Today I’m continuing my ultimate guide to Korean fashion, breaking down the predominant Korean fashion aesthetics and trends I observed on my recent trip to Seoul, South Korea.

Last week, I focused on what I like to call the first category of Korean style, a classic and feminine Korean wardrobe, so this week I’m moving on to category two, my favorite Korean fashion aesthetic: edgy street style.

{RELATED POST: The Ultimate Guide to Edgy Style & Creating an Edgy Wardrobe}

Let’s get right into it.

(For more Korean fashion inspiration, check out my Seoul, South Korea Packing Guide, my latest K-Pop Fashion Inspiration posts on Twice’s Feel Special and Somi’s debut single Birthday, and my BTS Airport Fashion Guide 2019.)

Table of Contents

Korean Street Style 101

As I mentioned in my previous article, in Seoul, the sartorial choices of young women can be very roughly divided into two distinct categories:

• Classic and Feminine: this subset features items including girly blouses, schoolgirl check skirts, pastels and beige, romantic floral pieces, tailored jackets, and tops and skirts in elegant, flowy fabrics.
• Edgy Street Style: this aesthetic is encapsulated by athleisure pieces, distinctive coats and jackets, oversized items, flashes of neon, street-wear accessories and grungy footwear.

Elements of a Korean Street Style Wardrobe

Element 1: Deconstructed Denim

In my last post, I discussed the ubiquity of the trench coat in Seoul, and how every fashionista (and their mother) could be spotted in some variation of this classic piece.