hfm FASHIONINSIDER
A
n hour inside the fantasy world
of Ryan Lo is a colourful place
to be. Popular culture, anime,
Disney and Sex & the City are
constant forms of inspiration for
the London-based designer who was
born and raised in Hong Kong. “My collections are
kooky enough to set me apart and I love that,” he
tells us, when we meet at the launch of Celebrating
China, a pop-up store at Bicester Village curated
by Susie Bubble, which he was taking part in.
“We’ve been friends for a long time, in fact she
writes all of my press releases and show reports.
She first approached me about eight years ago,”
he tells us, of his relationship with the influencer.
“Her parents are from Hong Kong so we share
the same cultural references like TV shows and
things other people wouldn’t necessarily get, it’s
niche, but important –
and back then there were
not that many Chinese
designers in London.”
The Champagne
reception is loud and lusty
so the changing rooms
turn into an impromptu
meeting space for our
chat. Ryan sits on ‘Tree
Chair’ by Zhilong Zheng
and we have a squishier
experience on ‘Stool’, a
foam creation by Tianyishi- both furniture designers
also part of the pop-up.
Ryan is wearing a
butterfly red and pink motif
piece of knitwear from his
own collection accessorised
with a polka dot cross-body
bag and cat-eye sunglasses.
“It’s really nice being here
because it’s a different
crowd and brings my
designs to a new customer
that don’t necessarily work
in the fashion industry,” he says animatedly.
The London College of Fashion alumnus
begins to tell us how he moved to the UK aged 16
to study fashion design and technology. “It was
right after high school, I moved here on my own.
It was like, ‘Oooh, shall I go to LCF?’. It was
quite a spontaneous decision,” he says, adding,
“I lived in the student halls because I was
under-age, I couldn’t move out until I was 18.”
Whilst studying he taught himself to knit by
following a YouTube tutorial. “I wanted to be a
rebel, because I wasn’t studying knitwear, but I
wanted to do a knitwear collection – so I
thought, ‘Why not?’,” he tells us, laughing.
Knitwear has now become a signature for Ryan
and he approaches it with the same informed
playfulness as he does his other staple, which is
tulle. “We do really good party dresses. I’d suggest
styling them with anything, you just need a great
dress, great shoes – make sure you look pretty
yourself and that’s it,” he says, rubbing one hand ▼
Hong Kong-born designer Ryan Lo’s
kitsch collections are born of his love of
all things anime, cutesy and colourfulWORDS BECKY DONALDSON PHOTOGRAPHY JASON LLOYD-EVANSKING
OF
KOOKY
HELLOFASHION.COM 49hfm FASHIONINSIDER
A
n hour inside the fantasy world
of Ryan Lo is a colourful place
to be. Popular culture, anime,
Disney and Sex & the City are
constant forms of inspiration for
the London-based designer who was
born and raised in Hong Kong. “My collections are
kooky enough to set me apart and I love that,” he
tells us, when we meet at the launch of Celebrating
China, a pop-up store at Bicester Village curated
by Susie Bubble, which he was taking part in.
“We’ve been friends for a long time, in fact she
writes all of my press releases and show reports.
She first approached me about eight years ago,”
he tells us, of his relationship with the influencer.
“Her parents are from Hong Kong so we share
the same cultural references like TV shows and
things other people wouldn’t necessarily get, it’s
niche, but important –
and back then there were
not that many Chinese
designers in London.”
The Champagne
reception is loud and lusty
so the changing rooms
turn into an impromptu
meeting space for our
chat. Ryan sits on ‘Tree
Chair’ by Zhilong Zheng
and we have a squishier
experience on ‘Stool’, a
foam creation by Tianyishi- both furniture designers
also part of the pop-up.
Ryan is wearing a
butterfly red and pink motif
piece of knitwear from his
own collection accessorised
with a polka dot cross-body
bag and cat-eye sunglasses.
“It’s really nice being here
because it’s a different
crowd and brings my
designs to a new customer
that don’t necessarily work
in the fashion industry,” he says animatedly.
The London College of Fashion alumnus
begins to tell us how he moved to the UK aged 16
to study fashion design and technology. “It was
right after high school, I moved here on my own.
It was like, ‘Oooh, shall I go to LCF?’. It was
quite a spontaneous decision,” he says, adding,
“I lived in the student halls because I was
under-age, I couldn’t move out until I was 18.”
Whilst studying he taught himself to knit by
following a YouTube tutorial. “I wanted to be a
rebel, because I wasn’t studying knitwear, but I
wanted to do a knitwear collection – so I
thought, ‘Why not?’,” he tells us, laughing.
Knitwear has now become a signature for Ryan
and he approaches it with the same informed
playfulness as he does his other staple, which is
tulle. “We do really good party dresses. I’d suggest
styling them with anything, you just need a great
dress, great shoes – make sure you look pretty
yourself and that’s it,” he says, rubbing one hand ▼
Hong Kong-born designer Ryan Lo’s
kitsch collections are born of his love of
all things anime, cutesy and colourfulWORDS BECKY DONALDSON PHOTOGRAPHY JASON LLOYD-EVANS
KING
OF
KOOKY
HELLOFASHION.COM 49