KOREAN STREET STYLE

Fashion in Korea typically includes at least three of the following elements: glitter, ruffles, crochet, spiky leather heels that look like they belong on a dominatrix. And that’s just among young people—women over 40 uniformly favor animal prints, polyester, and plastic visors that shield the face like a welding mask.

The exception to the rule is Mrs. Shim, who has a style that’s uniquely her own and the confidence to pull it off. She sews a lot of her own clothes using natural, hand-dyed fabrics. On this particular day she was decked out from head to toe in handmade clothes, but often she’ll combine one piece, like a long skirt, with a leather bomber jacket and a Louis Vuitton purse (Koreans love them some luxury handbags). She doesn’t look like anyone else in Busan, and I think that’s fantastic.