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5 Amazing Brands You Should Know

Megumi Hiramoto
Oct 7, 2016
3 min read

Brand name is powerful. If you hear Chanel or Gucci, whatever they do in their collections people might automatically love or show big interest (actually, I’m one of them too). So how about others?

Being not as popular does not necessarily mean they are not worthwhile. It is not easy to explore new designers or not-so-famous brands. But there are many brands that will make you say, "WOW!" Here are 5 brands, which are not well known, but are getting bigger. They are worth an honorable mention.

1)Altuzarra

Women’s ready-to-wear brand Altuzarra was launched by Joseph Altuzarra in 2008. He was born and raised in Paris with a passion for fashion. He won the Womenswear Designer of the Year Award of the Council of Fashion Designers America in 2014.

You might see his name more often, since his NYFW 2016 show. His latest collection was striking. Cherries, lemons, and gingham checks! I checked his previous collections. It is actually hard to tell if it’s Altuzarra’s or not. Some would say this is a “too much” look when you mix fruits and gingham checks, but he is a genius. I think the length of each garment, fabrics, and degree of skin exposure makes the elements balanced and even sexy.

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My favorite collection is FW2016 though! The colors, fringes, pattern and high-neck knit sweaters took my heart.

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2) Yigal Azrouël

Yigal Azrouël debuted his women’s ready-to-wear collection in the fall of 1998. He became a member of CFDA in 2004. He was born and raised in Israel and is of French-Moroccan descent. He is inspired from his travels to New York, which is his hometown. His collection is “effortlessly cool and confident” according to the official site of Yigal Azrouël.

I really like the atmosphere and style he creates. His past three years’ collections are elegant, mature and well-detailed. The dark colors he uses make women very strong and confident. Embroidery, textile, patterns, lace, and details are amazingly sophisticated. The latest collection is especially impressive. Embroidery in a leather jacket, cutting on sleeves, black and blue flower pattern make me realize “fashion is art.”

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3) Etienne Deroeux

Etienne Deroeux is a French designer. He just had his Spring 2017 collection shown in New York for the first time. Although some French designers are not comfortable with athleisure, which has been a hot trend in the States, sportswear is his inspiration.

In FW16, zippers are used a lot, which makes garments a little casual. His collection is comfortably mixed with luxury and atheisure. We should keep an eye on activewear by Etienne Deroeux.

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4) Self-portrait

Self-portrait is a London label founded by Malaysian-born designer Han Chon, an alumnus of Central Saint Martins. In fall of 2013, Self-portrait first appeared. Two websites, Net-a-Porte and Bergdorf Goodman, have included self-portrait on their online shopping page. Specialty and accessibility: these are what he tries to find in this brand.

Even though you don’t know this name, you may remember these dresses on red carpets! (photos of celebrities wearing self-portrait dresses). Dresses with sophisticated, beautiful lace and sheer fabric are very iconic. You may love it because of not only its pretty design, but also because it is sold at a reasonable price. He should be recognized for making clothes that are special but still accessible.

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5) Rosie Assoulin

Rosie, who was born and raised in Brooklyn. She started using a sewing machine when she was 13 years old, to find her identity. Eventually she found herself at Oscar de la Renta, which is always elegant. After she got variety of experience in the fashion world, she decided to expand her line. She debuted her own collection for Resort 2014.

I simply love her work. When I see the collection of big famous brands, I sometimes feel too many things are happening on a garment. That is also fun, but she illustrates elegance by being simple. It is very fresh and beautiful. So, I think this is definitely worth paying attention to.