Fashion
Language Matters | Where did jeans and denim come from? The clues are in the names
The Italian city of Genoa and the French city of Nîmes are responsible for giving the world jeans and denim, respectively, which were later exported to northern Europe, Britain and North America.
He won a scholarship to New York – and came back to critique Hong Kong
At 19, Philip Au-yeung won a scholarship, in a contest open to all Hong Kong residents, to study fashion in New York. Upon his return, he criticised Hong Kong fashion’s lack of individuality.
The sustainable fashion designers using fish skin leather, onion peel dyes
Hong Kong fashion designers describe how they use sustainable materials such as natural dyes made from foods like onion peel and pomegranates, and leather made from fish skin.
Things to see in Florence: Uffizi Gallery, Michelangelo, Ferragamo’s shoes
Come for the fashion, stay for the art: a visit to Florence to attend the Pitti Uomo menswear shows is an opportunity to see the best of the Italian Renaissance city, including Michelangelo’s David.
Downton Abbey effect: British country clothing takes over fashion catwalks
It’s as if Britain’s well-heeled country set is stalking the fashion runways – blue-blooded brands such as Barbour are updating their quintessentially rural collections for modern urban lifestyles.
‘Fashion was freedom’: Yoox Net-a-Porter boss on London and her dream job
New Yorker Alison Loehnis, the Yoox Net-a-Porter boss, tells Kate Whitehead about falling in love with fashion, being trained to within an inch of her life at Ralph Lauren and landing her dream job in London.
Then & Now | Avoid the Pooh: when funny T-shirts and slogans are no longer amusing
Hong Kong residents have been chuckling away at amusing T-shirt slogans since the 1980s, but only the foolish or careless are laughing now.
Profile | Saks Potts, arbiters of Scandi cool whose wardrobe has something for all
Saks Potts’ AW24 collection takes inspiration from Kate Moss’ grunge-meets-bohemian looks of the 2010s. The childhood friends behind the Copenhagen-based label talk about how it was born.
Language Matters | Are we reading too much into Taylor Swift’s graphic tees? Maybe, maybe not
Graphic T-shirts – shirts with slogans or phrases – can often pack a political or social punch even when they do not mean to. The tees Taylor Swift wears on stage on tour are just the latest example of that.
Mysore, Varanasi, Aurangabad: ‘sari clusters’ where India’s brides spend big
Made of woven fabric and worn draped over a woman’s body, the Indian sari dates back centuries. Brides’ families scour India for the best hand-produced garments.
‘Like discovering gold’: US fashion designer teams with Chinese villagers
American luxury fashion designer Angel Chang is employing artisans from ethnic minorities in China’s mountain villages to recreate their intricate traditional clothing in a sustainable, high-end line.
‘Shanghai wouldn’t have been ready’ for gem school 10 years ago. It is now
China’s biggest city has reached a level of sophistication such that it is ready for L’Ecole China, a place for people to indulge their passion for jewellery, say Van Cleef & Arpels directors.
She wants to make the cheongsam something today’s women can wear every day
Studio HHFZ founder and designer Hu Ruixian explains how she and her team are making the traditional Chinese dress something that women can wear every day no matter what.
Barney Cheng told designer Vivian Luk to ‘do your own thing’ – so she did
Hong Kong fashion designer Vivian Luk worked for Vera Wang, but when she asked Barney Cheng for a job he said to go it alone. She did – and after years of bridal gowns, she is entering new territory.
Elon Musk’s mother and Isabelle Huppert are fans: couture label Homolog
Founded by Emily Cheong, couture label Homolog counts Maye Musk and French actress Isabelle Huppert as fans of its elegant, feminine fashion creations.
How facial acupuncture and retinol reduce wrinkles: Master Ruth TCM secrets
Facial acupuncture is a natural alternative to Botox as well as helping reduce wrinkles and signs of ageing, while retinol and hyaluronic acid are keys to skin radiance and hydration, says Ruth Lee.
The story of Tank Air’s sultry separates, worn by Bella Hadid, Olivia Rodrigo
Launched by Hong Kong native Claire Robertson-Macleod in 2019, Tank Air has cultivated a fervent following among young women and counts Bella Hadid and Olivia Rodrigo among its fans.
‘Skin brings out the confidence’: Nomel’s founder on its vegan products
Nomel is a Taiwanese vegan skincare brand founded by model, influencer and actor Tony Yang’s wife, Melinda Wang. She talks about making skincare the foundation of your confidence.
Profile | ‘Everyone is a son or a daughter’: the story of a Hong Kong eyewear brand
Eyewear brand Sons + Daughters’ founders talk about Rihanna’s love for their products, why they decided to focus on children’s glasses and how they started the label.
Then & Now | Who killed the cheongsam? A look at its history and demise
Once wildly popular across the Chinese world, cheongsam have largely vanished into the pages of history – no thanks to Suzie Wong, and elite Hong Kong girls’ schools.