Yumi Kim Dresses: Colorful Prints and Best Buys

Yumi Kim begins with Kim Phan, a California native who moved to New York to build a life in fashion, and with the women around her, especially her mother. Her prints carry bold florals, a lot of color and a nod to the elegance of the Vietnamese áo dài, which she explains on her About page. I admit that is exactly the kind of origin story I want behind a dress.

Her route in was practical, not ceremonial. She took night classes at FIT, started by embellishing T-shirts, then traveled to Asia and learned garment making from the people she met. The clothes still feel like that: travel, vintage references and vivid prints, made for a day in the office and a night out.

The shops have changed with her life. She opened a Manhattan boutique in 2008, closed the Lower East Side one during the pandemic and moved the focus online, and has now opened a boutique in Waikiki. To me that feels like a return to the label's sunny colors, not a departure from its New York start. If you want to keep going, ASTR the Label Dresses: Sizing, Fit and Best Buys is the one I would read next.

Dresses are the main event, but this group gives me ways to wear a print-first point of view outside a special occasion. Suzhou Mini Dress and Rumi Mini Dress are the compact ones I would reach for when dinner calls for a little polish. Carmine Maxi Dress and Kalu Maxi Dress carry that mood into a longer line, and Billy Midi Dress lands somewhere in between. Coco Top and Novella Skirt are there for anyone who prefers to split a print into separates. I went deeper on a related idea in Anna October Dresses: The Best Buys Right Now.

Picture her in a printed maxi and flat sandals for a long lunch, then a low heel when the day turns into an evening. I would check the neckline and skirt length against the actual occasion, because the word mini or maxi cannot tell you how a dress will feel.

This is the part that turns a row of one-and-done dresses into a working summer wardrobe. Romy Linen Dress, Sienna Linen Dress and Alina Linen Dress are three to compare in the same easy fabric, while Moana Maxi Dress, Neva Maxi Dress and Gia Maxi Dress stretch things longer. Robyn Lace Dress, Ruby Dress, Shari Dress and Marisco Dress each bring a different mood, so I would choose by the occasion and not expect one dress to do everything. Soraya Romper, Praya Linen Romper and Remi Linen Romper are the easy answer when I want a one-piece outfit with a different shape.

The separates make the batch more useful. Pua Top, Clara Top and Dora Top give a skirt or skort a new starting point, and Sicilia Skirt can take a top you already own somewhere different. Kabi Skort adds another bottom to the mix. My practical tip is to plan one top-and-bottom pairing before buying either; if I cannot name a top I would wear with it, I wait.

What I would skip is another dress just because it has a new name. Pick the silhouette that fills an actual gap.

To me, Yumi Kim is strongest when a print carries a memory and is not just decoration. Phan links the clothes to the women in her life, to travel and to the places she has lived, and the Waikiki shop gives that story another color palette. I would start with a dress whose length suits the life you actually lead, then add a separate only if it opens up a second outfit. A wardrobe built around a few pieces you reach for is more convincing than dressing for an imaginary trip. Although I will not pretend I would turn down a good island print.