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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Wednesday, September 18, 2002

ISLAND STYLE
Designer infuses hints of the hanbok

• Korean hanbok dates back 2000 years

By Paula Rath
Advertiser Staff Writer

The silk organza skirt and shell worn by Tara Chanel are made of traditional Korean embroidered fabric.

Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser

Korean Centennial Gala Fashion Show

10:30 a.m. — cultural exhibit and products sale; noon — luncheon; 1 p.m. — fashion show

Sept. 28

Hilton Hawaiian Village Hotel, Coral Ballroom

$50 and up

Reservations: 373-1852 or 261-1998

Information: koreancentennial.org

Traditional Japanese clothing has been integrated into island attire for decades. Kimono couture is a signature of Anne Namba Designs. The Nui Mono shop finds inspiration in hapi coats and farmer's pants. The Mauna Kea Beach Resort offers yukata for lounging.

The Chinese presence also is visible with the popularity of cheongsams and Chinese pajamas.

Recently, the Vietnamese ao dai is finding its way into chic island closets, and even as a uniform for the women who work at The Veranda at the Kahala Mandarin Oriental.

But what about the Korean hanbok? It's an Asian sartorial style that seems to have been overlooked along the way.

Perhaps it's because of the outfit's image as billowing ("Auwe, it will make me look fat!") or the bright colors ("Hot pink and chartreuse? I don't think so."). For whatever reason, we don't see Korean influences in island wear.

That's about to change. In recognition of the centennial of the arrival of Koreans in Hawai'i, designer Jeanie Chun, who was born in Seoul, South Korea, but has lived in Hawai'i for 34 years, created a line of elegant upscale women's fashions inspired by her native dress, the hanbok.

Chun is best known for her golf, sports and resort wear under the label Jean Michel USA and her three Jacqueline de Michel boutiques in Waikiki. She usually has her fabrics printed in South Korea, but the prints and styles are distinctly Western: polo-style golf shirts made of mercerized cottons, tailored microfiber pants suits, strapless evening gowns. Her prints are feminine florals, animal prints and European-style graphic designs. The latest? A take-off on Hawaiian kapa (tapa).

This new collection, to be introduced on the runway Sept. 28, is a departure for her. Working with moshi, a fine linen Chun said is worn only by "society families" in South Korea, she overcame the limitation of the width of the fabric (13 inches) by creating a sleeveless top with princess seams.

The silk organza, woven and embroidered specifically for the hanbok, is only 22 inches wide, and each piece has the embroidery placed differently. (Western fabrics commonly are 48 to 60 inches wide.) This meant she had to cut and piece jackets, blouses and dresses with care and creativity.

Among her solutions: Placing a layer of embroidered silk organza, split up the middle, over a long Western-style sleeve. She also employed the organza by layering it over a tea-length silk skirt of the same hot pink (see photo).

Less problematic were the silk satin embroidered bride's blankets she turned into a Jackie-O style dresses and evening jackets.

Runway garments will be accessorized with Korean tassels such as those worn on the lapel of a hanbok chogori (top).

Chun also finds inspiration in the Victorian era and the attire of the Hawaiian monarchs, so one segment of the fashion show will feature turn-of-the-century holoku in lace, with high necks and leg-of-mutton sleeves. Her black rendition, however, is not something the ali'i might have worn. It's sheer — really sheer — black lace from neck to hem.

The 135 designs featured in the centennial fashion show will be available for sale afterward by appointment at Chun's Kapahulu atelier: 735-1800.

Perhaps this stunning show will inspire more bright contrasting colors, tassel accessories and chogori necklines, integrating Korean style into island style.

• • •

Korean hanbok dates back 2000 years

The hanbok has its roots in the Three Kingdoms Period (57 B.C.-668 A.D.) The top, called a chogori, is like a long-sleeved blouse or jacket. The women's version is short, ending just below the armpits and at the high bust. The men's version is waist length. Each is tied across the chest with a stylized bow.

With the chogori, women wear a long billowing chima, a rectangular or tubular skirt with a high, pleated waistband tied above the bust. Men wear paji, wide-legged pants.

Originally, commoners wore white except during festivals and special occasions such as weddings. (A traditional wedding dress, Hawai'i-based designer Jeanie Chun said, was bright red with emerald green lining.) Clothes for the upper classes were made of bright silks, the color indicating the wearer's social status.