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Cristina Cucca

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occupation: designer

Angela, our Milan correspondant, said that Cristina’s love of the clean and linear comes from her experience of living in Berlin, which has been the capital of “rational aesthetics” since Walter Gropius of the Bauhaus. In fact, her love of shapes can be seen in her designs, where she creates conceptually conceived geometric pieces that allow a person’s personality to form the garment, rather than the garment forming them. For Cristina, it’s all about discovery, whether it’s finding fifteen different ways to drape a rectangle or digging through a pile of clothes at a psychiatric hospital, one of her favorite places to hunt (at one point in her video, Cristina points out how this institution uses the exercise of uncovering old clothes as a way of escaping their reality). I love how Cristina rolls up a pencil skirt and belts it, and the way she takes a man’s tie and throws it around her neck. In keeping with her Sardinian heritage, she loves black, but will venture out to white, navy, gray, and brown, always with the underlying minimal line. There are not many moments where I am tempted to leave my layers, Victorian bustles, and chunky rings behind, but after seeing Cristina, now is one of those times.

If you like Cristina, you might also enjoy Lauren Boyle, Fatima Al-Qadiri, or Crayon Lee.


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Olivia Weeden

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occupation: student

“I’ll be getting dressed to go out somewhere and I’ll get dressed three times. Then finally, I’ll just take everything off, make a big slit up the back, turn it upside down, safety pin it, and walk out the door feeling perfect.” Olivia Weeden

I love how Olivia’s entire wardrobe changed when she bought a motorcycle to travel on in the City. She went from floral dresses to layers of drapery, hooded sweaters, and leather. Her ingenuity takes her as far as to take a blanket that she found from Eastern Europe and turn it into a strapless dress to stay warm, and to turn an antique scissor into a necklace, in case of emergency. In fact, her accessories seem to be both time-honored and utilitarian, like the camera bag she uses as a purse. However, practicality doesn’t always rule. Despite Olivia’s recent obsession with shades of gray and degrees of warmth, she is suddenly in the mood for neon pink nail polish, orange lipstick, and denim jackets over peach chiffon.

If you like Olivia, you might also enjoy  Tay Trong, Zana Bayne, or Angela Nam.


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Arthur Louie

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occupation: co-owner of The Archive in San Francisco, manager, and merchandiser

“I love the hidden details about the clothing I have and that I sell in the store. You may not see it, but I know that it’s there, and that’s why I enjoy wearing it.” Arthur Louie

Arthur was on course to be an optometrist, which makes sense when you hear how deeply he sees through (like x-ray vision) the construction of his clothes. With the perfectionism of an architect, his clothes fit his body like a luxurious glove, whether the “C”-shaped skinny jeans, blazers with the highly accentuated cuts in the arm pit, or the extra-long sleeves on his sweaters. He talks with fervor about the boiled wool lining of his jacket, the raw edges of his pullover, and the excitement of being able to wear something inside out when it’s so well-made. But most daring (and such a great tip) is the magic that happens to the shape and texture of a leather jacket when you throw it in the washing machine. However, Arthur’s prolific, almost museum-worthy boot collection (mostly made up of the sadly defunct Carpe Diem brand, (the white Augusta ones by designer-Simone Cecchetto, former Carpe Diem shoe designer, are a standout!) is for me, what defines him most of all. They are impeccably rugged, and their take on an Eduardian silhouette adds the ideal amount of theater to his skillfully understated and impactfully refined and laid-back wardrobe.

If you like Arthur, you might also enjoy Stephan Jenkins, Geoffrey Young, and Mack Dugan.


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Lauren Boyle

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occupation: editor of upcoming DIS magazine

“I think that what makes our generation kind of special or new is how we appreciate the lowest, you know, trashiest stuff and the most refined things and one is not better than the other, they are all sort of on the same level. Its just up to your interpretation and your usage.” Lauren Boyle

When I asked Lauren what happens if she goes out and doesn’t feel herself on a given day, her response was, “Maybe I should try it. That could be really fun. Just go out absolutely not me at all.” So uncontrived and confident in who she is, there is no armor when exploring Lauren and her style. She is who she is, low or high end, it’s all interesting, and it makes her energy and ideas so fresh in the most explosive yet natural way. For example, she makes “conservatism” the epitome of cool in her mother’s matching suede ’80s Ruff Hewn ensemble and her signature Bally loafers. Everything she wears is about an idea or a feeling and her instincts are acute, like her McQueen suede apron/dress and black leather vintage trench, which are both archetypal and elemental in shape and design. Lauren is a connoisseur and collector of fashion magazines, particularly the older originals and pioneers. She is soon to launch her own “pseudo-fashion magazine” called DIS. Lauren’s too much of an observer not to be a leader and express her own vision and it’s in keeping with her comfort in being a “real outsider” as opposed to the “accepted outsider.” I have a feeling it will be groundbreaking in terms of what is happening in print right now, but in the most unpretentious way.

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Crayon Lee

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occupation: founder and creative director of Studio11, and creative director of Kang Kiok, her mother’s clothing line

“I don’t do whatever is popular, with the top, bottom, shoes, and the bag, all matching with a Starbucks coffee.” Crayon Lee

One of the thousands of things that is so fascinating about interviewing the range and diversity of talent on this site is seeing the juxtaposition of someone like Crayon, who sees fashion as “real” and not a fantasy, with Miranda on the previous post, who finds it all about dreaming and imagining. Crayon has a quiet chic that makes a huge but understated impact. Her black uniform of leggings and a turtleneck, topped with a simple but forceful piece, porcelain skin, angular hair, and absence of jewelry and makeup, is strikingly clean and uncomplicated and reflects how honest and direct she is. Crayon doesn’t have an air about anything related to fashion and style, despite the fact that she has grown up with a high fashion designer mother. In fact, she tries to find the humor in it, and you can see it in the plastic blowup pillow jacket filled with feathers that she and her mom designed (it was inspired by the way pills are wrapped in Korea). What Crayon says about Christine De Lassus is true about her: “fashion follows her, she doesn’t follow it.”

Check out these music videos that Crayon produced here and here.

To learn more about Crayon, click on the detailed captions page.

If you like Crayon, you might also enjoy Sharon Wick, Nana Taniwa, or Katia Hakko.


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