Why green, not red, for Son Ye-jin? Inside the hanbok of ‘The Scandal.’

Part of the appeal of a period drama lies in seeing a past era brought to life. Netflix's “The Scandal” aims to offer a glimpse of 18th-century Joseon (1392-1910) by staying true to period detail while drawing viewers in with elegant hanbok (Korean traditional clothes) and meticulously chosen accessories.

Behind that visual world is hanbok designer Kim Young-jin, who oversaw the series' costumes and visual direction. But in taking on “The Scandal,” Kim and the rest of the production team had a formidable predecessor to contend with: the 2003 film “Untold Scandal.”

The film starred some of the biggest actors of the time, including Lee Mi-sook, Bae Yong-joon and Jeon Do-yeon. But its fame also came from being known as Korea's first full-fledged costume drama. Fashion designer Jung Ku-ho served as art director, with nearly half of the film's 5 billion won ($3.7 million) budget spent on costumes and props.

Twenty-three years later, the task of creating a new visual language for “The Scandal” fell to Kim, who is often dubbed the Chanel of the hanbok world. Kim is also something of a star to the stars, with global names including BTS and Tilda Swinton among her clientele.

The Netflix series, released on Sept. 18, reimagines the 18th-century French novel “Dangerous Liaisons” in 18th-century Joseon, giving Kim a historical world to recreate.

When the JoongAng Sunday met Kim at her hanbok shop Tchai Kimyoungjin on Sept. 15, the designer pulled out several files, each as thick as a brick. All had been created for the costumes in “The Scandal.”

The series' title was printed on the covers in seven colors, one assigned to each of the series' seven main characters.

“Lady Cho's color is green,” Kim said, referring to the character played by Son Ye-jin. “When she is portraying her young self, a fresh, sprout-like green is used. As she grows older and her emotions intensify, it shifts toward a green that is almost dark as black.”

Lady Cho is a captivating character, making her seem naturally suited to red or wine. But Kim saw green as a better reflection of the character's personality

“Lady Cho is exceptionally talented and captivating, but she lives in an era where there is virtually nothing she is allowed to do as a woman,” Kim said. “She's highly intelligent and has a strong artistic identity, so I thought the neutrality and openness of green suited her better.”

Hui-yeon, played by Nana, has a very different palette.

Widowed before her wedding and denied the freedom to live her own life in the name of chastity and fidelity, her color is sosaek, a Korean name given to a shade of white.

Sosaek has a warmer tone than bright, fluorescent white and takes its color from the natural, undyed hue of cotton or hemp. Before modern bleaching techniques were developed, white was often referred as sosaek in Korea.

Kim created the series' other hanbok using similarly distinctive color combinations.

“I researched paintings from the period, including the ‘Album of Genre Paintings' by Sin Yun-bok, as well as excavated artifacts to make the costumes appropriate for an 18th-century setting,” Kim said. “But if that's all you do, it's no fun for either the viewer or the person making them. So I added my own interpretation.”

That attention to detail extended even to underwear. “The Scandal” features a number of intimate scenes, which meant traditional undergarments had to be made.

Female actors wore a sokjeoksam (inner garment) and sokjeogori (under-jacket) beneath the outer jeogori (upper jacket). Under their skirts, they wore lower undergarments known as darisokgot, soksokgot, baji and dansokgot, which helped give the lower body an elegant bell-shaped silhouette.

Male actors also wore a sokjeoksam and sokjeogori beneath the outer jeogori, along with jambangi — short trousers worn beneath their pants.

While the undergarments may appear only fleetingly in nighttime scenes lit by oil lamps, Kim did not want to cut corners.

“There are several intimate scenes, so I didn't want to keep putting the characters in the same undergarments,” Kim said. “I let my imagination as a designer run a little — some characters even have pink undergarments.” Kim laughed.

But the idea is not as far-fetched as it might sound.

“You find some surprising things among excavated garments,” Kim said. “Just because it was the Joseon period, do undergarments necessarily have to be white? It was something only seen under the covers, so couldn't some people have dyed theirs to suit their personal tastes?”

Kim was equally meticulous about accessories such as dwikkoji hair ornaments, binyeo hairpins and gat hats.

“You need accessories with the right colors and forms to complement the clothes properly and create a beautiful, polished overall appearance,” Kim said. “Production budgets are limited, but I just could not use things that had been hastily made because it kept bothering me.”

Kim ultimately brought out a personal collection amassed over 20 years, including works by masters recognized as holders of intangible cultural heritage.

To prevent confusion among production staff, Kim matched accessories individually to each costume. She even prepared detailed instructions explaining the angle and manner in which each piece should be worn.

“They probably wondered, ‘Why is that person getting so serious over a single dwikkoji stuck into the back of someone's hair?’” Kim said. “But to me, it really matters. Get even one color wrong and you change the temperature of the entire room.”

Kim also hopes the term “fashion hanbok” will gain wider use. Her approach is to preserve the strengths and value of tradition while allowing wearers to express their individuality.

“Making hanbok part of everyday life isn't very realistic, so instead, people can dress up in a beautiful, high-quality hanbok for a special occasion, just as they would wear luxury clothing,” Kim said.

Kim runs Tchai Kimyoungjin, a bespoke traditional hanbok brand, and Tchai Kim, a ready-to-wear label that adds contemporary touches to hanbok. Kim has designed hanbok for the protagonists of films “Love, Lies” (2016) and “The Magician” (2015) and the television series “Mr. Sunshine” (2018).

Kim's work also extends to the stage. The designer has created costumes for productions including “Hamlet” (2016), the Korea National Opera's 2017 production of “Camellia Lady” (translated) and “Hwajeonga” (2025) and the National Changgeuk Company of Korea's “Simcheongga” (2018), the 2021 production of “Gwito” (translated) and “The Merchant of Venice” (2023).

BY SEO JEONG-MIN [[email protected]]