Christian Joy

Most fledgling labels have to work hard to earn the kind of cult appreciation and rock star following that Christian Joy, currently in its debut season, already enjoys. The reason behind its popularity (aside from the gorgeous clothes, of course)? The lady behind the label, Christian Joy herself (real name Christiane Joy Hultquist) is a stylist and costume designer extraordinaire, best known for her long term collaboration with Karen O, style icon and front woman of the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s.

The pair met in 1998 when Christian had just moved from Chicago to the Big Apple and quickly formed a firm friendship that has helped to put them both on the map. Talking to ELLE she says of Karen, ‘It's always pretty easy working with her. She really allows me to have total creative freedom. There is a lot of natural creative and complimentary energy between the two of us. I think it's an amazingly unique situation.’ With bright colours, a hefty helping of sequins and an eye-popping amount of lycra, Karen’s stage costumes quickly made the front pages of style mags world wide and earned Christian and enviable reputation in the world of fashion. Need proof? Last year Christian was asked to contribute to the V&A’s ‘New York Now’ exhibition alongside the likes of Zac Posen and Derek Lam, and subsequently designed a much sought after capsule collection for, you guessed it, high street giant Topshop.

Now Christian has turned her hand to something a little more wearable and debuted her own label. She says, ‘One of the main reasons that I decided to do it was because I felt like I needed another outlet and I wanted to make pieces that I felt like other women could wear and appreciate.’ And, boy, has she succeeded. The predominately monochrome collection features oversized T-shirts, mini shift dresses and this season’s staple, jumpsuits – surprisingly accessible for a woman who cites her inspirations as veteran comedienne Phyllis DiIler and Granny from the Looney Tunes cartoons. It's only a matter of time before a British store snaps up her designs, but in the meantime check out her website at www.christianjoy.us to see more of the collection and buy selected pieces.

by Emma Sells