Asian Fashion Inspirations

Kiko Mizuhara and her random Instagram photos
If you guys have been stalking my Tumblr, you should probably know by now that I am obsessed with the Asian fashion, culture, and lifestyle. It's not because I'm Asian myself but because Asia has one of the most exciting cultures in the world. I'm particularly inlove with Japanese and Korean fashion. It's just so whimsical, cute, and other-worldly that it lures me right in. I'd love to get lost in all the colors and patterns of asian fashion culture.

Among the few of my asian fashion interest are Alisa Ueno, Ena Matsumoto, Ikumi, Sen Mitsuji, Sophie Willocq, Jungsun, Arissa Cheo, and Kiko Mizuhara. You might or might not heard of some of them so here's a little introduction about each of them.

Alisa Ueno



So let's start with Alisa Ueno. I first met her over a year ago when she was still starting her line called Fig & Viper. She's a Japanese producer and designer as well as a DJ and model for her own line. What drew me to her was her constant change of hairstyles and hair color. I think she's tried all the colors of the rainbow as far as I'm concerned! But it's not only that. She has great style and she's always globetrotting -a favorite trait of mine whenever I look for fashion inspirations.


So as you can see, she has this whole grunge look going on. I love how confident she is. She's not afraid to speak her mind. Plus, her crazy hair colors are amazing. How can one girl keep up with all these crazy colors? 




She's not just a pretty face with great style. She's also very kind. She's such a darling and she never lashes out on her admirers and fans. She always takes the time to enjoy life and live it up. So she's not just a style inspiration, she's someone that I want to become in terms of confidence and being a vagabond.


Ena Matsumoto


This is Ena Matsumoto. She's a model as well as a designer. She's an old favorite of mine in my yesteryears. She owns her own fashion line called EMODA which gave birth to the mode gyaru style. Mode gyaru is basically a simpler and classier version of gyaru. Her line is very successful and Miranda Kerr has modeled for it as well as Tsubasa Masukawa. 


Japanese models all have glorious hair! They're so fashionable and I love the fact that almost all of them have their own personal blogs and social medias. That's one of the reasons why I love Asian fashion culture. They all have this documentary style where every moment must have a proof which creates this beautiful memories. It gives us a glimpse of their life and what they go through everyday. 


Her latest 2013 Spring Collection Style Book.

Ikumi Yamada


Ikumi is a whole other story. I didn't really mean to discover her on my own. Back then, I was obsessed with Sen Mitsuji because let's face it, he's a god. I loved his photography and his modelling. I was intrigued by him to say the least. I found out later that he was in a relationship with a certain model called Ikumi. So typical me, I started searching in the web about her and found out that she's actually perfect. *3* 



A goddess fit for a god. I love everything about her. I love that she has her own style albeit also grunge but her signature design is made with triangles and circles. She's obsessed with them and dedicated most of her collection to those shapes. 


Oh yes, she's also a designer. Her line is called which I'm guessing stands for her name Ikumi. It's more fondly called as i-tokyome


Behold the perfection of these two beautiful creatures. 


Ikumi doodling on Sen's photograph. Aside from Doodling, she also loves art collaging and photography. 


Wall art by Ikumi! 


An earlier couple photo. This must have been taken a long time ago because her hair is now short and black. Before that she went through being a blonde and then added pink and light blue tints before finally cutting her hair short and dyeing it black. 


Can she get any more perfect? Oh yeah, she has a god for a boyfriend. 


Ikumi and Sen being their old normal selves in Australia. What I love about them as a couple is that they are so carefree and fun. They both love photography which is a major plus for me and they travel together. If that's not the sweetest thing, then I don't know what. 




One of her many art collage. A year ago she went on a roadtrip to America to shoot her photobook. 


They are so perfect together I swear I'm going to cry. How is it even possible for two perfect people to be together? 


By far, this is my most favorite picture of both of them. This was taken after the Ikumi's fashion show from her clothing line. I mean just look at the way he looks at her. It says so much. Now my goal in life is to find someone who will also look at me like that! They are seriously the perfect couple in my opinion. 


But hold your horses. The perfection doesn't end there. This image was taken by Sen in New York. See what I mean about how Sen loves taking pictures of her? He's so romantic. 


She makes the Eiffel tower look so easy! 




It's indeed a strange old world. 




a picnic with ikumi in nyc from sen Mitsuji on Vimeo.

