London Fashion Week: War and fashion collide with Taiwan’s Ming Pin Tien

If there is one designer who truly wowed me during London Fashion Week, it has to be Ming Pin Tien.

Another Asian designer whose talent has already been attracting some interest from significant industry players, this was a show that a lot of mainstream writers had their eyes on.

The London-based young Taiwanese designer was named as ‘one to watch’ by the prestigious Vauxhall Fashion Scout last September and took the challenge head on. Stepping up his game with some innovation and originality – traits not always common in the industry these days.

Fashion mainly entertains. It inspires sometimes but it rarely moves you. However Ming’s show gave me goose bumps as it wasn’t just about clothes, there was something much deeper to his work that allowed you to admire him as an artist.

London Fashion Week: Huishan Zhang does East meets West at its best

It might be surprising to some that the majority of the London-based Asian designers who showed at LFW did not force their cultural or ethnic backgrounds into their designs.

And while it was a refreshing change to see designers from the East feeling confident enough to simply design beautiful and wearable clothes sans any ethnic twist or gimmick, there is something to be said for keeping your influences subtly on display.

Step forward Huishan Zhang, the Chinese-born designer held a mainstream LFW show and demonstrated that it is possible to nod to tradition without being a total cliché.

I mean, a man who considers the picture of Chinese elegance that is Maggie Cheung his ultimate style icon isn’t going to veer off into making asymmetrical monochrome prints with conical bras and Grecian draping is he?

London Fashion Week: Haizhen Wang rounds up Asia's triumph

Closing London Fashion Week has got to be a big honour. And that honour went this year to a rising Asian designer who has emerged on the fashion scene lately by winning the prestigious Fashion Fringe award last year.

This is Haizhen Wang, the Chinese-born designer who is fast making a name for himself in the industry.

Haizhen’s show was a treat and his stunning creations came as an appropriate end to this fashion week which saw a huge rise in emerging talent – one of the things that London has carved a reputation for.

London Fashion Week: Eugene Lin's evolutionary AW13 collection (photos+video)

When I was first introduced to Eugene Lin’s work – just before he took part in the first Singapore Digital Fashion Week (DFW) – I was truly impressed.

And even though he felt the need to head to London to pursue his dream, his talent gave me even more  conviction that there are many more world class creative gems in the little red dot.

I was initially attracted by the obvious. The breathtaking digital prints which featured in Eugene’s past two seasons collections have been extraordinary. But when interviewing the designer as part of DFW he mentioned to me that it is not something he will keep doing for long so I half expected his latest collection at London Fashion Week might come as a surprise for those used to seeing his stunning prints.

What he actually did was evolution and not revolution. He hasn’t ditched his staples, instead improving on his existing strengths and adding smaller experimental twists which hint at a new direction.

London Fashion Week: South Korean designer J. JS Lee's show

Transitioning from warm and sunny Singapore to freezing London in winter is no joke. Especially when my entire wardrobe consists of summer-friendly frocks with hardly any jackets or knitwear in sight.

As a warm weather lover, I’m no big fan of chunky winter wear but seeing the second South Korean-born designer Jackie Lee’s collection (under her label J. JS Lee) at London Fashion Week had me wishing I lived in cold weather all year long. Well not quite but at least a few month per year so I get to wear some of it ;-)

The beautiful and effortlessly chic pieces - from outerwear to elegant dresses - won me over. The main reason I never liked winter clothes is that heavy, gloomy feel and chunky silhouette which never looked flattering on me. The London-based designer’s mostly A-line coats on the other hand had a certain weightlessness about them. They looked comfy yet sharp and chic at the same time.

London Fashion Week: Korea’s Eudon Choi opens Day1 with a bang

If there are still any skeptics out there about the power of Asian designers, this London Fashion Week (LFW) has come to prove them wrong.

Just looking at the schedules – both the main and the fashion scout one which is designated for emerging talent – shows you the sheer amount of Asian-born designers who are making it big and are on the rise to dominate the fashion soon really soon.

From names who have earned their spot in the main lineup like Jackie Lee and Eudon Choi – the winner of last year’s Emerging Talent Award at the Global Fashion Awards in New York – to more recently spotted designers like Nova Chiu.

On top of that are those who have a bit more excitement around them. The lucky few who have been billed by those in the know as the ones to watch: Patrick Li and Yeashin. And these are just the ones showing in the first two days!

Bonjour Singapore at London Fashion Week

When asked about my favourite fashion capital, my answer has always been London.

The city’s quirky and care-free style is much more fun and closer to mine than any of the other cities.

While New York’s is mostly chic, minimal and established, London’s runway is always bursting with cutting egde, prints, textures, colours and extravagance which reflect this city’s multi-cultural identity.

Attending London Fashion Week (LFW) has always featured heavily on my fashion bucket list. And luckily I can tick this one off long before the end approaches. The official crossing off takes place on Friday (February 15) to be precise.

I feel so incredibly lucky and excited to be able to report back from such a huge event! Trust me, I’ve been mixing and matching my wardrobe for five days straight now.

Honestly I’m not really bothered about the big shows. I mean who am I kidding? I’m not competing with Vogue or Elle who would have their expert reviews and flawless photos uploaded instantly after the show. And with today’s LIVE-streaming for shows like Burberry’s, I don’t see the point in fist-fighting to get a ticket (somewhere in the back if I was lucky!) when I can watch the show from the comfort of my own home.

Chinese New Year: an updated take on Jade jewellery

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.

Bonjour Beirut: Sarah's Bag 2013 collection

If you're a regular reader of this blog then you probably know by now that if I'm a big fan of one designer or label, I'm not shy to shout out loud about it. Not just once, but twice and a dozen times if I feel it deserves to.

And this is specifically why I'm posting again about my favourite Lebanese label Sarah's Bag who not just only makes gorgeous clutches and accessories but does that for a good cause as well.

I think I've already said enough about how much I admire Sarah's Bag and its founder and creative director Sarah Beydoun so you can read all about her mission and how she started the label in this previous post.

But today, I just wanted to share with you some of the snaps I took in the label's gorgeous Beirut showroom housed in a French colonial building in the city's historic Rue du Liban (Lebanon street).

I'm in love with this stunning leather clutch and its zips details! Amazing how Sarah's Bag
has been evolving its designs to come up with such creative and chic pieces as well as
crafty ones.

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

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!

A Singaporean Chinese New Year from Tong Tong

Ever since I’ve experienced my first Chinese New Year in Hong Kong a few years ago, it has firmly become one of my favourite holidays.

How can I not love it when it’s all about being with family, buying colourful –mainly red- new clothes, eating till you can’t breathe, and most importantly getting (or in my case now giving) those Ang Pows (Red Packets)!!!

And while a lot of people’s favourite part of CNY is the food, naturally mine has to be the colourful new clothes, especially Cheongsams.

I don’t think there is anything as elegant and feminine as a well-tailored and fitted cheongsam. But while the traditional ones can be slightly too dressy and restrictive for our modern day lifestyle, other options are available – namely a more modern and smart casual take on the cheongsam from quirky Singapore label Tong Tong.

Love the elegant Tong Tong A-line cheongsam which is perfect for CNY!