The Bite Magazine - Spring/Summer 2020 - Issue 27

bite bags A play on words can sometimes produce exciting names such as Belysa which is the brand’s acronym for ‘beautiful lyrics for all’ and also means ‘shining lights' in Swedish. Belysa says their inspiration is “the fine sentimentality that resides in them.” By adding elegant lights and forms to this sentimentality, they recreate daily objects. “A single verse is at times more touching than the whole piece. Likewise, Belysa aims to influence the market in ‘verse-like pro- jects’ [and] not be influenced by the routine fashion season.” The brand describes their home country of Korea as having a special social culture feature in which people can blend in by blurring their unique identities. “For those who are afraid of ex- pressing who they truly are and hide to blend in, Belysa designs colourful collections to remind them that they have different characteristics; and this is what makes them beautiful.” There- fore, the brand hopes their collections will encourage people to light up using their favourite colours. Having worked in the handbag industry in Korea for several years which is considered quite conservative and does not go beyond standard requirements, Belysa designers Haeun Kim and Changmin Oh wanted to change this concept by bringing in creative colours, new styles, and designs. Whilst they studied at different universities - Haeun at Hongik in Seoul, South Ko- rea, and Changmin at London College of Fashion in London, United Kingdom, the duo decided to come together and create something unique. In addition to establishing their brand in September 2019, the two designers are part of a creative team that runs futurism street brand FANCYMETAL online, a collection of exciting and colourful outerwear designs, under the umbrella of Multi Uni- verse Inc. With Belysa, Haeun and Changmin wanted to create a global brand that breaks the rules of the handbag industry by challenging as well as creating extraordinary new designs that would be appreciated by consumers in Korea and the rest of the world. As well as the acronym ‘beautiful lyrics for all’, the brand says the word also means ‘be lysa’. “The inspiration of Belysa’s collections comes [from] the designers’ story. Belysa wants to make peo- ple refresh their own memories or emotions through this story.” They go on to explain ‘lysa’ is the persona of ‘belysa’, usually de- scribes a young character, and means the ego of the people who recall their memories through belysa. “The very moment, space, and emotion ‘lysa’ feels is recreated into the design of the bag.” Whether you’re young, old, or somewhere in the middle; Be- lysa bags are made for all ages. There are three sizes available interestedly named mini, mini mini, and mini mini mini, rather than the usual small, medium and large that we are used to, or in this case, large, medium and small. Starting with mini, these bags can be treated as a three-way accessory in the form of a backpack, tote or shoulder bag. Each one measures 16.9 x 21 x 7.7 cm and has a minimum and maximum shoulder strap length of 65 cm and 97 cm. With interesting extensive pop colours of Burnt Orange, Snow White, Veiled Rose, Nightshade, Pale Blush, Primrose Yellow, Mint Leaf, Misty Lilac, and Coral Tango, this micro mini bag is designed with a shoulder strap for backpack and shoulder bag purposes, made of smooth real cow leather, with one small inside compartment, and YKK zippers. These cute additions to your accessory wardrobe will brighten your day wherever you go about in town. Even smaller is the mini mini which measures 14.5 x 17.7 x 6.3 cm and is available in the same pop colours as the mini. As well as a shoulder strap, it also has a belt strap so it can be treated as a belt bag as well as a tote and shoulder bag. The tiniest bag in the range measures 9.5 x 11 x 4.6 cm and also has a shoulder and belt strap that can be used as a tote, shoulder and belt bag like the other sizes. It’s a fantastic accessory to carry your essentials when you do not want to be burdened down with a heavy bag. The campaign for the three sized bags shows three generations of females - a young girl, a teenager, and a mature lady all styled in different garments in white, pastel purple and red, carrying a variety of Belysa bags in all its vibrant colours around town. No matter where you are, Belysa bags will always brighten up your day and are convenient whether you wish to carry less or more. Just choose your favourite colour and be the vibrant person that you are. Belysa bags are already making waves in Korea and have been seen on the shoulders of South Korean celebrities such as Kim Ye-rim, known as Yeri from girl group Red Velvet, and actress and model Cha Jung-won. As a big fan of IU, also known as Lee Ji-eun, a K-pop ballad singer, Belysa hope to see her wearing their bags in the future. And talking about the future, Belysa is planning to project the most extraordinary pop-up store this year and expand their events to the world soon. https://belysa.com