Top 10 Amazing Korean Clothing Styles And A Fashion Guide

There is no denying the immense popularity of the Korean dressing style worldwide. It has captured the hearts of fashion enthusiasts for all the right reasons. Is it any wonder that Seoul Fashion Week which began in 2013 is totally a thing now and designers from all around the world are always up for attending it? This inspired us to create this article all about Korean fashion.

A blogger and fan of K-beauty fashion shared her experience on why she’s so fascinated by it, writing, “I really like Korean fashion because I think it can be elegant, cute and cool! The clothes are also very affordable and good quality (i)!”.The blogger also frequently shops from Korea and K-fashion brands.

If you are interested in learning more, scroll down!

Ace The Look

• Patterns: To add some visual appeal to your outfit, play around with different colors and contrast patterns like stripes, florals, or checks.
• Accessories: Add cute hair accessories like hair clips or headbands, along with statement earrings and layered necklaces. Remember that Korean fashion tends to take a delicate, minimalistic approach to accessorizing.
• Makeup: Consider natural-looking shades for a fresh-face look. Try Korean beauty trends like straight eyebrows and gradient lips to add unique elements to the overall look.
• Hairstyles: Experiment with hairstyles like loose waves, braids, or ponytails to match your attire and enhance your look.

Korean Fashion: Style Guide

1. Add Layers With Texture

Korean fashion is not just about short clothes. If you look closely, there are textures, patterns, and asymmetry. Add a faux fur jacket to your jumpsuit, pantsuit, or buttoned-down dress. You could also go a little further and add combat boots and round glasses – maybe with a pink tint?

Quick Tip

For a classic and feminine look, you may layer jackets and tops in pastel and beige shades and wear skirts made of flowy fabric.

2. Ruffled Pink Skirt And A Graphic Tee

Graphic tee, winged liner, and a side-swept pixie are how I’d imagine a fictional, badass, and chic Korean hacker. Come on now, we have seen enough sitcoms on Netflix. But, how do you make this look work for you? Pair the graphic tee with a ruffled pink skirt (the color pink is almost synonymous with just about anything Korean), stockings, ankle length boots, and maybe a woolen cap in winters and look adorable.

3. Shorts And Bold Striped Top

If you have watched any K-dramas, you must have noticed that this is a go-to casual wear for most Korean women. While shorts are not new to any of us, pairing them with a bold blue striped T-shirt might not be my first choice if I wasn’t trying to pull a K-fashion statement.

4. Turtleneck Checkered Winter Dress

You can turn around towards Koreans for some much-needed fashion inspiration and they will never fail you. Checkered shirt dresses are everywhere, but again, since they love their prints so much, they go all out with them, and so should you. Why the turtleneck, you ask? If you notice, Koreans are dressed in short dresses, but the necks are never deep. So keeping that in mind, here’s a dress for a cozy winter night. Oh, and long socks paired with winter footwear are another high street fashion piece that these guys love.

5. Oversized Sweater And A Pleated Skirt

Box pleated A-line or peplum skirts and corset tops scream Western fashion. Move a little towards the East, and you will realize they dress a bit differently, and something the rest of the world can adopt too. An accordion-pleated skirt that flares up your feminine side and an oversized sweater may be an unusual pairing, but because it’s K-fashion, it works. Carry a sling bag or a box clutch to finish the look.

Quick Tip

Collared blouses are a staple of Korean women. It’s versatile and goes well with skirts and pants. You can also layer it under sweaters and trench coats.

6. Ruffled Skirt

We tend to assume that K-fashion is all about blush, peach, and pink-colored palettes. But they can be quite outlandish and you would realize that the minute you walk on the streets. You will realize that Korean women walk around in combinations we otherwise don’t consider wearing and confidently so. A ruffled velvet skirt with a loose flap hand sweater or shirt is a punk look you should try. This is not only their go-to wear, but skirts form a part of their formal wear as well.

