Taking In-Vinh-tory. | Hawaii RED Magazine

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DENIM STYLE BY VINH BUU – “Hawaii has been so good to me,” says Vinh Buu, one of the top up and coming fashion designers in the islands. Like Hawaii, he drawsinspiration from an Asia-Pacific blend of cultures and experiences, and brings to his fashion a sense of style and sensibility that pays homage to the islands.

He is inspired by Hawaii and the abundance of “beautiful people” here, who make brilliant canvases for his work. Although stimulated by his locality, Vinh doesn’t particularly follow trends because he doesn’t want them to influence his work much.

This seems a fitting viewpoint for a local designer. Hawaii’s geographic solitude allows for a certain fashion nonchalance toward mainland trends. People here don’t necessarily dress like people in Los Angeles. In addition, Hawaii is affected by foreign influences in a way that the contiguous 48 states are not, due to our high levels of immigration and tourism.

Vinh, 27, points to the role non-European styles play in local fashion, saying there is “a freedom of culture” – the ability to throw on anything and look good – which is not necessarily true on the mainland. He also notes that the major player in local fashion is the climate. People in Hawaii are just not going to wear the same thing in December as people in New York or London or even Japan.

Vinh asserts that even at night the style is casual because of the temperature, however, “when the time calls for it, Hawaii can dress up.” Because of all these factors, Vinh doesn’t want to try to create new trends, but rather “sell a culture that people are already a part of.”

Vinh is a recent graduate of Honolulu Community College’s fashion program and is on track to become a design luminary. The day I met Vinh, his ensemble was a mix of edgy street style and thoughtful polish – a personal look that complements his work.

He was well spoken and eager to talk about his work as a designer and his take on local fashion. Although not born in Hawaii, he is a welcome addition to the kama’aina.

Vinh’s own mix of cultures – he is of Vietnamese-German-Irish ancestry – mirrors the melting pot that is Hawaii. Originally from Spokane, Washington, Vinh came up from nothing and recalls, in a bittersweet tone, “government cheese.” He moved around a lot, living for a while in Guam, where he says he fell in love with island life.

Although he always worked with clothing in one way or another, including a job at the locally renowned Red Light vintage clothing store in Seattle, Vinh never thought that a career in fashion was a viable option. Despite this and an historic lack of interest in school, Vinh eventually decided to attend fashion school.

His affinity for island life eventually led him to Honolulu Community College. While at HCC, Vinh put everything he had into his classes. During his senior year, he was president of the Fashion Society Club, producer of the annual fashion show, Masquerade, and designed a collection for the show, all while holding down a steady job.

Vinh’s dedication and endless hours of work paid off when he won both the production and design awards for Masquerade. Vinh’s senior collection was a mixture of fashion forward thinking and island culture. Vinh finished the seams of the jeans he made for HCC’s fashion show with aloha print, a secret and unobtrusive nod to Hawaii and its culture.

For the show, Vinh paired his denim collection with swimsuit tops. Because denim is a staple in everyone’s wardrobe, Vinh sees a strong market for jeans. There was a lot of experimenting that went into his line. Vinh tried a multitude of ways to create surface interest on denim, including foot scrubbers.

Eventually, he fell in love with batik, a resist dyeing process, because of the stunning and random patterns it creates. And so Vinh Buu’s line, Buutik was born. Vinh made a total of six pairs of jeans for different taste levels: two basic pairs, two heavily batiked pairs, and two pairs in between.

He created these levels because he doesn’t want to be part of a niche market. Vinh wants to reach as many people as possible. All of his jeans, however, have design details and a good fit.

One of Vinh’s unique details is what he calls the “bikini pocket.” These pockets are built into seams that curve down and under the butt, where a bikini would cut across. He says “people want to be a part of something crazy and fun.” So maybe one person’s idea of fun is batiked jeans while another’s is a pair of designer jeans with subtler detailing.

Vinh’s goal is for every demographic to find something in his line to connect with. One of Vinh’s teachers at HCC, Amos Kotomori, recognizes the universal appeal of Vinh’s work, believing it “will capture an audience that … will be global in spirit.”

With luck, Vinh’s international appeal will soon be available locally. Now post graduation, Vinh is moving into a new studio in Waipahu with fellow local designer, Andy South. He plans on creating a new line to shop around to local boutiques.

Because of our unique style here in Hawaii and our distance from outside manufacturers, there is a blossoming of boutiques supporting local designers. Any kama’aina can buck the trends seen on a national level for an inimitable look and support the Hawaii economy by purchasing designs by Vinh Buu or other local designers at neighborhood boutiques.

Story by Erin Ludolph

Photos by Olivier Koning and Aaron K. Yoshino