Wunderkind

The Label

A sexy, sassy line that seems to shimmy even on the hanger, Wunderkind clothes are built slightly oversize for a larger-than-life effect. Flirty colors like carnation red and robin’s egg blue are standards for designer Wolfgang Joop, who builds fun silhouettes like billowy skirts and low-slung cargo pants for his women. Slightly conceptual and especially popular in Australia and Germany, Wunderkind matches quirky labels like Sass & Bide and Nanette Lepore in its desire to make fashion both wearable and fantastical. Because the line was founded in 2003, its trademark is still being shaped; but in addition to the slightly oversize fit, Wunderkind’s clothes already exhibit a few signature touches, including a slightly retro feel and insignia like large plastic buttons and patterned lining in the whimsical trench coats and swishy-skirted dresses.

The Look

Fairy Princess grows up.

The Designer

Kooky Dutch-born designer Wolfgang Joop entered fashion from a career in advertising, a background which informed his business and style decisions and helped him turn a small ready-to-wear company called JOOP!—launched in Germany in 1979—into a European fashion empire. While most designers build their label before licensing ancillary products, Joop did the opposite, attaching his name to a fragrance in 1985; a denim and home décor line soon followed. After years of running the marketing and business side of his empire, Joop chose to return to design in 2003, when he launched his second line, Wunderkind. The collection was well received, and Joop vowed to continue his second streak as a designer—a career that’s accompanied by two new hobbies, cartoon illustration and acting, which he pursues in tandem to fashion.