MUTZINE has exclusive access to Seoul Fashion Week!
Check out our roundup of the best shows of Day 1 at SFW FW16 at Dongdaemun Design Plaza!

Reviews by Tira Lee & Gissella Ramirez Vale
Media by Michael Hurt, Eny Rebel, Gissella Ramirez-Valle,  Luke Tipping

JARRET

Jarret kicked off Hera Seoul Fashion Week in a flourish of reds and blacks, quite like a scene out of a My Chemical Romance music video. The aptly named "In Blood" collection was centered around vampires and youth culture. Heavy beats thrummed across the room and blood bags filled the seats. As soon as the lights dimmed, the music segued into something darker and choppier, which is unusual for Korean designers. The looks presented were mostly dark hues, mixed in with texture play and edgy silhouettes — all a given to create a chic 21st century hipster vampire look. The designer Lee Jiyeon gave a nod to the classics while retaining her stylistic belies — like working oxblood fur into edgy silhouettes and pairing knit jumpers with booty shorts. Another example was the ever-present pairing of blue and pink, weaving them into different textures, and distressed denim seemed to be her go-to for the pièce de résistance.

We had Mulan Bae (@mulan_bae) wearing what seemed to be a reworked MA-1 suited for the female figure, with the elongated cut and the satiny finish. While we had seen a bit of "In Blood" at New York Fashion Week, the SFW show also included men's looks. A notable example is the blue velvet sportslux running jacket worn by Jeon June (@jeon_june_) and Han Seung Soo's (@hsse0321) fur muffler paired with a finger wave 'do, reminiscent of an episode in The Vampire Diaries where the characters hosted a 1920s themed party.

ORDINARY PEOPLE

There seems to be a running trend of conceptual shows this year and Jang Hyeong Cheol's Ordinary People was no different. For his fall collection, the designer presented a show based off the people you find in hotels. We're guessing the love for The Grand Budapest Hotel is still going strong here in Seoul. The looks were designed after characters in hotels, we saw some uniforms that looked like what bellboys and porters would wear. They also incorporated the trend of oversized sleeves that was popularised by Vetements, but instead of the usual hemmed sleeves, the designer opted for bell sleeves instead, making for a chic silhouette. Some of the coats also had an interesting take on scalloping details, as seen on model Byeon Woo Seok (@byunwooseok) and longline cuts were favored overall. 

We were pleasantly surprised to see full silk pajama looks reminiscent of the 70's and Gucci's current direction. Speaking of surprises, we can't review the show without discussing the finale where the models #squadup and take over the runway as a freshly dressed, bougie hotelier pack.