Sweet and petite, Rassarine "Kathy" Tanachaiwattanapokin makes the kind of clothes that are perfect for small, dainty women. Although her feminine brand, Made of Fabric, has been around since 2011, it was only this season that the founder/designer presented her autumn/winter collection, "Dreamless Romance", with a big, rosy splash at CentralWorld. With a childhood spent around fabrics and a master's degree in fashion from Istituto Maragoni, Rassarine has turned her passion into a popular label -- so much so that Chinese tourists make her store a stop on their travel itineraries. Using herself as the prototypical model, you'll be sure to always find itsy-bitsy pieces here (Kathy loves short hemlines because they make legs look longer). We talked to the designer about her brand's history and why the girlie girls love it.
How would you describe your brand to people who haven't heard of it?
Highly feminine and optimistic, which can be seen from our use of colours. It's sweet but there's a small sexy twist in that mix too, so it's never completely girlie and sweet. This has always been the heritage of our brand, since day one. It gives off a princessy vibe but is still accessible. Our customers exhibit that character too -- they are khun noos who dress up a lot, but it's dresses they can really wear in reality. Our customers are the confident sort, while we also get lots of Chinese customers. I think they like it for its dramatic aesthetics, which is also reflected in their culture of imperial splendour.
What is your latest collection inspired by?
The classic animated film Sleeping Beauty. In my childhood, I really loved Disney princesses and Sleeping Beauty was my favourite. I loved everything the storyline, character and colours of the clothes this princess wore. I always collected things from every Disneyland I went to because I loved the place. Some techniques were inspired by rose petals, where hemlines look like layers of rose petals. There are some darker colours that are inspired by Maleficent, which are more mystifying and something to search into.
Rassarine 'Kathy' Tanachaiwattanapokin. Somchai Poomlard
When did you start your brand?
Towards the end of 2011. At first, I was still studying in fourth year and it was just a thing on Facebook. I never thought it would get to this point. I just wanted to find something to do and wanted to starting a clothing business. I started out with only 40,000 baht. At that time, I just did the prototypes, which were for me, and I did all the photo shoots and graphics myself. My friends on Facebook and at university sent orders in right on the very first day, so I took made-to-measure orders -- I didn't even have stock then. The first month's sales numbers were quite high, so I started to get more serious about it. When I saw that what I did was liked by others as well, it made me feel that I'd come the right way.
Why did you choose the name Made of Fabric?
Back then, our standout trait was in using unusual fabrics, so I decided to use this name. Our sweet and sexy character has been around since the beginning, though -- we did backless pieces in many different styles. Not many people back then would dare wear it, but today I see more people confident wearing backless tops.
Has your family background contributed to the business?
My family is in the garment business, so I guess I've absorbed it since I was a child. It's a different style, though, because it's all about mass production and factories. However, my mother and grandmother really love to dress up and when they go to events -- they always tailor brand-new outfits. Their dresses and silk outfits fill up three rooms at home. I've had the experience of going to the tailors with my mother and choosing fabrics with her, be they lace or whatnot. When I was younger, we'd have matching tailored outfits to wear together to events. If we had leftover materials, I'd make dresses for my Barbies with them. My mother loved to dress me up like her, so if you looked at old photos, I looked like a doll back then. I think my own passion must have grown from that.
Visit Made of Fabric on the third floor of Siam Square One.
Must-haves: "It's a bit of a sleeping beauty gimmick where you can wear it to sleep but it can also be worn outside anywhere too. There's also a bra inside so it may look sweet but is secretly sexy. The white dress is also a princessy outfit thanks to its puffy sleeves, but is reworked for the modern woman."
Must-haves: "It's a bit of a sleeping beauty gimmick where you can wear it to sleep but it can also be worn outside anywhere too. There's also a bra inside so it may look sweet but is secretly sexy. The white dress is also a princessy outfit thanks to its puffy sleeves, but is reworked for the modern woman."
