Jan 3-29, 2016 I went for the most fruitful and unforgettable trip across Europe. With a group of talented designers with various background, I visited fashion studios, concept stores, automotive factories, beer tours, local market, leather finish company and shoe design school. Here is a peek of what this trip looks like:

The most exciting part of this trip for me is the hands-on leather finishing experience at STAHL. I got to work with "crust" (which refer to leather that has been tanned, dyed and dried but not finished). Mixing pigment, design base coat and top coat, spay painting, embossing, foil plating...all so much fun.

I was inspired by the simple, classic and yet smart European designs–not trying too hard to be eye-catching, but always make you smile when you discover the surprise, like what I found in Berlin–Bless, or the mind blowing Porcshe Musume, and lots of smart (not the new technology “smart”, just ordinary but extraordinary) houses I saw on the streets.

Also, we are giving a pair of cup soles to make only one shoe, which was very confusing at first, but I decided to have some fun with it. What’s a pair of shoes, and what is a shoe. What’s a left and what’s a right…..

Please visit my blog page for more detailed version of this trip and my design process.