Y & Kei

NEW YORK, September 5, 2007
By Laird Borrelli-Persson
The husband-and-wife team of Hanii Yoon and Gene Kang studied fashion in San Francisco, so perhaps it isn't surprising that they centered Spring around the idea of "urban hippies."

Yes, fringe hung delicately from an embroidered gray linen chemise, and yes, hand-cut "feathers" were appliquéd onto silver metallic fabric, but there were few obvious references to Flower Power here. No denim or tie-dye in sight. The designers said they were more interested in the spirit and ideals of the counterculture than in some sort of Summer of Love retrospective.

Try as they might, Yoon and Kang are never able to escape prettiness; it isn't necessarily a bad thing. And so a Courrèges-simple sheath had a back belt decorated with romantic flowers, and abstract rosettes bloomed from the bodice of another. The silhouettes were relaxed. Dresses had dolman sleeves. Coats were roomy. This wasn't Y & Kei's most cohesive collection, but by forgoing the runway in favor of a more intimate presentation format and sending out only 16 pieces, they managed to push their meticulous craftsmanship to the fore.

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