Nong Rak Keeps Things Personal

Softness, craft and intimacy in contemporary Thai knitwear

Nong Rak’s Blur Brushed One-of-a-kind Knit Mohair Graphic Ensemble Dress. Image taken from Nong Rak’s website.

Nong Rak’s Blur Brushed One-of-a-kind Crocheted Mohair Target Dress. Image taken from Nong Rak’s website.

The story of Nong Rak begins, quite fittingly, in the rain. Cherry W. Rain and Home Phuangfueang first met during a sudden downpour in JJ Green Market. As the rainstorm intensified, Home motioned for Cherry to take shelter inside a nearby stall.

Looking back now, the encounter feels oddly prophetic of everything they would later build together. A wedding and a child later, the label they founded in 2018 has come to embody a language of intimacy and attentiveness—a deeply human practice shaped by emotional tactility and sensitivity. It appears in loosely brushed mohair that dissolves into hazy gradients, in silk knitwear that hangs lightly against the body, and in fuzzy hats imbued with a sense of softness and play. Nothing feels overly polished. Sleeves stretch long past the hand, scarves collapse asymmetrically across shoulders, and textures fold and bloom with irregularity.

Cherry W. Rain-Phuangfueang and Home Phuangfueang, founders of Nong Rak. Image courtesy of Nong Rak.

The label’s trajectory has been equally fluid, moving among Thailand, Portland, Arizona, New York, and back to Thailand. During their time in the United States, the pair even collaborated with Marc Jacobs’s sub-label Heaven on a 20-piece capsule—pieces that introduced Nong Rak’s offbeat quirk to a wider international audience. Since returning to Bangkok, the brand has steadily emerged as one of Southeast Asia’s most compelling independent fashion labels, recently earning recognition as semi-finalists for the 2026 LVMH Prize—becoming the first Thai label to receive the honour.

Nong Rak’s Shredded Ribbons Thai Silk One-of-a-kind Hand Knit Studded Painting Jumper. Image courtesy of Nong Rak.

Nong Rak’s Crumpled Raw Thai Silk Double Zip Unisex Snap Hoodie. Image courtesy of Nong Rak.

Yet despite the label’s growing visibility, Nong Rak remains deeply grounded in slowness, experimentation, and emotional honesty. “We are both so inspired by old clothing and things lost to time,” they say. Rather than beginning with precise sketches or predetermined outcomes, garments emerge through experimentation. “The designs are approached with very rough ideas, and are made almost like sketches with minimal planning ahead of making.” Improvisation plays a crucial role throughout the process. Fabrics are manipulated responsively, with forms evolving through trial, adjustment, and problem solving. “In some ways, our most interesting work comes from troubleshooting,” they explain, “and letting the finishing details round everything out.”

Since returning to Thailand, the pair have become increasingly focused on material study, particularly the possibilities of silk beyond its conventional use. Threads typically reserved for weaving are brushed, knitted, and stretched into airy, irregular surfaces that feel almost weightless. Elsewhere, freeform crochet made from hand-spun undyed alpaca yarns appears alongside vintage mohair, alpaca batting, silk scraps and offcuts, and debris leather embellished with baroque pearls.

“We love to delve into specific material studies,” they explain. “The method of craft and how to approach it varies a lot. It is usually just driven by curiosity alone, but we try to keep it as experimental as possible.” Much of that experimentation now revolves around integrating silk threads traditionally used for weaving into knit structures, creating textures that feel both delicate and unfamiliar.

Nong Rak’s Blur Brushed Mohair ‘HAIR’ Beanie. Image courtesy of Nong Rak.

This sensibility to craft extends beyond aesthetics into the emotional structure of the label itself. At the heart of Nong Rak is a persistent sense of playfulness and childlike curiosity, something the founders consciously work to preserve as the brand grows. Interestingly, they trace this sensibility directly to parenthood.

“We turned Nong Rak from a creative collaboration into a brand as a way to stay home with our son,” they explain. Looking back, they see the label as inseparable from the experience of raising a child — observing growth, rediscovering wonder, and learning to move through the world with heightened sensitivity. “It feels like a direct reflection of being parents, watching learning and growing everyday, trying to see the world from a kid’s perspective and remembering what it felt like to experience everything with such sensitivity and newness.” 

The store reflects many of the same sensibilities present in their garments: softness, improvisation, and an attachment to lived-in objects. Furniture sourced from flea markets and pieces taken directly from the couple’s own apartment were folded into the interiors. Local references appear in the forms of a large connecting door softened using draped Thai silk fabric arranged in striped formations reminiscent of their knitwear. Custom sofas inspired by colourful Thai daybeds mimic woven stripe patterns, while metal fencing elements reference the distinctive gates and barriers found throughout Bangkok’s streets. Even the bathroom became an opportunity for experimentation. “The ceramic tiling is like a pixel-art knit,” they explain. “It was very fun to play with colours and patterns with that approach.”

Nong Rak’s Shredded Ribbons Thai Silk One-of-a-kind Hand Knit Studded Shawl Scarf. Image taken from Nong Rak’s website.

Nong Rak’s Debris Leather Scattered Beads & Things Finer Art Knit Bonnet Cap. Image taken from Nong Rak’s website.

Like the label itself, the store remains intentionally unresolved. “It is still very much a work in progress,” they say. Plans are already underway for fibre-art installations, workshops, and expanded community spaces. Behind the boutique sits an antique house and garden currently being renovated into a future studio and production space, where the couple is preparing to host workshops and gatherings. “We are always thinking about what genuine ways we can foster community or inspire locals and visitors to find a craft that makes them feel good. We would love for all of that to eventually branch further into other unexplored territories, but for now we are just trying to breathe as much love and possibility into it to see what grows from there.”

Asked what has surprised them most since starting Nong Rak together, their answer is remarkably simple: “That we can do anything we want! It took a lot of time and healing to realise that”. In many ways, that sense of freedom is embedded within the name itself. In Thai, “Nong Rak” loosely translates to “beloved” or “dear one,” a tenderness that permeates every aspect of the label. What Cherry and Home have ultimately built feels less like a conventional fashion brand than an evolving personal universe — one shaped by softness, memory, and a continual attempt to see the world with renewed sensitivity.

To learn more about Nong Rak, visit @nongrak on Instagram.