Sarah Nami Ahn is an LA based fashion designer and founder of her own womenswear brand called NAMI after her middle name, her Korean name. Ahn’s brand, NAMI, rapidly gained traction after just one season, her debut collection SS12 that was shown at NYFW, LAFW in September and October 2011, respectively. Ahn only launched her line June of 2011 and within a short year, her line is now sold online and in boutiques around the country. Her design aesthetics is highly influenced by her worldly travels as an Army Brat, her heritage, her unusual educational background, and finally by architecture.
On October 13th, NAMI presented its Spring/Summer 2013 collection in Los Angeles, and we were lucky enough to be at the show. Check out our collection review as well as our interview with the designer, Sarah Ahn, after the cut!
With over 450 guests, NAMI was one of the highest attended shows for Concept Fashion Week this season. Sarah Nami Ahn’s debut runway show in Los Angeles surely attracted a lot of attention and it’s not surprising to see why. Her collection encompasses the current and forthcoming trends while incorporating her own unique taste, making her one of the top emerging designers.
Laundry by Shelli Segal has long been the go-to label for easy cocktail dresses for their stylish and unique designs, while still staying affordable. In their latest national design competition to “Design the Perfect Little Black Dress,” Korean American interior designer Sarah Ahn took home first place with her winning design. The “Sarah” dress, named after the winner, is a knee-length, slip-on design with a V-neck in both front and back and cap sleeves. It’s available now through October at Nordstrom, Dillards, Macy’s, Zappos, Polyvore, 6pm.com and shopstyle.com.
What’s surprising is that Sarah initially worked in the neuroscience field. Her experience shows that people don’t always grow up knowing what they want to do, nor do they enter school or the work force pursuing their interests. People may spend years working on something they aren’t truly passionate about only to discover later that it wasn’t something they wanted to do for the rest of their lives. Unfortunately, it took a tragic event, her brother’s motorcycle accident, before she had the courage to go into the arts, something she had always loved growing up. Here, we talk to Sarah about her inspirational story, her winning LBD, and her thoughts on eco-fashion.
