Yeha Leung on Keeping It Creepy
Make it stand out
Like plenty of other kids growing up in the early 90s, Yeha Leung’s first introduction to BDSM and fetish gear came by way of Madonna. Every day, on arriving home from school, her dad’s worn-out, wobbly Blond Ambition VHS would be inserted into the video player, and Leung would sit down in front of the TV to watch the singer’s raunchy, transgressive performance from start to finish. “She was head-to-toe in all those incredible Jean Paul Gaultier outfits, and it was the first time I’d ever seen fashion like that,” she recalls as we talk over the phone. “It was so sexy and risqué, and even though I was only five or six, I remember just being immediately intrigued.”
What came next were a series of childlike attempts to emulate Madonna’s looks that involved Leung diving into her mum’s wardrobe. Dragging old bras out of her drawers, the burgeoning designer would take scissors to their cups and add additional padding in a bid to recreate Gaultier’s iconic cones in her living room before parading around the house in her botched-together pieces. “I was always very creative, I loved to draw, and paint, and make things with my hands,” she explains. “My family didn’t have a lot of money back then, though, so unsurprisingly my mom was not happy to find me chopping up her underwear to copy Madonna. They won’t let me forget it, they still bring it up all the time,” she adds with a laugh.
“My style icons around that time were Madonna, of course, as well as Gwen Stefani, Bettie Page, Marilyn Monroe… I think I’m just drawn to very powerful women.”
What came next were a series of childlike attempts to emulate Madonna’s looks that involved Leung diving into her mum’s wardrobe. Dragging old bras out of her drawers, the burgeoning designer would take scissors to their cups and add additional padding in a bid to recreate Gaultier’s iconic cones in her living room before parading around the house in her botched-together pieces. “I was always very creative, I loved to draw, and paint, and make things with my hands,” she explains. “My family didn’t have a lot of money back then, though, so unsurprisingly my mom was not happy to find me chopping up her underwear to copy Madonna. They won’t let me forget it, they still bring it up all the time,” she adds with a laugh.
Between growing up on Blond Ambition and discovering a bondage magazine under her dad’s pillow, those early ‘designs’ may have been rudimentary, but the seeds for what would become Creepyyeha were sown. By the time she’d made it to high school, Leung’s style evolved and developed to incorporate the fetish-y flourishes that defined the post-Y2K Tumblr aesthetic. Though she describes herself as “a super shy, reserved person”, she began experimenting with spiked belts, tiny plaid mini skirts, and garters, stomping through her school halls in ripped stockings and formidable, heavy-soled biker boots. “Even though I’m kind of quiet, I’ve always been very confident and playful with my clothing and expressing myself through that,” she says. “I always dress to suit my mood – you know, if I’m feeling powerful I’ll wear red, if I’m having a sweet moment maybe I’ll put on a little sundress. My style icons around that time were Madonna, of course, as well as Gwen Stefani, Bettie Page, Marilyn Monroe… I think I’m just drawn to very powerful women.”
Going on to study fashion at university, Leung looked beyond the brief when it came to her final project, and instead of only creating the ten garments required of her, she also threw a series of punky, BDSM-indebted accessories into the mix. Having already amassed a sizeable following on Tumblr thanks to her subversive personal style and distinctive aesthetic, demand for pieces – including severe spiked headbands and restrictive leather harnesses – sky-rocketed, prompting her to officially found Creepyyeha in 2011. Now, just over ten years later, Leung’s offering has grown to encompass full looks, with kinky, criss-crossing harnesses finished with heavy buckles and high-shine, wipe-clean babydoll dresses offset by dreamy, boudoir-esque tulle and silk satin robes. Decorative caged bras and bustiers, meanwhile, come dripping with pearls and glittering crystals.
“I never had an agenda to become this ‘inclusive’ brand, but I’ve always wanted to involve the people that inspire me, who all happen to have very different bodies,”
Each piece is custom-crafted on a made-to-order basis, which is not only a sustainable way to work, but also means a wide range of people with varying body shapes and sizes are able to enjoy her garments. Long before ‘body-positivity’ and ‘inclusivity’ became the often-empty corporate buzzwords they are today, Leung wanted Creepyyeha to be accessible to all. “I never had an agenda to become this ‘inclusive’ brand, but I’ve always wanted to involve the people that inspire me, who all happen to have very different bodies,” she explains. “I’d love to expand and maybe even start doing ready-to-wear, but it’s not realistic to make things in four sizes and hope that everyone who likes it will fit into it. But beyond that, it feels really special to create something that’s intimate and personal for someone, knowing that it’s going to become part of their story.”
Among those making Leung’s pieces part of their own stories are the likes of Rihanna, Megan Thee Stallion, and Drag Race superstar Aquaria. FKA twigs has also been a fan of the label since its early days, slipping into a series of Leung’s bondage-inspired sets as she released 2015 EP M3LL155X. “I was a huge fan of her really early stuff, so I reached out to her on Instagram and was like ‘oh, I would love to dress you if you’re interested’,” she remembers. “I think I caught her at just the right time, because after that, I guess my message would have been lost in her feed. It’s still very surreal seeing photos of her in those pieces – to me, she embodies everything that I want my brand to be about.”
But with success comes challenges. Like huge swathes of creatives whose work straddles art, fashion, and sex, Leung faces censorship at the hands of social media, and its indecipherably murky, largely misogynistic codes of conduct. “My stuff is seen as incredibly provocative, even though I try to follow the rules. You know, no nipples, no pussy, not too much ass,” she says. “I actually decided to join TikTok a few months ago, and in, like, six days I got banned – and I was fully clothed, literally just walking, in every post. It’s hard sometimes, and I feel like it does limit me because I depend on social media to push my brand.” Similarly, she’s also found herself at the mercy of fast fashion labels that thrive on ripping off rising designers. “It’s heartbreaking when someone swoops in and takes your work, but I think, actually, it’s part of being creative.” She wrestled with it at first, she admits, but now attempts to take it on the chin – despite the deep frustration it causes. “I’m someone who struggles with anxiety, so sometimes it can feel crushing and I’ve really had to work on that. I just have to tell myself: it’s not personal. That’s how I get through it,” she adds.
On the whole, though, things are good. Emerging from the pandemic that all but swallowed up the last 18 months, Leung is feeling re-energised. Afforded the chance to slow down and reflect on where she wants to take her label next, the designer has big plans for the future. With a succession of new ideas up her sleeve, first on the agenda is a complete overhaul of Creepyyeha’s NY headquarters. “Because the past decade has been devoted to the brand, I’ve been living kind of a bum-ish existence. I literally slept on the floor and I didn’t have a couch for guests – the whole place was just work,” she laughs. “Right now, we’re renovating so we can have customers over for fittings and stage shows… it’s finally going to be somewhere I can be proud of.” As we get ready to call time on our conversation and hang up the phone, it occurs to me to ask her what piece of advice she’d go back and give 2011 Yeha as she took a leap into the unknown and launched her own label. “Be kind and have patience.” she replies. “But maybe not quite so much patience when it comes to getting a couch.”
Words: Emma Elizabeth Davidson | Creative & Photographer: Israel Riqueros | Talent / Styling / MUA: Yeha Leung | Gaffer: Miguel Gallardo | Model in wall: Lizz | P.As: Crystal | Casper | James | Dariusz.
