Growing up, Yasmin Dar Fasi bossed her younger sister, Shaiyanne Dar, around. Today the roles are reversed as Shaiyanne calls many of the shots in growing their fashion brand, Dolkii.
“I blame it on Brooklyn,” said Fasi, 31, who rose to public prominence on KITV’s morning show before leaving to take a news anchor position on KVAL in Eugene, Ore. She returned home in 2014 to raise her son Gianluca, now 2, with her husband Salvatore Fasi, son of late Honolulu Mayor Frank Fasi.
ELEMENTS OF FASHION
47th Hui Makaala fashion show featuring Dolkii, Kaypee Soh and Boutique Sharon
>> Where: Hilton Hawaiian Village Coral Ballroom
>> When: Noon July 24; doors open 11:30 a.m.
>> Tickets: $75 per person; reserve by July 11
>> Info: 551-7868 or 988-1471
When she was ready to go back to work, she knew it couldn’t be in news “because the hours are ridiculous, especially for a young family,” she said.
In the meantime, Dar, 28, had been living in Brooklyn, working in the fashion and e-commerce industries. In 2013 she started a blog, Dolkii, as an outlet to showcase “anything and everything about fashion,” particularly her love of boho-chic style.
Fasi, who perused the blog from afar, asked about her long-term plans for Dolkii and suggested using it as a launching pad for an online retail business. It was the start of making their longtime dream come true.
“We grew up thinking how fun it would be to have a clothing line one day,” said Fasi, who came up with the Dolkii name in high school after a trip to their father’s home country, Pakistan, to attend a wedding. There she heard the sound of the “dohlki” drum for the first time. The double-headed drum allows players to create both bass and high-pitch sounds.
“They have a happy sound that’s associated with celebration and bringing families together,” Fasi said.
Dar simplified the spelling to make it easier for people to pronounce the name of her blog. She used her experience as a buyer for brands such as Diesel to focus on this new direction and debuted Dolkii’s online store last year, featuring beach throws, intimate apparel and bohemian clothing brands Free People and Minkpink.
This summer the sisters are making their first foray into the world of design with two Dolkii originals in two colors, black and maroon. The loose-fitting maxi, Dress Stella ($89), can be styled for play or evening drama, and the Romper Zoya ($79) is a long harem pant that also can be dressed up or down.
Fashion lovers can view the spectrum of Dolkii style during the 47th annual Hui Makaala scholarship lunch and fashion show, “Elements of Fashion,” July 24 at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Coral Ballroom. Also featured will be fashion from Boutique Sharon and bold men’s and women’s designs by Kaypee Soh, who has expanded his interior print design work into fashion.
Dolkii will show a mix of commercial designs, keiki tees with graphics by Dar and Dolkii originals with a Cali-Hawaii vibe.
“Dolkii was essentially born in Brooklyn,” said Dar, who now lives in Los Angeles to be closer to manufacturing facilities. “I basically found myself in New York. It was a special time for me, but I love the beach, I don’t like coats. I’m not a sweater-weather kind of girl.”
Working with family can sometimes be difficult, and Fasi said, “In the beginning there was a lot of crying between us, a lot of fighting between us, but we learned to separate business from family and learned how to work together. It’s now about keeping the peace and understanding each other’s values and priorities.”
For the most part, Dar deals with business matters in L.A. while Fasi is largely in charge of marketing and hosting Dolkii events in Honolulu. Dar has learned to give her sister some leeway because in addition to caring for her two children, she’s a working mom, serving as a digital media specialist for Gov. David Ige.
“We went into business with the idea of trying it and seeing where it goes,” Fasi said.
Now that Dolkii is on its way to becoming a fashion, as well as retail, brand: “We want to continue creating clothing that’s super easy to wear and affordable.”