Interview | Why Clothing Speaks Louder Than Words with Xinyi Chen

It’s a powerful affirmation since I am coming from a non-traditional background. It encourages me to continue designing with both heart and discipline.

It’s helped me build confidence. It’s given me momentum to keep refining my language, growing my body of work, and designing with purpose.

Experimentation is essential. For my award-winning design, The Form of Power, I explored the tension between contrasting fabrics—leather, velvet, suiting, and mesh. Each had its own personality, and combining them required constant trial, adjustment, and patience. That process of discovery became just as meaningful as the final piece itself.

Once, I was inspired by the quiet discomfort of formality, like sitting in a rigid suit for too long. It made me reflect on how fashion often mirrors social constraints, especially for women. That discomfort turned into a design exploring contrast: structured silhouettes paired with soft, freeing inner layers.

That good design is not just about aesthetic taste—it’s about choice, clarity, and iteration. Behind every simple-looking silhouette are dozens of versions, revisions, and decisions. It’s a process that involves feeling, thinking, and editing, over and over again.

I approach it as collaboration, not compromise. I listen deeply to the client’s needs, but I also ask: What’s the deeper message they want to convey? From there, I try to create something that speaks to both their vision and mine, without losing authenticity.

The biggest challenge was material contradiction—some fabrics fought against each other during construction. Balancing structure and wearability took countless mockups. I overcame it by staying curious, staying patient, and letting the garment evolve through hands-on problem-solving.

I give myself permission to pause. I stop designing, touch fabrics without purpose, or immerse myself in other forms of art—music, movies, nature. Sometimes clarity comes not from pushing, but from quiet re-connection with why I started in the first place.

My work often reflects themes of duality—strength and softness, structure and freedom. Coming from a business background and entering fashion later in life, I’m always exploring the tension between control and release. That internal contrast drives how I design for modern women navigating multiple roles.

Start before you feel ready. Trust that clarity comes through doing. Don’t rush to be loud—be honest first. Build your voice with intention.

Alexander McQueen. His ability to turn pain into beauty and emotion into structure is something I deeply admire.

Q: “What do you want your designs to do for the people who wear them?”

A: I want them to feel powerful in their own way. Not louder, not prettier—just more themselves. My goal is not to transform someone, but to help them recognize and reclaim the version of themselves.