Audi Star Creation 2012 Winners: Q&A with Roderic Wong from China, one year on...

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As someone who's very interested in the emerging designers scene, I often wonder about these young talents I encounter and what it is like to have been on their journey so far - regardless how short it may seem to be.

Last year, one of the most enjoyable things I followed on this blog was the Audi Star Creation competition where I interviewed all 12 finalists and got to see their final showdown on the runway at Audi Fashion Festival (AFF).

The three designers who eventually won were Roderic Wong from China, Ko Youngji from South Korea and Soravit Kaewkamon from Thailand whom each got a one-year internship at F J Benjamin in Singapore to get a valuable experience in the industry and a cash prize to kick-start their careers.

Fast forward one year, and here are the three designers preparing for their second show at the upcoming AFF this month and I have to say, I can't wait for time round too!

But before I get to see their new collection, I had some questions for each of the winners and was intrigued to know how was the past year like for them.

I will post these short interviews over 3 days starting today, and will also be giving away 5 pairs of tickets to watch their show at AFF (check the facebook page for details).

Today, I'll start with the designer whose work truely wowed me for he uses unconventional techniques and has a keen eye on details. This is Roderic Wong who no doubt has a great future ahead of him in fashion. Check out what he has to say regarding his internship, evolution as a designer and future plans!

A look from Roderic Wong's winning collection of 2012, 'tissue of being'!
Looking forward to see his new collection at AFF this year too.

Uniqlo UT pop up shop: Giving a little something back to the Singapore creative scene

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I very rarely attend international brands events in Singapore.

With my niche focus on independent designers, and the fact these brands have massive marketing machines and the whole blogosphere to promote them – I’m going to struggle to add anything of value if I cover them on this blog.

However, last Friday I decided to break the rule and go to the UNIQLO UT pop up launch party which is part of a global pop up series by the brand, stopping in Tokyo, Taiwan, London and NYC among other cities around the world. The UTs are a collection of t-shirts which are ‘used as media for modern expression inspired by pop culture and collaborations with companies worldwide’ which UNIQLO as started producing and will be running and changing on seasonal basis.

Apart from this interesting concept for UTs (who wouldn’t like the funky take on regular t-shirts?), the reason I was interested was the fact they have collaborated with Noise Singapore - the local platform for emerging creative artists - to produce a range of t-shirts specifically for the local market.  Moreover, the proceedings from these sales go to Transmission, an experimental incubatory platform organised by PHUNK - one of Singapore's leading creative collaboratives to mentor young people from various creative disciplines.

Loved the display of flying tees at the event!!!

Bonjour Giveaway: Win ONE of THREE stunning items (I selected) from Inverted edge

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Whenever another platform – a boutique or an online store – promoting independent Asian designers pops us, I’m always excited and intrigued to know more about it.

Within the last year, I’ve witnessed the springing of at least a handful of these places around Singapore alone and only last month, a new welcome edition has surfaced on the scene. This is Inverted Edge, a Singapore-based online fashion e-tailer selling some carefully curated items from a pool of Asia Pacific independent designers.

There are so many things on the site which are drool-worthy, from the now familiar local favourites like Carrie K. and Lion Earl (check out the stunning limited edition structured peplum vest!) to Indonesia’s Nina Nikicio and Major Minor, New Zealand's Stolen Girlfriends Club, Australia's Injury and much much more…

This limited edition LION EARL peplum vest is exclusive to Inverted Edge! Love it!

The Best of the Best Parco next NEXT designers: SS13 launch

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Parco next NEXT and its designers need no further introduction on this blog. The fact that I even have a designated section for them here says it all: I believe in these young designers’ talents so much and I’m always ready to support them whether by writing or shopping ;-)

Last week was the re-opening of this fashion incubator space with a new look – yet no new designers. In fact, it was rather a celebration of 20 of current and previous labels which made it to the ‘The Best of the Best’ list.

