What’s In: Irene Kim

On personal style, her connection to her Korean roots and what she's excited to wear this summer.

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 many of you who follow fashion Substack,

Irene Kim (김애린)

is no stranger. She’s a stylist, co-owner of the Toronto-based fashion consultancy La Closette, and the author of In Moda Veritas. Through her newsletter, Irene gives readers a window into her stylist psyche, sharing what she wears, wardrobe inspiration and helpful advice, like the five questions she asks herself before buying anything. I’ve been lucky enough to meet Irene in person and can confirm she’s as kind, genuine and cool as she comes across in her newsletter.

Read on to learn about her connection to her Korean roots, her advice for honing in on your personal style and what she’s excited to wear this summer.

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Tell us a bit about yourself and what you do.

I’m a lifelong dreamer who annoyingly (or gratefully, depending on your perspective) has two feet on the ground.

I’m co-owner of La Closette, a fashion consultancy based in Toronto, Canada. We are consultants in the fashion space for brands and businesses, as well as for individuals (i.e. personal styling).

I’m also a married mum of two boys, 9 and 7.

Where are you from? How has your family and culture shaped who you are today?

I was born in Bahrain and lived the first six years of my life between Bahrain, South Korea and Canada. My parents travelled a lot – my mom was a flight attendant for Korean Air, and my dad was working all over the Middle East and Asia. In 1986, our family moved to Canada permanently.

My parents are both Korean and I was surrounded by the culture while growing up in Canada, whether at church, Korean school, or with family friends. We spoke the language, ate the food (all the food!), and observed the major holidays like Lunar New Year and Chuseok. The Confucian value of respect for elders has been seared into my brain. I’m 43, and to this day, I internally cringe when I address a person who is older than me by their first name! In Korean culture, I would address them by their title or use an honorific address.

Throughout my childhood and young adult years, as I was trying to find my own identity as a first-generation immigrant, I’m so glad my parents continued to push me to study Korean, go to Korea, work in Korea, etc. Even though I’ve lived in Canada my whole life, I feel a profound connection to my Korean roots.

From a young age, I was also exposed to different religions. My mom’s entire family is Protestant, while my dad’s entire family is Buddhist. When I was eight, my parents got divorced and my mother re-married my stepfather who is Irish, raised in England, and he’s Catholic. All of them are observant to varying degrees.

All of these influences have shaped who I am today.

How would you describe your personal style and approach to getting dressed? What are some of your favourite pieces to wear?

I have yet to be able to articulate what “my style” is because any definition feels too limiting! I know that it’s continually evolving such that I’m at once pushing myself into new style territory that feels more authentically me, while at the same time pruning away what’s not working any more.

These days, everything I wear has to be comfortable and low-maintenance. I won’t buy or wear something if it has to be constantly adjusted or I have to stand a certain way to make it work. I only wear flats unless I’m at an event where I’m arriving by car and there’s minimal walking.

I’m definitely a separates girl! I don’t buy outfits or try to “pull looks”. Separates give me the flexibility to play with my clothes and come up with new outfits all the time. I will turn to my oversized COS grey wool sweater until the day it dies. I wear it all the time whether with jogging pants or statement skirts.

I admire your ability to add your personal touch to different outfit formulas, making them feel unique to you. What has helped you hone in on your personal style, and what advice would you give others who want to do the same?

Thank you! That’s a great question. It really comes down to the maxim: Know Thyself. Know what you love and feel good in. Know what feels like YOU when you put it on. At the other end of the spectrum, get used to listening to your intuition when something doesn’t feel right, even if it’s the “It thing”, the “must have”, or supposedly “works for everyone”. As you filter out the noise and embrace what makes you feel good (no matter how weird or obscure), gradually you’ll better hone in on your personal style.

With summer coming up, what are you excited to wear?

You’re from Toronto, Maria – we need full coverage shoes for a good eight months out of the year! It’s mid-May and I’m just waiting for the weather to be warm enough so I can start rotating in my barefoot sandals. Even if what I’m wearing on top is fall or transitional, a bare, strappy sandal changes the flavour completely. Also, I can’t wait to sit on a beach in the new long torso, full butt coverage swimsuits I bought recently. I’m so over wedgies.

Tell us more about your newsletter, In Moda Veritas. What’s the story behind it, and what do you hope subscribers take away from reading the newsletter?

The idea of a newsletter came to me because I was having a hard time keeping up with all of the messages I was getting on Instagram. People often asked for what I was wearing, links and other styling questions. I reasoned I could put all of that information in a newsletter and people could go there instead. Besides, it would be a fun side project! I’ve doing a weekly-ish What I’m Wearing column since I launched and it’s always been free.

As I got into the swing of writing my newsletter, I realized that it’s really an extension of the advice I give to my personal styling clients. I know people love to see beautiful clothes and be inspired – I certainly do! I do some of that, but my primary aim is to provide practical advice that women can use in their real, often very busy and messy, lives. Because I’ve worked with thousands of personal styling clients over the last decade (both men and women), I have a good grasp of the issues people face when getting dressed, and I address these topics in the newsletter.

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.?

On my list to read is Marjane Satrapi’s “Woman Life Freedom,” a collection of graphic stories about the present Iranian revolution. I loved Satrapi’s graphic novel “Persepolis”, as well as the animated film that was based on the book.

I’m one month into reformer pilates and the results are TBD. So far it feels kind of … easy? Which is not how it’s supposed to feel … I think? I’ve heard so many great things about it that I bought a three-month trial membership at a local studio.

The most important thing for me that’s “in right now” is the sun and being outdoors for as long as I can every day. Our winters are long and this year in particular was so grey. I’m soaking in every molecule of sunshine and warmth I can.

What has been the biggest milestone in your career so far? What would you like to do next?

Is it weird that I can’t think of one? I’ve made some important decisions over the years that have shaped the course of my career, e.g. leaving my legal career for a start-up fashion magazine, starting La Closette with my business partner, launching In Moda Veritas. Much like the process of developing “my style”, I’m listening to my intuition and moving towards opportunities that feel aligned with who I am. I can honestly say I don’t know what I want to do next. I do know I’m proud of my journey thus far, and I’m optimistic about the future.

For more on Irene, subscribe to In Moda Veritas and follow her on Instagram.