Designer Sandy Liang Celebrates Girlhood
Designer Sandy Liang captures nostalgia for her own life and references various cultural moments of girlhood. Unapologetic in her playful aesthetic consisting of ruffles, flower motifs, pearls and Sailor Moon references, she resists seriousness in style. Liang’s emerging influence may also be responsible for tulle and ruffles taking over 2023 trend forecasts. She has also become a Hollywood darling with celebrities from Phoebe Bridgers to Lena Dunham expressing admiration.
Liang’s Instagram – both personal and professional – includes moodboards that provide a glimpse of design inspiration of the collections. Pictures of ballerinas and the films of Sofia Coppola suggest her style is an ode to femininity and coming-of-age.
Accessories
Accessories range from necklaces and charm bracelets to headbands and bandanas. Liang twists each item to fit her principles – scrunchies formed in flower patterns and each hair elastic has a flower corsage.
The items’ names themselves evoke memories of childhood such as flower power, licorice and black taffeta. There are also touches of elegance with a recital headband offered along with ashtrays adorned in the founder’s name.
Clothing
A collection of pleated or flared ‘princess dresses’ are decorated with ribbons or flowers and engulf the frame. Other clothing is somewhat conservative such as the Platelet Dress consisting of a high neckline and long ruffled organza. Gingham and granny patterns in pink and navy blue elicit memories of a childhood spent in the prarie. These dresses are a callback to Liang’s grandmother who sparked her interest in fashion. But the items most representative of trends today are simple, sleek such as the Connell Dress in Syrup. But the most popular items among celebrities are the knit collections with Gigi Hadid and Alison Brie sporting the sweaters for the wintertime.
Sandy Liang says a woman will never stop being a girl, the longing for childhood always present. Her work is a reflection of her past and the cultural forces that shaped a sense of self. However, it still captures the interests and trends popular in fashion today from ballet-core to coquette-core which suggests nostalgia will never go out of style.