In conversation with L&rsquo;Officiel Singapore, Felicia shares the inspirations behind her collection and the goals for her new label Feel Archives

Felicia Pang speaks to L&rsquo;Officiel Singapore in an exclusive interview on her journey as the youngest finalist at Singapore Stories 2022, as well as her goals for her new fashion brand Feel Archives, launching next year. Based on the theme of &lsquo;Fashion United&rsquo; for this year&rsquo;s competition, the 23-year-old shares how she interwove concepts of alternate realities, heritage and sustainability into her intricate debut collection &ndash; Blooming Dreams.

Congratulations on becoming a finalist at this year&rsquo;s Singapore Stories! What was the competition like for you?
Thank you! It truly was an honour to be among the other finalists. It is still wild to me that I managed to pull that off. The competition was a roller coaster journey; I had never pushed myself this far before in my career, especially in terms of experimentation and technicality. The competition also impacted my personal growth as a designer. I previously struggled to find my own design identity for a while, even while preparing for the launch of my brand Feel Archives. Now, I have a better idea of what I want to put out there into the world: Beauty that is worth its resources to make and moves people to feel!

How is an alternate reality explored in Feel Archives&rsquo; debut collection &ndash; Blooming Dreams?
The story of Blooming Dreams is parallel to my own design journey while creating this collection. It tells the story of a girl who comes from a place that has forgotten the beauty and magic of her own roots. Intrigued by a strange butterfly, she follows it to an alternate reality where she discovers her culture and tradition. During her adventure, she finds her true self and falls in love with her roots and the beauty of colours and flora.
When I was conceptualising the collection, I was especially drawn to Peranakan ceramics at the Asian Civilisations Museum and it moved me to have a sense of wonder and excitement that I wanted to bring across to everyone who would look at the collection.
How does this cultural influence from Peranakan ceramics come through in your designs?
The collection&rsquo;s colour palette is heavily inspired by Peranakan ware which has very eye-catching combinations of bright yellows, pinks, reds, and indigo. Every piece is filled with floral motifs from a combination of Singapore&rsquo;s culture. Some examples are the peony, which represents beauty and good fortune, and the cotton flower and the lotus, which represent the power of life. I thought that it was incredible to see how each individual culture has the same idea to use these flowers to represent something more and beautify their goods with it. Without even knowing it, and despite coming from such diverse cultures, our vision of beauty is the same.

How does Blooming Dreams illustrate Feel Archives&rsquo; design ethos as a local fashion label?
I want to create pieces that are worth spending our already-limited resources on. I focused on the longevity and exclusivity of the clothes, such that you could collect and wear them for a long time and even pass them on to the next generation, just like how I now wear my mum&rsquo;s prized pieces from her younger days!
The entire collection was hand-made in Singapore by myself, with the help of my fellow young designers. Blooming Dreams represents my own dreams too. I hope we can create a new legacy for ourselves as a new generation of designers that can sustainably create completely in Singapore and put us on the map in the fashion world.
Tell us more about your personal vision for the brand.
Feel Archives is and will always be personal and authentic. I am an advocate for feelings, and I hope that my designs will allow the wearer to feel fully, and express big emotions, archiving their precious memories into each piece. I want to connect with people, and I think the ability to feel emotions is a precious power that allows us to do so; clothing is just my chosen medium!

What sort of woman do you aspire to dress with Feel Archives?
&lsquo;Feelers&rsquo; and city girls. Hopefully, one day I&rsquo;ll get to dress city boys too!
What can we look forward to from Feel Archives in 2023?
So much is planned! I will be officially launching Feel Archives online with a new ready-to-wear collection that I&rsquo;m currently working on, you will see it first on our socials!

Exclusive: Singapore Stories Finalist Felicia Pang on Her Debut Collection Blooming Dreams

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