Better Recognize: Asian Influences Dominate Runway and Swimwear Fashion

Asian culture is becoming increasingly popular with youth in the western world, and the high-end fashion lines showing up on runways for Fall and Spring 2011 show trends that lean toward Asian-influenced designs. Both men's and women's fashion are taking cues from the unique fashion scenes found in South Korea and in fashion-forward Japanese cities like Shibuya and Tokyo.

When the youth in a culture grab onto a fashion trend, the mainstream fashion world is likely to follow. From bikini trends to men's fashion breakthroughs, let's explore some top fashion trends and designers stepping out in mainstream western fashion in Spring and Summer 2011.

Breakout Asian Designer Lines

Trugen

With its crisp, clean lines and suave cosmopolitan feel, Trugen's Spring/Summer 2011 designs for men have brought the world of men's Korean fashion to style-forward shops in the west. Trugen's clean-cut design work is often modeled by popular Korean idol heartthrob Lee Min-Ho, making it a hot ticket for Korean-influenced fashion-conscious men everywhere.

Keita Maruyama - Japan

Keita Maruyama has taken the French runways by storm with Asian-influenced designs with a Spring dress flair. Of Keita Maruyama's Spring 2011 collection as exhibited at Hong Kong Fashion Week 2011, the best include his short dresses which resemble kimonos if they were given a subtly sultry fashion update.

Spring Break Bikinis Bear Asian Influences

Las Vegas and Miami are hot party destinations during the Spring Break season, if only because they have some of the warmest weather in the country when the Spring break crowd hits the party scene.

Two hot influences in Miami and Las Vegas swimsuit trends is a bit of a surprise: designs from Japanese and South Korean traditions are breaking out on offerings from American swimsuit makers in 2011.

Asian Designs, Italian Lines

These Asian-influenced American designs are joining the usual line of must-have bikinis originating from swimwear designers France and Milan. Top designers using Asian influences in the look, shape and designs of swimwear in their 2011 swim fashion lines include high-end houses like Hermes and Dolce and Gabbana.

Brazilian Bikini Shapes with Asian Graphics

Another hot bikini trend, especially at pool parties in Las Vegas, include Ed Hardy style bikinis with designs and graphics based on Asian characters and art. This can include bikinis with roses, cherry blossoms or dragons combined with tribal-style graphics. Bikinis of this type are designed to bear the body and grab attention.

These eye-popping bikinis are typically less modest than the swimwear designs that come from Japan, since they often come printed on skimpier attention-grabbing Brazilian style bikinis.