A-Z New Asian Talent / Surface Asia Magazine

The latest issue of Surface Asia is out featuring a fashion article on the A to Z of New Asian Talent to which I contributed a few pages about up and coming Korean designers.  Writing and researching for this article really had me missing hitting up Seoul Fashion Week each season - fingers crossed I can arrange sponsorship for this April :)  

Also - don't forget the quirky cool cover story by Hasisi Park and styled by my friend Sarah Kate  - well done babygirl!







xoxochadchad

lie sang bong paris @ the V&A

I was invited to an exclusive gala reception on Monday evening by designer Lie Sang Bong (often hailed the Korean Alexander McQueen) in the Raphael Gallery at the Victoria and Albert Museum. As part of the Korean Cultural Center UK’s ‘100 Day Festival of Korean Culture‘ Lie, who has consistently surprised audiences for over twenty years with his experimental designs, presented two collections followed by a Korean cooking tutorial from two of Korea's master chefs and a lovely four course meal from Bibigo, a new Korean restaurant in London. Oh yeah, and there was soju too!

The first collection Lie presented was entitled ‘Discourse: Fragments’ featuring a modern representation of traditional Korean patchwork clothing known as Jogakbo / 조각보. The second show was by far my favorite - titled ‘Over the Rainbow’ and focusing on traditional architectural designs known as Dancheong / 단청, which are the decorative colours you see painted on temples around the South Korean peninsula. I especially loved the almost holographic leather used on shoes, bags and some of the garments, as well as the tile headpieces worn by some of the models which echoed temple roofing.



left: Me with Lie Teacher / 이선생님, which is how you refer to designers and teachers in Seoul.
right: With Hye Sung Kim / 김혜성 my 'respected older brother' aka 형님.

left: With Korean model Yeon / 혜연 who I recognize from Seoul Collection.
right: with Nicole & David who were taking backstage videos & photos of the show as well.


Huge thanks to 이선생님, Nana, Chung and the rest of the LSB Paris team for welcoming me to the show. Seeing so many familiar faces and eating great Korean food made me very nostalgic for my life back in Seoul! :(















































































xoxochadchad

pushBUTTON: Surface Asia Magazine

This is the latest article that I wrote for the June/July issue of Surface Asia magazine about Korean label pushBUTTON.  You can see my friend Noma Han who walked for their AW12 in the silver suit above left.  

xoxochadchad

chadchad of the day 7.4

navy jumpsuit & black belt / Issey Miyake Men
blue sunglasses / Resurrection
blue clutch / Louis Vuitton

This was the outfit I wore to day 2 of London Collections: Men, and definitely my favorite.  I'm a sucker for jumpsuits and this pleated navy number was simply perfection.  It's from the Issey Miyake Men FW12 collection and my fashion editor used it earlier in the week in one of our menswear editorials for the next issue of 1883 Magazine.  Big shout out to Jean-Philippe from Issey Miyake for letting me wear it! 


These photos were taken by Miyelle Karmi, a street style photographer whose website me/ELLE/you you must check out.   I accessorized the look with my bright blue clutch and sunglasses to make the tonal blue seen in the cuffs a little more obvious. Also huge thanks to Juyoung Lee, the designer from Korean label Resurrection, for giving me the sunglasses.   


xoxochadchad

Resurrection sunglasses

Ahhhh!!  Look what I got in the mail the other day.  HUGE HUGE HUGE thank you to Resurrection designer Juyoung Lee for this super pimp pair of sunglasses straight from South Korea.  How great is the snakeskin case with red velvet lining and two stud detailing that mirrors the studs on the arm of the glasse?  Very.  




xoxochadchad

chadchad of the day 7.2

polka dot shirt / BON
polka dot shorts / ASOS
polka dot socks / Topman
brown shoes / from Korea

I finally made it out of London for a weekend away in small town England at a place called Lewes.  It feels like I've been stuck in zone 1 for an eternity - not that it's so bad in central London, but it's nice to breathe some country air and not have to deal with constant crowds.

Burger and I went to the quaint little village of Lewes after finding a deal on Groupon (side note: never buy a Groupon hotel getaway, you'll always end up disappointed).  Lots of churches, castles and tiny little shops and streets and even a Garland Day procession through the streets of girls with flowers in their hair dancing with marching bands and guys wearing lots of bells.  I thought it would be much warmer than it actually was, so I ended up wearing this mix & match polka dot outfit for only about 30 minutes total.  Boo! But I'm sure I'll find another occasion for this polka dot threesome.  

So any thoughts on polka dots for guys?  Some people say they are feminine but I think a guy can totally pull them off.  I think it's more of the connections you make with polka dots like itsy-bitsy teenie-weenie yellow bikinis or those little dresses Zoe Deschanel always wears rather than the polka dots themselves.

If a Batman villain can rock polka dots, then why can't I?  :)


xoxochadchad