The list included some of my favourite designers to come out of Parco in addition to ones I was slightly familiar with before. It was an eclectic mix of ‘commercial’ designs which have proved popular with the public for a few years now and other more directional ones which keep pushing the boundaries and stuck to their ethos. So there was definitely something for everyone.

My only photo from the launch with the talented MASH UP trio whose label
I was wearing. I love this dress! Perfect combination of quirky and chic!

One of the winners was menswear label WSDM whose colourful cardigans
would brighten any dull outfit! Love!

Audi Star Creation 2013: Introducing the 12 Finalists – Part 2

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Last week, I’ve introduced the first 6 of the 12 finalists of Asian fashion design competition, Audi Star Creation.

Today I follow up with the rest of them to give you a hint on these young aspiring designers’ ideas and inspirations – as well as sketches!

I’ll be looking forward to seeing their full collections on the runway at next month’s Audi Fashion Festival and find out who will eventually win the competition.

But despite the fact there can only be 3 winners, it is important to remember that these 12 designers were picked from 355 entries from around Asia and thus getting this far is an accomplishment in itself.

Here’s hoping that regardless of the results, all these talents would get eventually discovered and endorsed by someone who will be able to turn their dreams – and hard work – into reality.

An interesting and futuristic design by Vietnamese finalist Ngo Hoang Kha  

5 emerging Asian designers to look out for

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For decades, Europe and America have been the centre of the fashion world. While that’s largely true – the four most important fashion weeks do happen in the West after all – but that doesn’t mean that it’s only Western designers who are shaping the future of fashion.

Take a look at the rise of the Asian designer in the states, and the increasing number of designers from that side of the world muscling their way into London and Paris.

Even back in the day the likes of John Rocha (Hong Kong) and Jimmy Choo (Malaysia) were making sure the world was aware of Asia as a creative hub as well as a manufacturing base.

Over the past few years you have the more established lines of Jason Wu, Prabal Gurung, Vera Wang, Richard Chai or Alexander Wang all flaunting their Asian heritage all across the major fashion weeks.

Now the question has to be, where is the next generation of Asian designers coming from? Who is going to be the next big thing to hit the catwalks of London, Paris, New York and Milan?

Read on to have a look at my pick of five Asian designers to look out for and remember you saw it here first!

Yeashin Kim (S. Korea), Haizhen Wang (China) and Lionel Low (Singapore) are some
of the rising Asian designers to look out for!

Chinese New Year: an updated take on Jade jewellery

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One of the (many!!!!) things I love about living in Asia is how traditions are carried on from one generation to another.

Take Chinese New Year for example. Despite a largely westernized lifestyle in a city like Singapore, people still celebrate it massively and families gather for a traditional meals and exchange of Ang Pows on the night.

It’s the same with fashion. Instead of starting from scratch, a lot of the upcoming designers have been re-interpreting traditional clothes and jewellery to make them more relevant to their generation and lifestyle without losing their charm and identity.

While in clothes it is mainly cheongsams, in jewellery it has to be jade! Specifically Choo Yilin, a Singaporean designer who is updating staples like the solid jade bangle, ring and Bi (jade disc) to fit into our modern wardrobes.

From Couture to Read-to-Wear: Malaysian designer Jovian Mandagie for Zalora.sg

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My Lebanese genes must have something to do with it but I just love couture!

In fact, there’s nothing that gets my heart pulsing quite as much as slipping into a custom-made couture creation which I have been lucky to have had on a few occasions.

But while couture can be the most sumptuous thing you could ever wear, sadly it almost always comes at a hefty price tag which not many people can afford, especially the young fashionistas.

However someone seems to be doing something about it, namely up-and-coming Malaysian designer Jovian Mandagie.

Love this look from Jovian's 'Femme' collection!

Emblem: Stylish and comfortable skyhigh heels from Singapore?

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Almost a year ago, I spotted a certain clutch on Asia Fashion Inc. which looked unique and set itself apart from all other exotic skin bags which flood the market in this part of the world. That was the Jacque from Singapore label Emblem.

