Behati Review • Oversized Vintage-inspired Pastel Look

Hi guys, today I'll be sharing all about this oversized vintage-inspired pastel look, as well as my thoughts and review on the pieces I bought from Behati.

If you guys follow me on Instagram or here on my blog, you may have seen that I was invited to Behati's Merdeka 2020 collection preview last year.

Click here to read all about it + to know more about this local brand.

I really liked this look, and after trying them on, I decided to purchase them. The size of the samples were a bit big (even though they are supposed to be oversized), but since I came to the store and to the preview instead of purchasing online, the designer took my measurements so he could make pieces that fit me better.

I placed my order on September 19 2020 and I got my items delivered to me on October 9. I didn't really mind the wait as I understand that it's handmade/not mass-produced. I was also told around the end of September that they were experiencing some fabric shipping delays due to Covid-19.

When it did arrive to me, I got both pieces wrapped in this tin foil packaging:

I'm not sure if there's supposed to be some kind of nostalgia with the tin foil or if it's in line with Behati's local branding. As a person all about branding and packaging, I personally found it a bit a bit cheap looking and weird. The way it was wrapped was also very meh (legit held together by one struggling sticker) and the wrapper itself still had the price tag omg.

I did highlight this to their team as feedback and they said they were working on better box packaging. However, they did a 2021 Chinese New Year collection and sent some items for PR to some influencers that I follow. Safe to say, the same cheap foil packaging is still being used.

Anyway, after unboxing it I told myself, I bought this for the clothes, not the packaging. Well shortly after, I noticed that the clothes themselves were a bit sub-par. The stitching seemed a bit off, with threads peeking through the seems. I thought it was quite dangerous because if it pulls, the fabric might run.

This wasn't just the shirt, but the pants as well:

I didn't mind the loose threads as much, but I was very disappointed with the inner clasp of the pants. If you can see below, the fabric used is super thin in a way that the clasp inside is actually visible and poking outside.

Not only is this dangerous (as it legit looks like it will poke through and destroy the fabric at any moment), it also just looked super shoddy.

There were also fabric chalk on the pants. I'm familiar with fabric chalk because my grandma used it all the time when I was young, but as a brand, wouldn't you want to give your customer a nice, clean, finished product?

I'm not sure how ready-to-wear items work. I've watched a few haute couture videos and even Dior bridal gown videos saying that the seamstresses sometimes leave signatures or marks on the inside lining of the clothes. For those complicated gowns which I assume cannot be washed, I don't think they wash it before sending it to the client. But I would expect it would have no chalk marks and would overall be presentable right?

Anyway, I messaged them on Instagram and they replied saying that the thread can be cut off, while the chalk is from the tailors.

As for the pants, they said the satin fabric is soft so, from the front, it can not be completely flat. They told me they would get back to me on the availability of the fabric, but it wasn't until I DM-ed for an update again on October 14 that they told me they would be willing to come pick up the pants to replace the hook & waistband.

I'm not sharing all of these to bash on them, but rather to just share my honest thoughts on their presentation, branding, products as well as my experience. A lot of people say that we should shop local and support local designers, and I actually came to Behati with the sole aim of wanting to support. I'm disappointed because compared to mass-produced, ready-to-wear clothing from shops like Zara or even H&M, the quality of the pieces I got from Behati just seemed very shoddy (and that's saying something). I know that they're not as precise as factories, but the fact that they're hand-sewn + they have a higher price point than those fashion retailers, what exactly is supposed to tie me down to them as a customer and make me purchase from them again if not the quality right?

Some say that the allure of custom designs or designs from smaller designers/designers in general is that the customer experience is much more intimate. You get to build a relationship with the designer and the brand. I did not get any sort of feel throughout this entire process that the brand wanted to keep or maintain a relationship with me as someone who has previously bought from them or as a new customer who actually made his way to the showroom, tried the pieces on and made a purchase. From a business point of view, I think Behati should not only work on their product quality control but also on their customer relations. I had to follow up with them regarding the shipping (no updates until I asked where it was around Sep 28) and for someone who was complaining about quality issues on Oct 9, they only got back to me on Oct 14 AFTER I myself followed up with them.

Anyways, the pants were re-done and I got them a month later. They ended up making an entirely new piece (and the waistband/hook was totally fine).

Like I mentioned in my previous post, I really liked the shape of the top and the colour of it. I rarely wear pastel, let alone blue. I bought it thinking that I would wear it to an event, but sadly all events are still gone since COVID is still here. 

I was recently invited to high tea at Mandarin Oriental where the dress code was pastel, so after almost half a year, I could finally wear it out.

The material was nice and lightweight, totally suitable for Malaysia's weather.

The removable shoulder pads are the main point of this top. Without it, the top would only look like any old comfy oversized satin top. With them, it totally elevates the look and gives an almost Balenciage-esque vintage silhouette.

I wore shorts because I wanted to be comfortable the entire day and thought that pants would have been a tinge too formal for the event I was going to.

It was a nice casual outfit that looked elevated and chic (if I do say so myself)

At high tea, the pictures really turned out nice. The top was a conversation starter and I had a good time/a lot of compliments. My only critique would be that in the pics below where the table was low, it almost looks as if I'm not wearing any pants hahaha.

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I also dropped by Chanel with my friend Zihang as she wanted to pick up a bag she purchased.

For Spring/Summer 2021, Chanel had a lot of bright coloured bags, including this super pretty periwinkle AirPods Pro case!

It totally matched my outfit, and I'm not gonna lie, I totally wanted to run out of the store and bring it with me haha

There was also this new mini bag, and although the Chanel in KLCC didn't have the popular black and white ones, this metallic silver one totally matched my outfit too:

Here's a random shot of me in my natural habitat in KLCC, window shopping yet again:

And that's it for this post! I hope you guys found it interesting and informative.

See y'all in my next post!