DEAN SENSUI / DSENSUI@STARBULLETIN.COM
Sewing students turned designers Kristal Koga, left, and Mai-Scherelle, right, return to the studio of their sensei and mentor Jayne Miho. The three -- each with their own distinctive style -- will share the stage with three other designers at the Japanese Women's Society benefit fashion show Saturday.
Setting a pattern
Kristal Koga and many others
followed Jayne Miho's design leadWhen and where It would be easy to assume Kristal Koga was born with "it" -- that combination of style sense, timing and political know-how, i.e., the ability to massage monumental egos -- that has led her to a successful career in the fashion industry as the talent behind The Kristal Kollection.
But Koga would be the first to attribute her success to the power of osmosis, soaking in the knowledge and influence of the women who were her role models, including her grandmother Betty Koga, aunt Joellyn Blankenship and sewing instructor Jayne Miho.
DEAN SENSUI / DSENSUI@STARBULLETIN.COM
One of Koga's designs, which she markets mainly on Guam.
Koga will be among the designers featured in the Japanese Women's Society annual Fashion Show Luncheon Benefit on Saturday, themed "Living Legacy" in conjunction with the recently released JWS book "Living Legacy: Outstanding Japanese Women of the 20th Century in Hawaii."
Three of the designers -- Miho, Janet Yamasaki and Anne Namba -- are profiled in the book, and Miho mentored another three designers featured in the show: Mai- Scherelle, Kristal Koga and Lori Moriwaki.
The show itself will feature a time line of fashion from mentors to protégés.
"Our intent is to exemplify the living legacy of senior women and how they have influenced and contributed toward launching careers for other women in their fields," said show coordinator Cathy Foy.
Koga remembers being a toddler playing at her grandmother's feet as she sewed. "She was a seamstress for Carol & Mary, and my love for fashion was a combination effect between the influence of my grandmother and my auntie, who was a buyer at McInerny. I always remember her looking really put together. She also traveled quite a bit, and that was exciting from a young girl's perspective.
"Both dealt with upscale clothing that I otherwise would not have been exposed to because it was not a part of my lifestyle."
And yet, Koga was aware that clothing could be not only be made to reflect one's lifestyle, it might also signal one's aspiration to a particular lifestyle.
"Most people who get into this business only think of the fashion aspect, but I grew up looking at it from a lifestyle, selling and marketing perspective, and I think that really helped me."
She took classes at Miho's Style Center to perfect her pattern-making technique, and by the time she graduated from Kalani High School in the mid-'80s, she was staging fashion shows on campus and in nightclubs where she was too young to drink.
Eventually, a booming economy led her to Guam in 1988, which, fashionwise, has little in common with Hawaii.
"It's very small, with a population of about 150,000, but it's very competitive there. A lot of people dress up because they have to travel to Korea, China, Japan and the Philippines for business.
"They're really into fashion. Part of it is because everybody knows everybody, so they can't be seen wearing the same thing twice.
"They also have real big families and throw huge parties, so they dress up for those, too. They spend a lot more on clothes than we do here."
What at first looked like a gold mine became a potential land mine as Koga realized she could not take a mass-market, too-much-of-the-same-thing approach there, which has been the failing of many chains that tried to enter the scene.
She learned the hard way that it just wouldn't do to sell the same garment to two women who were attending the same function.
Now, to avoid the ultimate faux pas, "I have to ask and make sure where they're going to be," she said. "It's not like here, where if you see each other you kind of just laugh and say, 'Eh, you really have good taste.'
"Now, I only make six of each piece, so you're not going to see them too much."
Her garments are simple, sporty and easy to pack for that go-go lifestyle, with prices that range from $28 to $38 per piece.
Dividing her time between Hawaii and Guam, Koga said another factor of life in Guam that influences her work there is the frequent power outages that make iron-free clothing a must. She also utilizes a lot of stretch fabrics so avid party-goers don't have to worry about attending the next dinner.
And movement plays a big part in her line. "I always try to picture what the design will look like when people are walking, because that's how people see you."
She tries not to create pieces that are overly sexy or over the top.
"Even if it's for clubs, you can go funky but it would be hard to sell. Women may love it, but they won't wear it because they're self-conscious about their bodies."
WITH A MATERNAL eye, Miho admires the work of her former students. Like any mom, she's well aware of their strengths and weaknesses but loves them nevertheless, saying she wishes this one would apply herself, and that one with the theatrical designs would be better off in Los Angeles or Las Vegas than Hawaii. She empathizes with their struggle to find a niche in this difficult market, where the T-shirt and other baggy apparel continue their reign.
"In Hawaii it's hard to make a living with custom dress-making. You cannot make money," Miho said. "Not many people are willing to pay. I think it's because in the olden days housewives used to do cheap dress-making as a side job, and that still influences the way people think."
MIHO, BORN Fusako Suehiro in 1919 near Haiku, Maui, has enjoyed a career in fashion that has spanned more than four decades. A graduate of the Traphagen Fashion Institute in New York, she returned to Hawaii and established herself as one of the state's premier fashion designers.
She was one of the first dressmakers in Hawaii to use kimono fabric and colors in making clothes. Miho also designed clothing for dignitaries such as Claire Booth Luce and Nancy Quinn, wife of former Gov. William Quinn.
She worked for a time at Liberty House's Crest Room, eventually gravitating to the School of Style Center run by her own mentor Sue Fukumoto. In time, Miho would take over the business, teaching pattern-making and dress-making to several generations of young women.
Five years ago, Miho tried to retire, closing the Style Center on Beretania -- where she taught 24 to 30 students at a time -- only to find "when I go home, nothing to do."
That's when she opened her King Street shop, where she's able to work on her own projects and teach two students at a time.
"Before, I had to follow DOE (Department of Education) guidelines, have a full curriculum. I got tired of doing that. Now I can do what I want, help anybody who needs help."
That help has been rewarding for her. "I'm very thankful that I could do this all my life, and if you enjoy your work, you don't get that tired. And meeting all the young girls all the time, they make me feel young. I'm very fortunate.
"I wish more of my students could make use of their training, but in Hawaii it's hard to make a living in this kind of business. Maybe I find one in a hundred who's able to find work as a pattern-maker, sample-maker or in a bridal shop."
At any rate, she's grateful to the women for allowing her to share her knowledge, saying, "I have two sons, and they have no interest in dress-making."
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'Living Legacy'
The Japanese Women's Society benefit fashion show:Where: Sheraton-Waikiki Hotel
When: 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday
Tickets: $50 per person, to benefit the Kuakini Geriatric Care Home, Hale Pulama Mau
Call: Betty Hirozawa at 988-3588 or Kathy Inkinen at 521-2331
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