Fast forward a year and the very same clutch which caught my eyes had proved to be a success story and the design has been reproduced by the designer in seasonal colours to suit every taste in addition to new designs.

And just recently, Mia, the young designer behind Emblem has started designing shoes – some of which fit right into my wardrobe: colourful and bold skyhigh heels. Needless to say I’m a big fan of!

Not only do they look good, but unlike most high heels, Emblem’s are actually comfortable – well as comfortable as you’d expect 6-inch pumps to be ;-)

Comfy as they are stylish? Read on as I test the new collection of
exotic skin heels from Singapore label Emblem.

The irresistible Jacque clutch which I fell for, is now available in more colours!

TSURA: Tribal chic jewellery

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I donno if being a Middle Eastern or travelling a lot had to do with my fascination by tribal jewellery. So much so to an extent that in almost every city I’ve been to, I never left without a statement piece as a souvenir to later add to my ever expanding collection. For me, no piece of dainty diamond encrusted jewellery can match the charm these traditional pieces embody!

But as much as I love my OTT – sometime antique, decades old pieces - bought from rural parts of places like Yemen, Nepal, Iran, Syria and Jordan I do find it hard to pull off on daily basis and I’m always on the look for something slightly more chic and wearable yet still as interesting to go with my wardrobe.

My latest find, jewellery label TSURA takes inspiration from the travels of its HK-born Singapore-based designer Tara Thadani who grew up globe-trotting the world, and provides pieces with are tribal in their theme yet very wearable and chic.

TSURA's Daphne necklace is inspired by tribal potion bottle used in voodoo
practices. Who would have thought black magic could look so chic?

Bonjour giveaway: Win S$500 from Zardoze to glam up the new year

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As someone who goes by the saying ‘You can NEVER be too dressed up’ - including wearing sequins in the middle of the day – I am certainly not one to shy away from makeovers.

That's especially true of makeovers that are more about dressing up than dressing down and which aim to uncover the best version of yourself rather than turn you into a fashion slave.

I don’t know about the rest of you but I’ve decided that this year instead of following and reporting trends and fads, I’ll be focusing on further developing my own style and having fun with it while also helping my readers develop theirs through posts and styling tips.

But to kick start this initiative in the new year, I’m holding the biggest giveaway so far on Bonjour Singapore, and  it will see one of my readers winning a S$500 worth outfit from Singapore label Zardoze.

Want to win a S$500 makeover from Zardoze, styled by me? Read on for more...

Lionelow for MYthology: The start of something big?

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One of the most talented young designers in Singapore is undoubtedly Lionel Low, one half of the amazing young label LION EARL.

So it gives me huge pleasure to see him making his debut at the higher end of the fashion scale with his first Lionelow capsule collection for Singapore boutique MYthology.

This is a collaboration steeped in all the things that my blog stands for. Because not only is Lionel a talented Singaporean designer, but the boutique in Club Street loved his work so much that they have backed him financially to help him create this collection.

One of Lionel Low's creations for MYthology

H&M x Maison Martin Margiela launch in Singapore + What to look for if you’re buying online

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So just like I expected, H&M’s collaboration with Maison Martin Margiela (the emcee kept insisting it was re-edition of previous iconic pieces from various seasons) was not as commercially successful as the previous two (Versace and Marni) in Singapore. In fact, after a good few hours, it was nowhere near to sold out and except for the candy clutch (which was gone by 10:30), by 2pm all the styles were still available in most sizes and in big quantities.

The queue started overnight but this time it was not as big and even when I got to H&M at 10:15am, there was just one line of people waiting. So what happened to the Singaporean fashionable crowd?

Maybe it was the rain – although we got given umbrellas when it started raining – which discouraged people from turning up. But I think it more has to do with the fact that the clothes were mostly heavy and not suitable for Singapore’s tropical weather and that MMM is not as mainstream choice for the H&M usual customers.

At around 10am, the queue was significantly less than last H&M Marni collaboration.

Every item has a description plate indication which MMM season
it was a re-edition of.

