Twinkling Delight
Twinkle by Wenlan was launched in fall 2000 by 42-year-old Chia, a Taiwanese transplant in New York. Chia is known in New York’s fashion world for her knitwear. Her very first collection consisted of 33 pieces of chunky, hand-knit sweaters, which became her signature.
Wenlan Chia is sitting at the airport waiting to board a flight bound for Japan. This trip, she hopes, will help her battle the recession and expand her business, and bring her fashion label to more countries. The label named Twinkle by Wenlan was launched in fall 2000 by 42-year-old Chia, a Taiwanese transplant in New York. Chia has always been fond of artistic experience, but being an artist didn’t interest her. A sociology major in college, she went on to study art history at NYU for her master’s degree.
“Afterwards I started working in galleries,” she says. “When I actually worked on the other side of art, not the creative side, I really wanted to create things. So I finally made up my mind to change my career. … New York is like the center of art. The city itself inspires me to feel that it’s OK to try something that I really like.”
She took classes at FIT, learning all the basics such as draping, designing, and patterning, before finally launching her own label.
Growing up in a tropical island like Taiwan, Chia has learned to embrace every culture and is open to anything. Street fashion, for one, is one of her muses. Chia takes the subway to work every day, just like every other New Yorker, and her subway rides offer a good chance of observation.
“Sometimes I see older women who wear really really traditional clothes. I would try and imagine if it’s a really quirky young girl wearing the same clothes, what it will look like. It might look very chic,” Chia says. “What I see plus some kind of imagination. This combination plays into what inspires me.”
Colors and floral patterns permeate Twinkle by Wenlan, which is optimistic and festive, something that is innately Chinese. Her art background also influences her on how she designs.
“I see colors and I see how a dress moves on a woman the same way I see a painting,” Chia says.
Chia is known in New York’s fashion world for her knitwear. Her very first collection consisted of 33 pieces of chunky, hand-knit sweaters, which became her signature. For Chia, knitwear embodies craft, something she says that is the opposite to her idea of fashion.
“Craft is kind of homey and fashion is all clean and polished. To mix them [creates] an interesting look,” she says.
Chia’s label ranges much wider now, including jewelry and home collections, which were developed rather organically. When she started the ready-to-wear collection, it became apparent that she needed jewelry to complement the clothes. She began borrowing samples from jewelers, but it wasn’t quite what she had in mind.
“Eventually I was just like, I should make my own, just like when I made my own color story, when I made my own patterns. I need my own jewelry to complete the look,” she says.
The home collection was born out of a personal hobby. Chia has a penchant for interior design and furniture. When she discovered it was never easy to find, for example, bedding, that was well-designed and affordable, she decided to create her own.
“A lot of my design is from what I think I need and what I think people will be looking for,” she says. “So it’s what I want, what I like, and it also complements my design concept. When people walk into our showroom, see the entire ready-to-wear, with the jewelry, with the home line and … everything, you don’t have to say more; people understand my design concept. They have a very cohesive story together.”
As she is waiting to board the plane, Chia says that she is excited about finishing her spring 2010 collection after she gets back from Asia.
“For spring, definitely a lot of colors. …and we like to use colors that are unexpected, like lime green and yellow,” she says.
There will also be abstract and geometric prints, coupled with subtle differences in the texture of fabric. A clean and fresh look with a slightly more fitting silhouette, playful yet polished, is what Chia wants to bring next year. With a fashion show planned for September, spring and fall 2010 collections in the works, it looks like Chia’s fashion career gets ready to take off yet again.
(Photo credit: Twinkle by Wenlan)
9 Comments
Add your own
I like your artice! Thank you for sharing.
Chanel 26735 Wallet Black Chamois
klkk
Jun 8th 11
01:30 AM
Gucci Handbags line is the best choice when you shopping online. We provides you the best products with the best services and the best quality. There are several products are in hot sale. Like the Cheap Gucci Shoes which always follow the trend fashion and posses the exquisite craftsmanship. The Gucci Bags are designed luxuriously with silver and golden buckle and made from durable leather. With different colors and different fashionable appearance, various brands Gucci Wallets will add a fashionable twist to any look. It’s a right choice to go through our Sofia Gucci website, we are dedicate to help find your favoraite goods from Gucci Outlet line. Here, you can enjoy our considerate.P90x
aewewrfgfffss
byasi
Jun 21st 11
03:03 AM
He brought his new masterpiece birkenstock sandals sale which is in high quality and amaizng design.
The men do not have high heels to wear, they choose to wear comfortable shoes like birkenstock clearance , which makes them relaxed in the parties!
birkenstock clogs alway show my tast in all kind of parties.
