She took my heart

Most people who are close to me will know that I have an obsession for a cartoon character named Pucca. Even my mom knows that I love the damn thing so much! I think I have not told many about the story how I found her and how she became my favourite. It all started about 10 years ago when I had just started to learn how to use the computer and discovered the truly magical wonders of the Internet. My eldest brother taught me how to use Hotmail and ICQ. Soon enough I was making friends from faraway lands via ICQ. It seems funny now that I'm trying to recall those experimental days. 10 years is a very long time for some. I actually forgot the name of the application and had to resort to Google to find out that it was called ICQ. The love affair started with a guy from Canada whom I frequently chatted with. I don't exactly remember his nickname but it probably had something to do with 'fox'. However I do remember that he was quite cute, had blonde hair and had a Chinese girlfriend who migrated there from Hong Kong. I'm not quite sure how he ended up sending me a link to a Pucca flash video but I loved it so much because I had a huge crush on him and I thought it was very sweet. Wherever you may be now, Mr. Fox, just know that you did a great job hooking me up with this adorable Korean chick and I am still happy after all these years. Just imagine how surprised and elated I was when I found out that Pucca is no longer just part of the display in the children's department of a store, she is now a proud member of the high fashion community.

Love strikes Manhattan:

By Virginia Nam, NYC Contributor

In a one-of-a-kind collaboration: Curve, Warner Bros. and eight fashion designers have joined forces to launch limited-edition collections inspired by Pucca, a cheeky Korean character known for chasing kisses from her beau. Pucca made her fashion debut this week at the Curve store in SoHo.

Setting the Scene:

Nevena Borissova, Curve owner, transformed her high-end boutique into its own cartoon world. With DJ Hayley pumping the music and people sipping Pucca-tinis, the atmosphere was light and flirty. People were having a great time, and how could you not at an event that serves alcohol in homage to a cartoon? The decor was amazing: Red hearts covered the walls, giant red lamps hung from the ceiling and Pucca dolls were popping out from every corner.

Gossip Girl Host:

Host of the evening was Gossip Girl, Jessica Szohr, who looked stunning that night. Other guests included Julia Stiles, the Strokes, Caroline Winberg, and Hanna Soukupova.

Szhor said of Pucca, “Pucca is about women empowerment, fashion, love and fun.”

Interpretations of Pucca:

Borissova commissioned eight designers, all from different backgrounds, to create capsule collections for this project, which was funded by Warner Bros. With some direction from Borissova, each designer produced unique pieces from their individual interpretations of Pucca. The results? Absolutely amazing.

My favorite pieces included a raspberry red dress from Preen, bejeweled black jeans from Genetic Denim, shredded shirts from Raquel Allegra and leather utility bags from Not Rational. Other designers who designed for Pucca were Mark Fast, Unconditional, Iro and Scatola.

My favorite interpretation has to be from Raquel Allegra who thought about the “question of love,” according to Borissova, which she interpreted to be, “Does love come to visit you and then it just goes?” The somber mood was definitely reflected in the shredded tees, which were almost fragile in nature (though resilient as well) and had crying hearts hand-painted on them.

I also loved the theme behind Not Rational’s bags, which was “Make Love, Not War.” The depth of which some of these interpretations took is truly impressive.

Beyond mere fun, Pucca served a greater purpose for Borissova and the designers: She injected a much needed optimism to the current dismal mood of fashion.

“We are a very serious high-end store,” said Borissova. “And coming out of a year when everything is so serious with the economy, everything in fashion has become so precise and calculated. Fun has been taken out of fashion. This project has brought a breath of fresh air.”

The collections were a hit and it is safe to say that Pucca did last night what she does best: Taking the hearts of many.

Pucca collections are sold exclusively at Curve.

For more info: Visit shopcurve.com or follow @curveboutique on Twitter.

This piece of news makes me really wanna be in New York City. It has been on my 'places to go before I die' list for the longest time and this is just cementing the fact that I need to be breathing in the NYC air one day. Not forgetting that I need to pay homage at the Pucca Theme Park in South Korea...