Discovering cities through award-winning Paris-based designer Karen Topacio

Born to a Filipino father and Spanish-Vietnamese mother, the Filipino-Australian fashion designer Karen Topacio has lived in Manila, Melbourne and London. And although she's left all those cities behind, Karen has carried her colorful background to her current city, Paris, where she is currently carving a career in fashion design. A self-described experimental designer with a knack for creating contrasts between the playful and minimalist aesthetics, her talent and potential were recently under the spotlight after making it as one of the top 20 finalists (selected from over 500 candidates) in this year's LVMH Prize Graduate Awards, as well as winning the E-Fashion Awards 2015 held in the French capital last June. Having lived in some of the world's most creative cities, Karen talks to us about her travel essentials, simple beauty routine and favorite haunts from Melbourne to Paris.

Congratulations on winning the E-Fashion Awards in Paris. It was truly well-deserved.
Thank you! Technology and innovation are a big part of my personal universe, so this contest was perfect for me. I'm glad that there is such a competition that encourages designers to explore technology and its relationship with fashion. My pieces were created through a collaboration with French creative coder Cyril Diagne. I wanted to create a tool for fashion designers where they can digitally drape volumes and shapes through their body movements. Cyril worked on the coding part and I worked on the volume, texture and shapes. We then created an interactive recording motion 3D software using a kinect, where designers can drape digital pieces of fabric in front of a screen with their arms and legs, instead of the usual way of draping with fabrics on a mannequin. It is not a shortcut to designing garments, but more of an artistic way of researching volumes and shapes. The designer would still need to develop the designs and make them more wearable.

How did your interest in fashion start?
I've always wanted to be a fashion designer, but I also wanted to be a journalist, a filmmaker and photographer among other things. I shuffled between the Philippines and Australia for several years and obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Arts in 2006 at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila. After graduation, I decided to permanently move to Australia, where I took a career turn and worked in the travel industry. In 2008, I decided to study art with a focus on life drawing, painting and digital design and moved to London in 2011, where I worked at a VIP travel agency for celebrities, fashion and cosmetic companies, organizing their travel and events. After a year in London, I then moved to Paris to study fashion at Esmod Paris. In 2013, I won a scholarship at IFA, a new school in Paris to do an MA in Fashion Design. From being a naive fashion student, I started to become more of a fashion designer at IFA as I had more freedom to work on my personal style and brand.

That's a lot of moving. What is it like to move to a new city?

I have lived in three different countries, so moving isn't such a big challenge for me. I met my boyfriend who is French in Australia in 2011, just before I relocated to London. But with my growing interest in fashion, it made more sense for me to move to Paris. Contrary to popular belief, most French people speak English. They are very open and warm people so it was not really difficult for me to blend into their culture despite my basic French. I love living in Paris, it's such an inspiring city. The people are very friendly and polite and there is a sense of art and culture everywhere, from the metro stations to the small brasseries there's always something happening day and night, whether planned or not. Parisians are generally interested in the arts, and if I have my sketchbook out, I'll often be asked what I do; its good to be appreciated as an artist.

Where do you usually hang out in Paris?

I like going to parks and my favorite is Jardin de Tuileries. They always have interesting contemporary installations so there is something new to see each time I visit. For food, I really like Les Fabricants; they serve cheap but good southwestern French food. I especially like their massive salad bowls. It's so big that I don't think I know anyone who has managed to finish it ever. There are plenty of nice bars but my favourite is Dernier Bar avant la Fin du Monde, or The Last Bar Before the End of the World in English Paris' very own geek bar-museum. It's a three-storey nerd-themed bar, decorated with all the geeky things you can imagine from Starwars to Anime. They have a hue collection of board games so we all definitely get our competitive juices flowing when we are there! I also like Le Comptoir Général, near Canal Saint Martin, a self-proclaimed ghetto museum and bar. I go there for the food and the music.

You travel a lot for work. Can you share with us some of your travel essentials?

I travel a lot for leisure. When I'm just going on a short trip, I usually travel with my Hideo Wakamatsu clear suitcase. It's really a special one because you can almost really see through all my stuff had I not covered it with some stickers. It's handy when I go through airport security! If I'm going on a big trip then I would travel with my big Mountainsmith backpack. I've been using the same one for years, the Scarlet blue frost, made from recycled bottles. It's my favorite travel companion because it has dozens of compartments and it has a good back support. I usually travel light but I always pack a survival kit no matter what. That usually includes a flashlight, a Swiss knife, a Lonely Planet book and a Sigg water bottle.

Fashion aside, what are some of the beauty products you are most loyal to?
I'm probably the wrong person to ask this, but my only beauty routine is drinking lots of water and washing my face with my Shiseido facial wash. I rarely wear makeup, but when I do, it's usually Shiseido.

You've lived in Australia and in Manila. Any places, hang outs or things you miss from those places?

I was still in college when I was living in Manila so I mostly hung around my uni. I miss the street food and the little alleyway restaurants near Dapitan. In Melbourne, I lived, worked and hung around Collingwood and Fitzroy area. My favorite pub was the Rochester and I used to go there with my mates every Friday and Saturday. I knew some of the regulars and the DJs who mostly played indie music so it was like home to me. I heard that it closed down last year and re-opened recently after a fit out so no more sticky carpets and granny couches, which I think I will somehow miss. I also have many memorable Thursday nights at A Bar Called Barry, but not sure if it's still around. For food, pho at Mekong on Swanston Street, Pizza at Bimbo, the veggie bar on Brunswick Street and my old local coffee shop, The Upper Crust on Smith Street.

How do you like spending your free time?
I de-stress by watching silly videos on the Internet. As they say, laughter is the best antidote to stress. When I have free time, which rarely happens these days, I also like to sketch and draw.