Sophie Willocq

Wow, I completely deviated from the topic! Alright, let's get back on track with Sophie Willocq


This is Sophie Willocq. She's half French/Singaporean. She knows how to speak French as she grew up there as a child. The rest of her teenage years were spent in Singapore. She's a pretty famous Nuffnang blogger and she's friends with Xiaxue


I love her new hair! The last time I saw her she still had brown hair and now she's already a blonde with cute pink streaks! She's currently travelling right now and if I'm not mistaken this photo was taken in Istanbul. Blonde actually suits her better. I like it! 


Style memo! 


She is so adorable. I hope one day in the near future I can do something like this with my hair simple because I can. Just like what she said, she wouldn't have the chance to do something this crazy with her hair when she's already going to enter the professional world (She's graduating from Uni this sem!) so she might as well do it. Future plans!

Jin Jung Sun

Vogue Girl Korea May 2013

This is Jin Jung Sun and she's more famously known as Korea's Next Top Model Season 2 winner. To be honest I didn't really like her personality that much in KNTM. Personally, I thought she was a bitch but professional wise, this girl has guts! She's not afraid t be herself and do anything from her capacity t get what she wants. Now that's dedication. 


She is the youngest from the cycle at only 16 years old (She is now 18) but I knew that she had it within her. She was confident and sure of herself which is very important in the modelling industry. she does not let anyone bring her down and that's a trait that I admire about her. 


It's safe to say that she is living the dream and I hope to do that too. So as you can see, they are not just fashion inspirations to me, they all have different traits and qualities that I also want to have. 


My favorite editorial of her was in Harper's Bazaar Korea in May 2012 titled The Finest Beauty photographed by the talented Ahn Jooyoung


Have you ever seen someone so young who has that much control over the camera? 

Arissa Cheo


Arissa Cheo is a force to be reckoned with. I've been obsessed with her ever since I found out about her almost three years ago courtesy to Xiaxue. At the time, I was crazy over metals and studs and all that hardcore glam shit. 


I can't decide whether she's luxe or simply glam rock but whatever her awesome style is, it suits her well. 


She got me addicted to Haruki Murakami and fairytales. 

She organized a surprise birthday party for Vaness.
She's in a relationship with Vaness Wu for seven years now and his new track titled Marry Me has sparked rumors of him finally popping the question.


She is so down-to-earth despite being a Singaporean Heiress and Fashion & Media Entrepreneur of Carte Blanche-X, her online lifestyle portal with her cousin, Lin Ting. 


By Nicola Formichetti, one of my favorite people in the fashion industry. 


‘Carte Blanche’ [kahrt blanch] means unconditional authority; full discretionary power.
‘X’ stands for Fashion, Media & Culture.

From Arissa's birthday party. She loves unicorns hence the cake.

Having made an effort to identify niches in various fields of common interest, the founders of Carte Blanche X came together to combine the different avenues of Fashion, Media and Lifestyle/Culture to create a novel experience for young women around the world.


Carte Blanche X will encompass a number of divisions, namely: an online media platform ⎯ www.carteblanche-x.com (which includes an editorial page, a select blog community and an online shop), a quarterly publication ⎯ Miss X, our own line(s) of apparel and accessories ⎯ Sacred Hearts X, Sacred Hearts Luxe and Sacred Hearts Gems, as well as a physical space consisting of a retail store/showroom & cafĂ©/bar ⎯ Room X.


A ‘Carte Blanche X’ woman is strong, individualistic and possesses a multi-faceted personality. More importantly, she knows how to inject a good dose of fun into everything that she does and is not constrained by the norms and expectations of society. She is her own woman.


With this philosophy, ‘Every girl should be a Carte Blanche X girl’.

Kiko Mizuhara


And last but not least, Kiko Mizuhara. You probably know her by now. She's become quite famous in the international scene especially because of her starring in Norwegian Wood. Everything abut her is inspiring actually. 


She wins the most updated Instagram contest. She's always out there somewhere in the world and she posts the cutest pictures. I love the influence that Nicola Formichetti had on her where every moment should be documented. 



Kiko Mizuhara @ Making The Little Black Jacket by Chanel

What can I say? The girl's got style. 


She's the master of random wacky photos I tell you. 



So these are some of my favorite Asian fashion inspirations. They are all wonderful women with great style and grace. They inspire me to be the best that I can be and to strive towards my dreams. I hope they inspire you in many ways than one. Looking forward to new discoveries and adventures! 

-Candy






No comments

Leave a Reply