Artist Spotlight: Olivia Cheng

Artist Spotlight is a fashion-focused segment that takes a deep dive into the unique backstories and their creative processes. Highlighting the fashion industry's hidden gems and innovative talents. 

For the 25th segment in this series, we are highlighting Olivia Cheng, a New York-based fashion designer and founder of the label Dauphinette.

Olivia Cheng is the founder and chief creative officer of her brand Dauphinette. The brand was founded in 2018 and debuted with a one-of-a-kind made-in-New York outerwear created from recycled and byproduct fur and leather, vintage, and artisanal components. Now Cheng’s brand includes accessories, handbags, and a selection of ready-to-wear. Dauphinette consist of dreamy collections that are complex, optimistic, and pieces that tell a story and gives consumers inspiration.

Cheng started her brand with only $2,000 and a dream of owning her own fashion brand. After starting her brand in 2018 she began her goal of becoming a well-known New York fashion designer. Her design career started off with her repurposing vintage coats as custom outwear when she was a sophomore at NYU in 2018. The brand has now expanded to different kinds of upcycled pieces such as organza tops that are decorated with natural pressed flowers. Sustainability is a big part of the brand and the raw materials that she sourced from around the globe. 

Dauphinette has been branded as the “Happiest Brand on Earth” and has been featured in Vogue, Harper’s Bazar, The New York Times, and other publications. Cheng also currently has two Dauphinette dresses on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Arts in the exhibition In America: A Lexicon of Fashion.

Sources: 

About. (n.d.-b). Dauphinette. Retrieved February 21, 2022, from https://www.dauphinette.com/pages/about

Combs, D. (2021, April 28). Behind the Atelier: How Designer Olivia Cheng of Dauphinette Turned Her Love of Nature Into a Higher Art Form. HYPEBAE. Retrieved February 21, 2022, from https://hypebae.com/2021/3/dauphinette-olivia-cheng-sustainable-fashion-handbags-accessories-line-studio-interview