branding projects
• Passion for learning, always seeking to sharpen skills
• Strong organizational and interpersonal skills

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Andrea Fascinetto -- Successful By Design

I recently sat down with a relatively new fashion designer in NYC who is quickly making a name for herself. She is Mexican born and Paris educated, Andrea Fascinetto, and with the release of her first collection, Minuit Bleu, in February, she has already gained the attention of fashion score keepers like Saks Fifth Avenue and Vanity Fair Magazine. How does a twenty-something fashion designer from Mexico enter the New York fashion scene and immediately gain traction? You are about to find out. It certainly hasn't been easy, but Andrea is successful by design. Here are her five simple secrets for achieving big dreams in the highly competitive business of fashion.

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​Absolute Confidence: Andrea studied fine art and photography before finding her passion for fashion. She went on to apply for a seat at one of the most prestigious fashion schools in the world, Parsons Paris. Her chances of being admitted into their program were slim because competition is always heavy and Andrea, at that time, didn't yet even know how to sew. How did she win her seat? Andrea says that it was all about confidence. She showed up at her interview 100% confident that she would get accepted. The confidence came out when she described what she was going to do in the fashion world. She had been making beautiful art her entire life, she explained to the school, and the only thing that was different about fashion was that the canvas was a human being. Andrea was admitted into the program. She was one of about 40 students. She immediately bought a sewing machine and learned to sew. Despite having not been trained in fashion up until that point, Andrea was one of roughly 6 students who completed the arduous program. Her confidence would soon come into play again. In November of 2014, Andrea was offered a dream job with a massive, publicly traded, fashion house. Absolutely confident that she could break into the fashion scene on her own, Andrea turned down the job and launched Andrea Fascinetto, her own fashion line.

Tell A Story: The way Andrea Fascinetto sees it, success in business and life comes down to your ability to tell a great story. She says that you have to give people something to believe in. You have to paint a picture for them. It's much easier for people to buy into your dream when they understand the story. Andrea launched her first clothing line, Minuit Bleu, in February of 2015 and she designed the entire line around a story. The story had many components. First, her line incorporated the Nike of Samothrace, which is a 2nd century BC marble sculpture of the Greek goddess Nike. The sculpture is one of the most celebrated in the world, and has been displayed at the Louvre since 1884. The work is notable for its rendering of a pose where violent motion and sudden stillness meet, creating balance. You can see Fascinetto's interpretation of this in her line which features contrasting hues from silvers to pure black, representing the idea of perspectives and looking at things from every angle. Secondly, Minuit Bleu, is the story of ending romances. The line represents the contrast of falling in love and then falling apart. Fascinetto's fashion show where she released this line featured sultry jazz musician, Katrina Cunningham, whose music was the perfect backdrop for a show that featured such contrasting artistic concepts. Fascinetto's fashion line was well received by the industry, which furthers her belief that when people believe in the story, they believe in you.

My Dream or Yours?: One of the best parts of Andrea's story is that she turned down a dream job with a massively successful fashion house. I wondered why she wouldn't have at least tried that position before going after her big dream of launching her own fashion line. Andrea explained that working at the larger, established firm would have been amazing, admittedly a dream come true. She said that it was when she was talking to the head of menswear that she knew she couldn't take the job. He was explaining to Andrea how well the company takes care of their people. He said that working there was like working with family and that many have been with the company for decades. Andrea said that it all sounded amazing, but she knew then and there that if she accepted that job, she would never want to leave it. To her, choosing that position would mean sacrificing her dream. Admittedly, launching her own fashion line right out of the gate would be hard, but she knew in her heart that she needed to go after her own dream, not someone else's.

Surround Yourself With Undying Advocates: Andrea says that the real secret to her early success in the fashion industry is that she has surrounded herself with people who are her undying advocates. They believe in her 100%. For example, Andrea, an only child, says that she is blessed to have parents who have never once doubted her ability to make a name for herself as an artist. They have supported her creative license ever since she was a little girl. Whether it be painting, photography, or fashion, Andrea's parents have her back in whatever she's doing. As well, her business partner, Eric Geiger, dropped what he was doing and moved to NYC from Paris to help her launch the business. Even her publicist, Felicia Quaning, started promoting Andrea and the new line even when all she had to show for her idea was a sketch. Andrea says that when you are launching anything that is new, you need people who trust you so much that they will take a leap of faith and believe in you. Andrea's entire network is made up of such people. They trusted her vision, and in true Andrea Fascinetto fashion, she pulled it off with her first clothing line, Minuit Bleu.

Compare Yourself to Nobody: I asked Andrea which fashion designer she compares herself to. "Really, nobody," she explained. Andrea says that she doesn't spend a lot of time studying other designers because the little time she does have is spent on her own designs. She said that she has gained inspiration from people like her uncle, an architect, who taught Andrea long ago that it was ok to be very bold in art. He would tell her to never second guess her strokes when painting, to be bold, and to worry little about mistakes. Andrea says that all of those little insights from her uncle growing up have come through in her fashion work, but as for comparing herself to other designers, she's not even interested in trying. Andrea says, "I am bold. I am not afraid to make mistakes. I am one of kind when it comes to my designs."

Smart, confident, bold, driven, and ambitious beyond words, Andrea Fascinetto is making a name for herself in the world of fashion, and it hasn't even been a year since she walked away from that dream job job! This designer is going places because she is successful by design.

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Student design pops up at Plaza for catwalk of talent

FOR fashion design students, one experience is invaluable to their future career - the chance to sell their designs in a major shopping centre.
For the first weekend of every month until October, TAFE Queensland East Coast fashion design students will get to do just that.
In the Fashion Incubator event, students will sell their wares in an interactive pop-up clothing and accessories market at the Sunshine Plaza Shopping Centre.
The first Incubator was held last weekend on August 1 and 2.
Sunshine Plaza shoppers had the opportunity to purchase bespoke pieces from the young designer students' latest ranges.

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Fashion student Stephany Eland, 18, from Mapleton, said her love of fashion design started from making cosplay costumes as a hobby.
"I've always enjoyed looking at the way fashion speaks about a person or culture and the way that even though it's an individual choice, culture chooses the way it moves," she said.
Aaron Grant, 18, from Nambour, said up until about six months ago, he had no idea what he wanted to do as a career.
"Fashion to me is an art form and a way for me to express myself creatively," he said.
"But what I really like about the whole realm of fashion is designing and creating things that I see in my head."
Sunshine Plaza marketing manager Kylie Riches said the Fashion Incubator concept provided a synergy between fashion and the local community.
"We've received a sneak peek at the students' latest ranges and they look great," she said.
"We are very excited to offer a retail space for the students to exhibit and sell their all-new designs.
"It truly is a great opportunity to support local up-and-coming talent in the region."
The students' fashion teacher Amanda Knights said hands-on training was essential for TAFE students.
"The Fashion Incubator offers a fantastic launching pad for our fashion students, giving them a chance to show off their designs and a taste of the real-world fashion industry," she said.
The next Fashion Incubator will be held on Saturday and Sunday September 5 and 6 at Level 1 Sunshine Plaza, outside Myer.
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