Runway Radar: Jasmine Estella Siu's zero-waste Neu forwards "genderful" apparel

By Iris Chau

Student designer Jasmine Estella Siu’s collection is a rebellion against society’s need to establish binary labels on clothing and people. It is made for people who see clothing as just clothing.

Siu also aligns her personal fashion philosophy of slow fashion with her work. Design and photography has always been Jasmine’s ultimate medium of expression.

Neu will be unveiled at 2017 The Show presented by Tamoda Apparel Inc., on April 5 and 6 at the Imperial (319 Main Street). Twenty-seven other lines by Kwantlen Polytechnic University Fashion Design and Technology students will also be showcased.

For event details, visit kpu.ca/2017fashionshow or follow @wilsondesignkpu on Instagram.

Iris Chau: Describe your collection.

Jasmine Siu: Neu is a genderful and zero-waste fashion collection. The term "genderful" is a more inclusive rebranding of the term "genderless" as it welcomes an entirely diverse range of individuals who mayidentify as male, female, both, neither, or other.

In other words, it does not matter who you are—you are free to express yourself. I want the wearer to feel free to express themselves. Gender, to me, is just another outlet of expression that falls on a spectrum.

Neu uses Japanese androgyny for versatile fit and styling and is inspired by the coexistence of extremes: past and future, male and female. The zero-waste aspect of my line is itself a coexistence of extremes as well. It contrasts with the excess and the environmental crisis we see in the fashion industry today.

IC: Walk me through your creative process.

JS: Zero waste cutting means that I use 100 percent of my fabrics and, therefore, create no waste. Traditional pattern cutting involves many curves, which often results in wasteful amounts of fabric scraps. Zero-waste cutting trains your patience and ability to make connections with shapes and space.

Before I jigsaw my pattern pieces together, I am designing with the patterns in my head, where I alter between design, form, and shape. At the same time, gender-neutral clothing allows me to play with versatile silhouettes without having to follow a traditional masculine or feminine fit.

I start pattern-making with a template set with the dimensions of my fabric and then I translate my 3D designs into 2D patterns. 

IC: What have you learned at KPU?

JS: I learned that it is okay to fail in order to succeed. Nothing is perfect the first time around and I have learned to accept that and welcome failure.

My experience at KPU not only trained me as a well-rounded designer, but also as someone who is always open to learning new things outside of the design realm. The teachers at KPU helped me fall in love with leadership, mentorship, and volunteerism.

IC: What aspect of design are you most passionate about?

JS: I love design because it is open to interpretation. Like with all other forms of art, people are allowed to attach themselves to something that they connect to and make it their own. I want my designs to turn simple, everyday garments into something special.

I find prototyping the most exciting stage in the design process—it’s like flying a plane for the first time after spending months researching and conceptualizing it. I love improvising and playing with my designs at this stage to draw out all the possibilities that come from a single idea.

IC: How do you set yourself apart from other designers?

JS:  Something that I take great care in is the story behind the people who wear the clothes and the people who make the clothes. I consider the relationship between the design and its environment, which includes the well-being of the planet and the people.

Design should always serve a purpose. No design is sufficient without the communion of its environment and people.

Iris Chau is a 3rd-year fashion design and technology student at KPU’s Wilson School of Design.