kim won joong for Prada FW12

Just went through the Prada FW12 collection more thoroughly and to my surprise saw my friend Won Joong Kim / 김원중 strutting his stuff in Milan.  I walked in a few shows with him back in Seoul and he was always a hilarious kid with a rad sense of style.  The Korean street fashion magazines were all over him and he was doing editorials left and right in all the top fashion magazines in Seoul. Glad to see he's starting to pursue work overseas and succeeding!  Below are a few candid snaps I took of him over the years backstage during Seoul Collection.

Me in some ghost-like makeup for Jehee Sheen FW11 with Won Joong.  

Jin Wook Yoon (윤진욱), a kid who's name I don't know, me and Won Joong at a Seoul Fashion Week after party.  

Rocking burnt orange backstage at Kimseoryong Homme FW11.  

Showing off his pearly whites backstage at Farenheit Homme SS11.  

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jehee sheen ss12

It was all about shorts at the SS12 collection by Korean designer Jehee Sheen, which was presented during Seoul Collection back in October.  Short shorts, medium shorts and long shorts (trousers?) were all seen under oversized linen jackets in black, white & neutrals and were paired with very styling gladiator sandals.  The short shorts were my faves (obvi) but I also enjoyed the full cut of the just-above-ankle length variety as well.  Calf length capris however, I am never a big fan of.  





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ALANI SS12 in Surface Asia magazine

This is a small article I wrote for the 7th issue of Surface Asia magazine about Korean menswear designer Kim Jae Hwan and his label ALANI.  


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mvio ss12 by haan

The first runway show I ever saw was back in 2008 when Korean designer Han Sanghyuk was still designing for his first label BON. Since then Han, who from that first glimpse of the catwalk has been one of my favorite Korean designers, has moved onto being creative director for another label called MVIO. MVIO has put on some very far out yet very wearable collections over the past few seasons and the latest SS12 'Plasticman' presentation was no exception. Preppy, sailor meets future doctor inspired clothing were cleverly styled in quirky surgical gear with much fewer layers than we usually see from MVIO. I was happy to see Han pushing the baggy shorts over leggings look that has been popular in Korean and Japanese street fashion for quite a few years and I really loved the pastel patchwork pattern found midway through the collection. I'm not crazy about nautical stripes, but I did enjoy how he used them in the short pants suit with matching tie.  Take a look at a few of my favorite runway looks.

ps. make sure to go to the 'downloads' section of the MVIO website for free downloads of runway music mixed by DJ Eunchurn.  More, More, More is my personal favorite!


























Thanks to INAPAD.com for the photos.

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lie sang bong ss12

My journalist friend Michael Reyes just forwarded me this video that he worked on for crane.tv about Korean designer Lie Sang Bong's SS12 collection. The collection was inspired by the bright colors and intricate patterns associated with Korean buddhist temples also known as 'jul / 줄'.
"Hailed as the "Korean McQueen," Seoul-based fashion designer Lie Sang Bong has dressed everyone from South Korea's First Ladies to international stars like Beyoncé and Lindsay Lohan. Crane.tv visits him in his studio in Gangnam-Gu where the former costume and set designer tells us about his childhood dreams and wanting to communicate Korean cultural identity to the world."
Here are a few of my favorite looks from his latest collection including those very cool melty face masks.






























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irony porn(o) ss12 by han dongwoo

Korean designer Han Dongwoo / 한동우 presented his latest Irony Porn(o) collection last week during Seoul Fashion Week, breaking an extended hiatus from the catwalk after his FW10/11 collection in April 2010 when I had a chance to walk in his show. From the images I've seen of this collection, Han has continued presenting a tailored look with a twist once more using a simple palette of black, grey & white. He pushed the boundaries of menswear by extending collared shirts into long dresses and taking a three piece suit and transforming the trousers into baggy harem pants. The pinstripes added a classy feel and styled with wide brimmed hats, this collection looked all sorts of cool.





























Irony Porn(o) designer Han Dongwoo.


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