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 BY TIFFANY HALL |  | | | | | Thuy Simplicity | | | | | | | Cupid fires forth his arrow this month, yet a clued-in clotheshorse knows to take matters into her own discerning digits when gathering goods to beguile her beau. To wear to woo? Thuy. February brings forth Thuy Diep as the featured designer for the FASHION DISH series, and her stylings are seriously sweetheart-friendly, femme. They are, in fact, precisely the fresh finds one requires for injecting some joy into her gent’s jaded prêt-a-porter perspective. The line, founded in 2007, is a full collection of women’s ready-to-wear that runs the gamut from gorgeous full-length gowns and floating feminine frocks to tailored jackets, skirts, and outerwear. And it’s lover-riffic, lark. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | For providing proclivity towards creative pursuits, one’s early state does often predicate. Clearly, the apple doesn’t fall far from the Thuy. As the child of parents who headed up a tailoring school and custom-made clothing shop in her native Vietnam, ‘twas destiny for Thuy to hone her skills handily. The designer experienced an inevitable immersion into the world of clothing at an impressionable age, with cloth-manipulation edification literally right at her fingertips. The establishment of her education at Brown University and her subsequent work with Pricewaterhouse inevitably led Thuy to seek a stylish path via Parson’s School of Design. “After trying the corporate route, I realized I needed to go back to fashion,” says the designer. A preliminary position as an apprentice to the former patternmaker for Hermès and Rochas allowed for a hands-on approach in harmony with her apparently inherent fashion fervor. Diep’s dipped her feet in the same wading pool as many a New York noteable, gaining industry experience working with Zac Posen, Peter Som, and Carolina Herrera. Such substantial sartorial engagements have allowed for the evolution of her design aesthetic into, as Thuy says, “a classic mix that is also progressive and forward”. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Subscribing to a philosophy whereby “imperfection becomes perfection”, Thuy brings forth a blending of masculine and feminine aspects that serve to translate into something that is a bit “off”. Where modern mix-and-match pairings are acceptable as more of an erratic arrangement than the somewhat cookie-cutter couture of past decades, Thuy fits to a T. “I’m not a retro type of designer,” she says, “My inspiration isn’t a conscious thing.” Clearly not a follow-in-the-footsteps type of path-trodder, there are, indeed, a few who’ve provided her with basic fashion fodder. Thuy greatly admires the great Cristobal Balenciaga for his bold forms and his avant guarde approach. “Yohji Yamamoto and the Japanese designers who began their careers in the 1980’s just had that new sense of beauty that was spare, but sensual,” says Thuy, “and the Belgian designers from 1990’s embody that independent spirit that I love.” She adheres aesthetically to the minimalism of the 1990’s, and her designs, while updated, reflect the clean lines and simplicity of that era. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Thuy’s collections seem to have ultimately become a skilled synthesis of time periods and motifs. “There’s a little of the Vionnet thing happening,” says Thuy, “and a bit of the 1920’s in the dresses, in the draping and cuts of the fabric.” A strikingly sublime one-shouldered gown in bright yellow and a fabulous full-length purple piece, both from the spring 2009 collection, are gorgeously gala-ready. From flowing feminine gowns to prominently tailored pieces, much may be said for Thuy’s versatility. One may observe a sort of throw back to 1960’s Futurism in pieces such as the wrap coat from Fall 2008, a favorite of the designer. “It’s quite architectural in terms of form, but the details make it feminine.” Miss Thuy, we adamantly agree.
For fashion less fuss, thy simply must take a sartorial step in the direction of Diep.
Available online at: www.Shop.ThuyNewYork.com. | | | | | | | |
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