Maison Martin Margiela for H&M: My top 5 items

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Truth is, as much as I try to steer away from covering big high street brands and international designer names on his blog there is always one category which still interests me and feel it’s worth covering; that is the H&M Designer collaborations (check out my Versace coverage here and here and Marni coverage here and here).

Reason is, well it looks like it’s only getting better and better and with some (but not all) of the pieces it produced, it is well worth the wait if you are a fan of the collaborating designer but can’t afford the real deal.

This season’s collaboration has to be one of the edgiest so far. As much as I’d love to pretend that Maison Martin Margiela (MMM) is a household name, well it is not. However, it is definitely one which is high on the radar of any fully fledged fashionista (or fashionisto as it proves very popular with men!) for its avant-garde edge and deconstructed cuts which is more likely to work in editorial shoot than on the average everyday pavements.

Personally, I love Maison Martin Margiela! It is fresh, inspirational and creative but I have to admit it would probably be on the list of those coveted labels which I admire in magazines but cannot see myself pulling off.

Surprisingly though, the MMM pieces for H&M do break this rule and I found myself (despite trying to resist it!) coveting some of the items which I would totally see myself in.

My kinda style! Love this look from head to toe...

Love this look but don't think can pull it off so left it off my list...

EXCLUSIVE interview with Haute Couture designer Maurizio Galante

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Maurizio Galante, as he describes himself at one point during this interview is ‘crazy’! What else can you call a man who makes a dress out of thousands of red seeds, each painstakingly punched to create holes for threads to be woven together and is then topped off with an angel-like bolero made of majestic feathers?

It is kinda surreal and out of this world!

Interviewing him has left me in awe, reminding me why I fell in love with fashion in the first place at 7 years old - staying awake at 10pm to watch one of Elie Saab’s couture shows on TV and try to recreate them for my doll the next day from scraps of fabric - which I tore from my dresses or leftover fabric from my mom’s latest custom-made frock.

It was love and it became an obsession. Something stronger than me, that even after an education and career unrelated to fashion I had to take a turn and share it through this blog.
So how can I not, when presented this rare chance, interview one of the very very few Haute Couture houses founder in the flesh? Sitting next to him and his business associate (his co-designer for non-fashion objects and talented artist in his own right Tal Lancman) I was transformed back to that little girl, daydreaming about his surreal creations which are wearable art pieces, so inspiring and genuine, a world’s apart from vanity dressing and fast changing fashion trends.

A dress which took over 700 hours to make, a precision and technique which needs an OCD person to practice and an armchair made to resemble cold marble when it’s in fact inviting and comfy. You can never expect what’s next from Maurizio Galante who will be in Singapore for his show at the French Couture Week later this month at MBS The Shoppes.

Photos don't give justice for the amazing detailing of Maurizio Galante's
bloleros. The red flamingo one (right) is apparently the best sold item
and even celebrated architect Zaha Hadid owns one!

3 standout labels at Best of British (BOB): SS13 LFW preview

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I make no secret of my love for London and the fact I consider it to be the most fashionable city in the world! Lucky me, I’ll be flying off to London in a couple of weeks for a visit and while I’m not looking forward to the cold weather (living in Dubai and Singapore I almost forgot how it feels like!) I’m so excited to be back there to get inspired by this amazing city!

But before I go,  I managed to get a sneak peek on what to expect for the coming SS13 season from some of the coolest London designers – at Best of British's seasonal preview from London Fashion Week (Read about  last season’s trunk show here).

What I love about Glamour Inc, the people behind BOB is that they certainly stray from the boring and ordinary and instead, bring some of the quirkiest labels out there, some of which are starting to make a buzz across the fashion capitals of the world!

Here are my 3 favourites – featuing the three important food groups - shoes, clothes and accessories – which grabbed my attention at the preview and are now firmly on my fashion radar and MUST-have list for the next summer!

Mojito shoes anyone? Yes please!!!! Julian Hakes designs displayed at BOB showroom
in Singapore.

An array of beautiful printed scarves...

Digital Fashion Week: Day three, Guo Pei and the pictures!!!

