What’s In: Angie Uh
On growing up surrounded by fashion, what advice she gives clients struggling with their personal style, and where she finds inspiration.
What’s in is a recurring series spotlighting the style and stories of Asian women with influence. Get to know who they are, what they’re wearing and what’s in.
For
, fashion runs deep in her family. Growing up, Angie’s grandparents ran a successful apparel graphics licensing business, and her mom owned a boutique, which instilled in her a love of fashion at an early age. Now a personal stylist and wardrobe consultant, Angie helps women refine their style and build intentional wardrobes. She also writes The Found Journal, a newsletter that reads like fun and practical lessons in style that will leave you feeling confident and inspired to create outfits with what you already own (see: How to dress like The Row—without buying from The Row).Read on to learn how growing up surrounded by fashion influenced her career, what advice she gives clients struggling with their personal style, and where she finds inspiration.
Tell us a bit about yourself and what you do.
I’m an introverted extrovert, a Scorpio, and a lifelong wanderluster.
I’m also a personal stylist and wardrobe consultant helping women reconnect and refine their style and build more intentional wardrobes.
I’ve been in fashion my whole career—it’s been my one constant and the only thing I ever wanted to do.
I have twenty years of experience in the apparel space which is where my eye for fabric, fit, and construction were honed—from e-commerce and merchandising for a small sustainable fashion brand right out of college, to commercial styling in my free time, to design and product development at a fashion tech company.
I’ve always had the desire to work for myself and build something from scratch and I’m beyond grateful to my clients who have trusted me to support them on their style journey
Where are you from? How has your family and culture shaped who you are today?
I was born and raised in Los Angeles but my parents moved us to Northern Florida at an early age, which is where I spent most of my childhood and stayed through college. The vast difference between those two environments shaped who I am today.
My early years in Los Angeles had a huge impact in terms of who I am and the career I’m in.
The majority of my family (parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles) immigrated from South Korea and settled in Los Angeles in the 80s. I’m incredibly proud of everything they have built and they showed me the importance of hard work ethic.
I was surrounded by family and fashion from a young age. My grandparents had a successful apparel graphics licensing business and my mom had her own boutique. None of the other kids were interested in clothes but I was totally obsessed with fashion for as long as I can remember.
I spent my childhood sketching designs on stick figures, collaging cut-outs from fashion magazines, and playing dress up in my grandmother’s closet. A very vivid early memory I had was styling a dress out of my grandmother’s silk kimono by belting it and performing a runway show for my unamused family—aside from my grandmother. She always nourished my creativity and passion and was the person that really gave me the confidence to go into fashion as a career. My parents wanted my sister and I (like most immigrant parents) to become doctors, lawyers, or enter into more “responsible” professions. They were really worried when I said I wanted to go into fashion. It was my grandmother who reassured my parents—she always said I clearly loved it so I would find success, which I did! I never would have thought I could have the experiences and opportunities given to me in this industry.
Growing up in Florida, which is predominantly white, I attended Catholic schools where we wore uniforms. It was probably a blessing in disguise to be forced to wear the same thing as everyone, everyday. It was a commonality that helped me feel more similar to people who looked nothing like me. Over time though, my inner creative gut became louder and I found I was comfortable, and even preferred, to dress differently than everyone. I dyed my hair pink (twice) and wore tie dye when everyone wore frilly dresses. I went through a lot of style phases—it was a time of self-exploration and discovery.
In my younger years, I did everything I could to look and feel “American”. I think if I had continued to grow up in LA where there was such a large Korean community, I would have wanted to immerse myself more in my culture but living in Florida, I tried to remove myself from it in order to fit in. Korean was my first language but by the time I was in high school, I had to reteach myself a lot of the language because I avoided speaking it for so long.
It wasn’t until I visited Korea again as an adult where I was able to appreciate my heritage and gain an immense sense of pride for it.
“A very vivid early memory I had was styling a dress out of my grandmother’s silk kimono by belting it and performing a runway show for my unamused family—aside from my grandmother.”
How would you describe your personal style and approach to getting dressed? What are some of your favourite pieces to wear?
I am naturally a very shy, quiet person so clothing has always been my greatest form of self-expression, and I remember always having a strong POV. I’ve learned to trust my gut and allow how I feel to dictate what I wear. It’s taken years of trial and error but now I can easily tell when I try something on whether it feels authentically me or not.
If I had to describe my style, it would be:
Modern - Less in the sense of trends and more in the sense of pushing myself forward and evolving my style and the way I wear things to reflect who I am today.
Lived-In - I like things to look undone…I don’t like things being too perfect.
Unexpected - I could never describe my style until I found this word. It’s the word and the feeling that helps me when I’m stuck on an outfit.
As I’ve gotten older, I find I rely heavily on neutral separates but my weaknesses are the color pink, sequins, and patent leather. An odd mix but I guess that’s the “unexpected” in me!
