NEW YORK, Oct 29, 2001 / --- A mix of avant-garde, punk and femininity makes for a beautiful "Water the Earth" collection by Y&Kei, the Korean design duo who opened their first U.S. store in New York's Soho this fall.

Han-hee Yoon and Jin-young Kang, the husband-and-wife team behind the label, already run two successful lines in their homeland. For the American market, they decided to do something "less about trends but more designer and unique," the pair said.

The latest collection displays Y&Kei's prodigious gift for working with a fabric's weight. Long, slightly flared skirts made entirely out of nylon straps with hooks and floor-sweeping denim skirts hang with drama and grace.

On the lighter side, sheer fabrics are tied, ruched and draped to create a sense of dimension.

The couple also possesses a knack for accessorizing. In the hands of Y&Kei, seemingly passé denim-and-flowers combination was reinvigorated, thanks to thick paint and a strict black and white palette for both the denims and the appliqués.

Another recurring device is long strings dangling from the sides of a sleeveless see-through top or a pencil skirt. Big ruffles also adorn one shoulder of sleeveless tops - some of them plain tanks, others embellished with pearls and strings.

Reminiscent of the Japanese avant-garde designers and the Antwerp troupe, Y&Kei's cuts seem complicated at first glance but reveal an ingenious simplicity upon closer examination. What looks like a shirt with an asymmetrical zipper under a narrow cut jacket turns out to be one item; jackets feature overlapping lapels so that they fall just a little bit 'off' when closed.

Other winning looks include a wrap-shirt-and-jacket-in-one and sharply tailored pants cut wide in the leg but narrow around the hips for the fashion-forward.

Y&Kei

Y&Kei

Y&Kei