It was a big day yesterday for theNFL jerseys movies and fashion fields.
bsdsd
zara
Jun 27th 11
10:48 PM
Welcome to our Chanel Outlet store to enjoy the Cheap Chanel Bags bring you 100% service. As we know Chanel is a famed brand of nobility, fashion, elegance, and got Chanel Bags is a dream of those people with high taste. Low price, high quality, perfect after-sale service, that is our Chanel. As long as you open our Chanel webpage, you will view various Chanel New Arrivals our shop which is the most popular also the most fashionable this year. Such as the Chanel Bags, Chanel Wallets, Chanel Watchs, Chanel Handbags and other Chanel Accessories etc. They are all with unique design and attractive price. Just go through our Chanel Bags Outlet store to choose you like, surely you’ll find something that will strike your taste.<span style=“display:none”>authetic coach outletiygiughijh
kllkk
Jun 29th 11
03:03 PM
Welcome to our store to buy the Gucci Shoes. In our online store you can find the latest products of Gucci 2011. Our gucci products are with fashionable design, top qualityb and low price. When you logged in our Gucci Outlet, you would find that there are many kinds of New Gucci in our home page. Among these new products, Gucci Bags and Gucci Sunglasses are worth to be recommended, which are always designed with high qaulity and also follow the fashion trend. In order to improve customer satisfaction, a number of discount activities are ongoing in our Store Online. Various styles and colors for you to choose. What are you waiting for? Just come here to choose the one you want.<span style=“display:none”>supra shoes97e9r857t
louisvuitton
Jul 3rd 11
09:36 PM
The lv bags sale exceptional louis vuitton outlet kinds glance replica lv bags extra approximate replica lv handbags for the louis vuitton handbags genuine and buy louis vuitton merchandising louis vuitton shop price extra louis vuitton wallets than individuals lv purses of bad louis vuitton replica belts qualities. several louis vuitton canvas bags of them also louis vuitton replica deserve considerable cheap louis vuitton fees because of louis vuitton damier canvas the fact they fake louis vuitton phone louis vuitton replica watches for just louis vuitton monogram bags about some any discount louis vuitton handbags good offer time louis vuitton speedy and louis vuitton replica scarf work to louis vuitton outlet store finish.
lvkaimin
Jul 5th 11
12:29 AM
The western wedding dress you can see everywhere proves the success of wedding dress sale UK! As a matter of fact, the Chinese traditional wedding dress is cheongsam.
Duo to the influence of WTO, more and more young Asymmetric wedding dresses ladies prefer to buy western wedding dress. But as usual, they also will prepare a red cheongsam to match the festive Asymmetric wedding dresses atmosphere of the wedding ceremony.
xiaoxiao
Jul 7th 11
08:09 PM
Our coach messenger bags on the Internet, you can buy discount coach bags , cheap coach bags , etc., as head coach, replica coach bags .. etc. All products are displayed in our coach diaper bags . In the design, all the bags by famous designers, as the factory, we store all the procedures to check to ensure that genuine quality products. These bags are made of genuine leather with excellent workmanship, you will find it very economical. It has an excellent succession of shoulder or hand, they bring convenience. When you enter our coach bags on sale , you can see the shiny new things. Come on, our exports look forward to your arrival store and choose any type of souvenirs.
yu856ye4
lemoshizi
Jul 8th 11
08:59 PM
Matt Ryan sent out a career-high 50 passes, 32 of them successful, advance distance 316 yards and 3 touchdowns passing, Flacco has 3 touchdowns passes, two of asics shoes sale which occurred in the second half of the asics tiger mexico 66 fourth quarter. The same two teams before the war record of 6 wins and 2 losses, is the team onitsuka tiger by asics mexico 66 with the best record, NFL President Roger Goodell spectators on the sidelines, so that more weight in this showdown, the Falcons home game performance more calm, has won the first half scoring opportunities, the Sneiling catch touchdowns, Bryant kick free kick scored separately, and Ravens did not get a lot of the ball, the first half to produce zero respondents, their first scored in the second half of the third quarter, star wide receiver Boldin get Flacco’s short pass in the right side of the asics mexico 66 touchdowns, the score was 7-13 to recover, and who did not expect drastic changes in the fourth quarter.
Start the fourth quarter, Falcons by White touchdowns, the score gap to 13 points. To everyone that the Falcons in the victory has been set when the Ravens launched a tough counterattack, the last six yards to achieve a touchdown pass to Mason, Ravens guard after an attack on the Falcons, forcing the other side give up playing, Flacco led a 72 yards and the offensive 1 minute left in the game when you enter the red zone, the last tight end Heap catching a touchdown, the score go-ahead to 21-20, which asics gel shoes is also the only time Baltimore Ravens Jerseys leading the field. but the magic of the Falcons in the next 40 seconds to complete incredible attack, Ryan long reached on the left, White ran a battle of wits and the other cornerback Wilson, Wilson, White seems to have been pushed to the ground, the ball went straight to the end zone White , 20 seconds left in the game, the Falcons caught in turn the hands of victory.
chanel bags
May 6th 11
06:35 AM