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It's been exhausting but we made it. My first ever live presenting gig is finished and my feet haven't touched the ground yet.

I mean that in a literal as well as a metaphorical sense too - the reason I'm only posting the day three round-up now is because I've been sleeping non-stop since Digital Fashion Week finished. Those 14 hours on your feet all day (in heels!) really took a toll!

But I wouldn't have swapped it for the world. Being backstage felt like being in a new era, this was the most relaxed, friendly and comfortable fashion event I have ever attended.

The stars were amazing and happy to give total and constant access not only to myself and my co-host but also to the fans who seemed surprised that the likes of Sophie Sumner, Patricia Field and Andrej Pejic were just casually strolling amongst them.

The Chanel of China, Guo Pei and supermodel Andrej Pejic totally blew everyone away with the final show of Digital Fashion Week (picture courtesy of www.digitalfashionweek.com)

Digital Fashion Week: Guo Pei show and Day two highlights

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Wow. It's been non-stop since we started on Saturday (well Friday if you count rehearsals etc) but what a ride Digital Fashion Week has been.

I don't have time to blog in detail at the moment, but I promise you once this is over you will get a full rundown on what went down, on what Sophie and Andrej are like and on what they loved/hated.

Oh you'll also get to find out exactly what I wore. Suffice to say I have still been flying the flag for Singapore and Asia in the clothes I've been rocking. 

As for day three. You HAVE to see Guo Pei's show at 7pm this evening on www.digitalfashionweek.com AND you have to stay online to watch me interview the one, the only Andrej Pejic in a Google+ Hangout at 9pm. Do. Not. Miss!

As for my highlights of day two? 

Sophie Sumner and me go Asian style as we have some fun backstage at Digital Fashion Week

Digital Fashion Week: Day two line-up and day one highlights

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What a whirlwind. Day one of Digital Fashion Week is over, my live presenting debut is ancient history and we're into day two.

Arriving at the venue early just made me more and more nervous. Watching as the red carpet got laid out (soon to be soaked by a tropical thunderstorm from hell) made me double nervous and then watching the TV cameras roaming around sent me into near panic mode.

But the awesome Yvette King (who is presenting live backstage coverage) helped calm my nerves, as did the whole crew producing the Google+ hangouts and to be honest, once it got under way and I could get down to talking to the guests, the nerves just melted away.

And what a day. It was an honour to talk to the likes of Thomas Wee (who revealed he is taking in Digital Fashion Week but doesn't have a website), JR Chan from -J-A-S-O-N- (who revealed an interesting story behind the name of the label in our chat) and the lovely Pauline Lim from Pauline.Ning (who also revealed why her label has a different name to hers)

So the scorecard from the first day of an amazing event goes a little something like this...

The beautiful Andrej Pejic takes the 'Blue Steel' challenge backstage at DFW. Photo borrowed from the super talented Lenne Chai of Aetienne http://aetienne.net/

Digital Fashion Week: Line-up and lowdown for day one

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It's here. It's finally here.

The designers are here, the clothes are here and the models are here (causing quite a publicity stir it seems) and everything is ready. Digital Fashion Week gets under way today.

Yes, that's right the world's first online only fashion week is about to kick off and you can watch it all LIVE.

Much more than an ordinary fashion show, you will have a front row seat to ALL of the action. Front stage, backstage and probably side stage too. What's more is that you will also be given the opportunity to buy the clothes you see on the catwalk thanks to DFW's e-commerce partners Zalora.

All of the shows will be broadcast live on YouTube and on the official Digital Fashion Week website. The backstage action is also being broadcast there too and will be hosted by the beautiful Yvette King.

Post show interviews will be broadcast live on Google+ hangout and will be hosted by yours truly (in a variety of different dresses ha ha) along with a selection of bloggers from Singapore. And we will be interviewing everyone, so stay tuned for that!

Andrej Pejic and Sophie Sumner enjoying dim sum in Singapore. But now it's down to business.
Digital Fashion Week is under way