I approach getting dressed based on one item I feel like wearing. Sometimes it’s a random piece I haven’t worn in awhile, most of the time it’s something I wore the day before. I also tend to dress from a mini capsule approach—in the sense that I rotate pieces in and out. I will wear the same 2-3 pieces in different ways across the span of a week or two (or more) and then move onto a few new pieces. I actually approach my meals this way too! I think it just helps me remove some of the decision making and I never get bored as it allows me to flex my creative muscle. I find repetition to be one of the quickest ways to develop your style.
My current favorite pieces are a mix of old and new. The cool thing about old pieces is that over time, they become harder to find and become associated with you. Whether it’s something you’ve had in your closet forever, was passed down, or you discover secondhand.
I think in a world where so much can be accessed (and purchased) at our fingertips, the older pieces become more special and harder to acquire because you can’t just buy it through an affiliate link.
More recently:
Anonymous loafers - I’m not a huge loafer person but these were like a second skin so I had to get them. They have a collapsible back so are the perfect throw-on shoe when you have to rush out the door but want to feel put together.
COS cardigan - I think this is largely sold out but I love a brushed cashmere for the textural interest but it’s the color that sold me. These types of colors are so hard to find. The photos online don’t do it justice.
“I’ve learned to trust my gut and allow how I feel to dictate what I wear. It’s taken years of trial and error but now I can easily tell when I try something on whether it feels authentically me or not. ”
As a stylist, what do you notice your clients struggle with the most, and what advice do you give them?
I would say it’s two main things, depending on what part of the style journey they are on:
1) Not letting their style evolve with them.
Most of my clients have gone through some kind of macro moment or transition that has made them realize their style is not allowing them to show up as the best version of themselves—whether it’s not figuring out clothes beyond athleisure coming out of Covid, becoming a busy new mom, stepping into a new role or a promotion and needing to uplevel their style. We evolve and so should our clothes. It doesn’t mean we have to constantly buy or update our wardrobes, but if your wardrobe reflects a version of who you were five years ago, it can create a stagnant energy that manifests in not feeling inspired by your clothes, getting stuck in a rut, or impulse and panic shopping.
The advice I give them is to take a pause from shopping and use the time instead to listen to their intuition and build a POV. I guide them in understanding and putting definition around what they like or dislike and more importantly, why, and use those data points to edit their wardrobe, refine their style, and shop for new pieces in a strategic intentional way that feels really aligned so they can feel confident, empowered, and just start to feel good in their clothes.
2) Getting stuck in a creative rut because of invisible guardrails set up for themselves.
So many clients wear their clothes only one way. They also keep work clothes for work, casual clothes for weekends but I always tell them, our clothes are friends—they should all hang out! Wear your dressy clothes casually and vice versa. There are no rules. Wear the special something, or the investment piece, on a random Tuesday because you feel like it. If you always save your clothes for the special moment, you'll never end up wearing the things that actually light you up. An important part of learning your style is giving yourself the space to play. Tap into your inner child. Try things that you don’t think go together and just see how it makes you feel. Not everything will feel good or right but failing is part of the creative process. It’s taking the moment to set aside whatever beliefs/notions we have in our minds of how we think we should be dressed and allow yourself to entertain new ideas and see things differently.
“An important part of learning your style is giving yourself the space to play.”
One of the things I love about your newsletter is your focus on styling over buying, making fashion feel intentional and accessible. Where do you find inspiration, and who are your fashion influences?
Thank you—I really appreciate that as it was quite intentional to build my newsletter from a styling-first approach. I love shopping as much as the next person but I think great style is how you wear an item, not what you wear. If you can learn how to wear items 5 different ways, you won’t get bored of your wardrobe and you won’t feel the need to consume and buy into all the newness being thrown at you. It’s mentally and energetically freeing!
From a visual perspective, I’m most inspired by people watching—seeing what people are wearing in their everyday moments…walking to work, seeing a friend for dinner, running through the airport.
I still look to street style for inspiration but more so candid moments vs Fashion Week moments or influencer shots. (Tommy Ton, Sartorialist, and any city-based street style accounts, like Parisiens in Paris and Madrilenians in Madrid)
From a creative perspective, I am most inspired when I look outside of fashion. Most of my newsletter ideas come to me when going on walks, taking drives, or traveling. I’m also inspired by interiors. I think there’s such an interesting connection between interiors and style. How we approach styling our home can mirror how we approach our own style. I get a lot of color and texture combinations from interior inspirations.
My fashion influences have always been those who had really consistent POVs. Emmanuelle Alt (her uniform dressing was eye-opening for me). Erin Wasson. The Olsens (in their Balenciaga city bag days to The Row era). I’ve always been inspired by designers who embody the collections they create as it translates into beautiful pieces that have a practical sensibility that just speak more to me. Phoebe Philo during her Celine era, Isabel Marant was huge for me in my early 20s. More recently Chemana Kamali for Chloe, Jean Sohn, Ilona Hamer of Matteau and Alyssa Wasako of Donni. I love seeing how they dress in their everyday moments—at the studio, with their team, behind the scenes at a runway show.