7. Distressed Jeans And Sweaters

Ask Korean designers, and they will tell you that bootcut jeans, boots, and graphic T-shirts are love. You can bring it all into one single outfit or use them separately. The bootcut jeans and a big yellow sweater fits the Korean fashion scene perfectly.

8. Winter Fashion

Warm up your winters in a faux fur overcoat or a thick and oversized jacket. Koreans firmly believe that beauty is in the details, and so winter jackets with eclectic cuts, patterns or designs with knee-high or combat boots will do the job for you. You don’t have to stick to the regular shade card – go all out with coral, yellow or blue jackets, and geometric designs, if you please.

9. Shirt Dress – Summer Fashion

Like we discussed, you see them all wearing incredibly short shorts or skirts, but they are not big on showing off their cleavage, which is very unlike the West. But, it is amazing how they play around with patterns and make you feel that you are not missing out on a style just because you are not wearing specific styles. And, so you see a lot of off and cold shoulder dresses, shirt dresses, playsuits, and shorts in summer. But a graphic shirt or t-shirt dress with shoes, tinted eyeglasses, and a fedora glides you into Korean culture seamlessly.

10. Matching Separates

While you saw a lot of mellowed down fashion pieces, you would also be surprised to know that Koreans choose two remarkably unassuming pieces of clothing, not just in color but the pattern, style, etc., and bring them together, and it is okay. Even if you are in the mood to pair this outfit with knee-high boots or combats, nobody is stopping you – it is incredibly stylish.

Online Korean Stores To Shop From

If you were wondering where to shop, don’t worry. Here are some of the best online clothing store sites that deliver to your doorstep.

1. Kooding

Kooding was built with an interesting idea to connect the world’s fashion communities and bring them all together at one place. It’s a place where you can explore fashion from different countries and shop their collections too. Korean fashion is big here, making it accessible and affordable to people world over.

Buy Here – kooding.com

2. Yes Style

Clothes, bags, accessories, K-beauty products, and anything Korean – Yes Style has it. In fact, they have collections from all Asian countries at one place. Shoes, bags, accessories, apparel and anything else you need is here, under one roof. It’s affordable, ships all over the world, and has a great after support service too.

Buy Here – yesstyle.com

Infographic: Top Korean Fashion Influencers You Must Follow

Koreans are known for being artistic, bold, and experimental with their fashion statements. They love trying out new ideas, and hence their trends are changing every other day. It isn’t easy to keep up with them. However, one could always follow influencers on social media who bring fresh trends to their audience. Check out the infographic below for a list of some of the top K-fashion influencers with a refreshing sense of style.

Illustration: StyleCraze Design Team

Frequently Asked Questions

How have Korean clothing styles changed with the introduction of Western fashion and trends?

Fashion and clothing styles in Korea are heavily influenced by modern American culture depicted in Hollywood movies. Audrey Hepburn’s elegant take on outfits became so popular that it was known as the ‘Hepburn’ style and was widely adopted by women in Korea. Korean women who wore formal attire emulated the First Lady of the United States, Jaqueline Kennedy.

How has the trend of Korean pop culture, including K-Pop and K-Dramas, influenced clothing styles and fashion in Korea and around the world?

K-pop groups such as Seo Taiji and Boys contributed to hip-hop fashion’s arrival in Korea. K-Dramas have popularized bold, comfortable, and elegant outfits like dresses and winterwear in Korea and the rest of the world.

What is Korean-style clothing called?

Korean-style clothing is called Hanbok.

Do Koreans wear crop tops?

Yes, Koreans wear crop tops. Crop tops have been a huge hit in Korean fashion for the past few years.

How do you define Korean fashion?

Korean fashion is defined as intermixing a variety of clothes with different styles and coming up with something new or one of a kind.

What is Korean fashion inspired by?

Korean fashion is inspired by their culture and geographic location.

Illustration: Amazing Korean Clothing Styles And A Fashion Guide

Image: Stable Diffusion/StyleCraze Design Team

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Michelle WagmanFashion Stylist

     

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