Epoch Times
Health & Beauty
september 19 – october 2, 2014 25
Brainchild of ERA ORA, artist and designer Euny L.
It takes both Fear and Courage to start anything new, I think, especially when your livelihood is on the line. Fear because you need the fear of being broke to push you to create something that will be financially viable, and Courage because you need courage to persevere and believe that you can succeed, especially during the times when it doesn’t seem so. What’s your personal aesthetic? What excites and inspires you? I heard an italian word today that I really liked—“Spezzatura”. According to Wikipedia, it is defined as “a certain nonchalance, so as to conceal all art and make whatever one does or says appear to be without effort and almost without any thought about it”. Basically, an effortless aesthetic style. I like that. I am inspired by people or institutions that are game changers. Reinventing the old, and creating something new and interesting, that excites me. What are your favourite colours to work with and why? For women’s scarves, I find that I tend toward black and white, as well as acid pink. I am not sure why but I think those colours put together are edgy yet cool and feminine. For menswear, I like darker tones with just a hint of bright colour to add some element of “Sprezzatura” to it. What was the first article you ever designed? What is your favourite design so far? I designed a pair of flying shoes when I was 8 years old in art class. But commercially, it would be a scarf.
My favourite design is the Dear Diamond. I wear it out all the time, it really adds an element of cool to my ensemble. What is your advice for someone interested in setting up their own fashion brand? Start saving. You’re gonna need all the money you can get to develop any business, but especially so to develop a fashion business which can be tougher than most. Also, being commercial is very important in fashion, you can’t be too niche unfortunately. The piece of clothing every woman should have in her wardrobe… A good black dress that goes from day to night. And the piece of clothing every man should have in his wardrobe… A plain white pocket square. Every man over 30 should have one. It’s that one male fashion accessory that takes you into full fledged manhood, even if you only wear it once a year. What are your top career moments so far? Getting commissioned by Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore to design a special edition collection of scarves and pocket squares for their hotel. I was very honoured as it is a hotel that is very contemporary artcentric and I am a a huge fan of their well-known art collection. What are your plans to grow your fashion label? I plan to expand the product line in the coming year and also create a line of home décor items inspired by contemporary art. To purchase ERA ORA scarves and pocket squares, visit www. eraora.com.