“I love shopping as much as the next person but I think great style is how you wear an item, not what you wear. If you can learn how to wear items 5 different ways, you won’t get bored of your wardrobe and you won’t feel the need to consume and buy into all the newness being thrown at you.”
What’s one piece you think everyone should have in their closet?
Maybe a hot take, but I don’t think there’s one specific piece everyone should have in their closets. What works for me may not work for you and your preferences or lifestyle. With that said, I do think there are more universal pieces that work for many in that they can be molded and blended seamlessly into one’s style. A great white tee is one—it’s so boring, yet a practical one and is a game changer for creating outfits with ease.
I think everyone should have one reliable “failsafe”—whatever that means for them. A piece that really resonates with them. For me it’s a dress but it could be a suit, or even an outfit of separates. One that whenever they put it on, they feel confident and empowered. Having a failsafe becomes a problem solver in many aspects of your life in the moments you need to feel “dressed”—on a trip, at a work event, on a date night. It allows you to walk into any room, sit at any table, and feel totally and completely at ease because you feel like yourself. There is such power in dressing for how you want to feel in relation to you, not anyone else, and people notice that energy more than what you are actually wearing.
“There is such power in dressing for how you want to feel in relation to you, not anyone else, and people notice that energy more than what you are actually wearing.”
What’s in right now for you? Whether it has to do with fashion, beauty, wellness, hobbies, books, podcasts, other media you’re consuming, etc.?
I am a big magazine reader. When I go to airports, I stock up on Vogue, Harpers, AD. I love “In Kind” magazine—it’s really thoughtful writing on topics written by and for multi-faceted, modern women. They cover everything from navigating career shifts to motherhood to personal style. It comes out twice a year with beautiful custom artwork and it feels like such a treat when it arrives!
My husband gets the NYT every week. He reads it end-to-end but he knows to pass me the Sunday Styles section and T Magazine, always. I have a stack that I am usually behind on and will hold onto them so I can read through it in one sitting. I don't necessarily think editorials have an expiration date. It's like art...created to meet a certain mood, feeling, POV...you can look at something printed a year ago and it can still resonate with you and inform something about your style, taste, preferences.
We recently moved to upstate NY so I’m fortunate to have plenty of good cheap dopamine around me. I spent a lot of my 20s consuming all the wellness and beauty trends and it took a long time to realize that most of it is just really good marketing and it’s the little things that actually nourish my body and fill me up—spending time outdoors, quieting my mind through journaling, meditation (or a bath with a glass of wine and Netflix). And everything in moderation!
I find water and sunshine very therapeutic—it tends to solve a lot of my worries. My ideal day is spending the day by a pool or beach or lake with a good book, magazines, snacks, and a long nap! I also took up pottery earlier this year. I haven’t been able to take classes since we moved but I love that it’s the opposite of instant gratification—it’s all about staying patient and focused and enjoying the process.
However, a few things that I continue to buy on repeat:
Necessaire hand cream - Literally the best
Beauty of Joseon sunscreen - An SPF 50+ face no filter sunscreen that doesn’t make your eyes sting! It has the lightest silky texture and leaves the dewiest glow.
Aromatherapy sprays from A Thousand Species, which are handmade in upstate NY - Hinoki Haze is my favorite—I use it for many things but mainly as a linen spray.
Flamingo Estate - This brand has become a bit hyped in recent years but I still love it. They launched in the LA neighborhood I was living in so it holds good memories of picking up goodies from their bookstore for any and all gift giving. My favorites are the olive oil (a good fancy olive oil makes even the most basic of meals feel fun to eat) and the adriatic muscatel sage candle (reminds me of warm LA sunshine).
“I find water and sunshine very therapeutic—it tends to solve a lot of my worries. ”
Can you leave us with one last style tip for the fall?
I don’t know if it’s a style tip but as there’s so much noise right now within the style space—buy this, don’t buy that, only buy 5 things, don’t buy anything—I’ll say:
Take inventory of what you need and take the time to understand what really resonates with you starting with what you already own. Remember that not everything needs to be consumed or adopted. Some things can just be appreciated for what they are!
“Take inventory of what you need and take the time to understand what really resonates with you starting with what you already own.”
Thanks to
for being part of the series! For more, you can visit her website, subscribe to The Found Journal and follow her on Instagram.*This post contains some affiliate links.
Angie is my very favorite style substacker! If you were to look at my saved Substacks, there are 4 from her because her advice is so grounded and practical BUTTTTT so, so stylish. I love this series, Maria!!
Absolutely love Angie, great interview!