by Brian James
Having cemented her eponymous brand “By Cookie H” as a london Fashion Week fixture, the designer took her SS25 collection “Voyage of Identity” to Paris Fashion Week, where she showed it to the Parisian fashion cognoscenti at a venue in the achingly cool and vibrant Le Marais neighbourhood.
“Voyage of Identity” was a particularly prescient title for an assemblage of pieces that took its inspiration from those individual identities which continually evolve and which can take our lives in new and exciting directions. As the designer told Flanelle “This collection finds inspiration in everyone’s individual identity. It’s always my pleasure to design and continually create beautiful pieces and share those designs wherever possible. It is my honour to be in Paris and showcase the collection”.
Asked how she wants the person who wears pieces from this and previous collections, to feel about themselves and the world around them while wearing “By Cookie H” she said “Let them be the walking mannequin and feel individually styled with their own identity…even the same dress worn by different humans will create a different feeling of individualism”.
That celebration of self-expression is intrinsically linked with Cookie’s commitment to a slow-fashion footprint and a staunchly sustainable ethos , both of which are encapsulated by her mantra “good things take time”. Expanding on the philosophy behind this manifesto she explained “Every piece is individual, and the process from sourcing and choosing the material to the final hand stitch finishing always at the right pace without rushing…time is the best way to prove good pieces”.
The sourcing and selecting of materials to construct her hand-made, custom one-off creations is as important to the designer and her team as the meticulous attention to craftsmanship and imperious command of fabric manipulation she brings to her work. Detailing the fabrics and fibres she used to create “Voyage of Identity” ,and its predecessors , Cookie said “ We use our natural dye material, for example, tea leaves or vegetables in our process of wash dyeing and object dyeing, and most of our buttons are made from recycled material. We are always putting effort into loving this universe in every possible way towards sustainable practices”.
This environmental empathy has lain at the heart of the “By Cookie H” DNA since the designer launched the brand in 2008 after graduating from Whitecliffe College, an incubator for some of New Zealand’s most successful fashion designers and artists. Reflecting on how that experience prepared her for the career she embarked on and whether there were any challenges in launching a clothing brand in a country not widely renowned for its fashion industry ,Cookie said “Designing and creating have been my core since I was young. Right after graduating in New Zealand, I couldn’t wait to showcase my pieces to the world and to have my own brand “By Cookie H” …. . wherever there is breathing nature and the human environment, there’s fashion in the process, so no matter where we are, fashion can be there too”.
That Antipodean arc has melded with Cookie’s Chinese heritage to create a vision and values informed by both cultures and which suffuse the brand with a unique aesthetic. These cross-continental, cross-cultural Oceanic and Asiatic influences further aligned with the opening of the designers first bricks-and-mortar store in her hometown of Guangzhou,China. A development that she told Flanelle was borne out of a love of that city, the familial ties that bind her to it and a desire to grow her brand in that environment.
It’s a growth that’s been building exponentially since founding the label sixteen years ago. Asked what she thinks the key to her longevity is in an often- transitory industry where some designers fail to survive beyond a few seasons, Cookie mused “Designing in a creative way instead of a competitive way has become the core of my journey. Just follow the flow and the universe will provide”.
Having shown at Paris Fashion Week and given us another stellar collection, Flanelle asked Cookie H about her goals and aspirations for 2025. Hugely appreciative of the support and love afforded her by an ever-increasing global audience, she vowed to continue to live up to the mantra that exemplifies her slow-fashion sensibility.
That mantra of “good things take time” manifests itself in designs that incite wonder and exhilaration. Hand-made, hand-stitched, hand-dyed pieces that are truly timeless and imbued with ethereal elegance. Pieces created with love that we love and that we think you’ll love as well.
