A funny thing happened when I went to Brooklyn-based designer Asli Filinta's Web site. Well two things to be exact. First, in a funny coincidence she had chosen Albert Hammond, Jr. as the soundtrack for her homepage, and I had just gotten The Strokes' guitarist's sophomore album, Como Te Llama, in the mail. Then I noticed that the girl modeling one of her quirky hats was a former Gen Art intern. Curiouser and curiouser...

Needless to say, I felt a strange connection with Filinta's eccentric work and wanted to find out where this hot new talent—who is already a favorite of fashionable celebrities like Lindsay Lohan and Heidi Klum—honed her sartorial skills. As it turns out, Filinta has done time in several spots; she was born in Adana, Turkey, went to school in Ankara and moved to Istanbul for work in 2001. It was then that she first started designing jewelry for friends and family, a creative effort that eventually branched out into a more expanded line of carefully-embellished hats, scarves, tees and tanks.

"One common belief within the collection is anti-conformity and the major influence for my designs came out of the DIY culture of the arts," she explains, and each of her one-of-a-kind pieces is chock full of good humor, whimsy and plenty of over-the-top details. A jaunty straw fedora comes topped with a crown of colorful feathers; a lime green Arabian scarf boasts a sequined owl applique; a simple grey cotton t-shirt is bedazzled with a pair of shimmering goldfish.

Throw on one of these statement pieces to add instant glamor to any ensemble—just don't be surprised if you're so pleased with the results that you wind up falling into the looking glass!

Asli Filinta is available at Pixie Market; for more information please visit www.aslifilinta.com.

- Caroline Stanley

Similar Topics:DIY, fall 2008, fashion, shopping

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