Lim Ji-Yeon Reveals Her Hilarious Fashion Fail at KNUA

Long before Lim Ji-yeon was known as one of South Korea's most electrifying actresses, she was just another student at the Korea National University of Arts (KNUA) — dressing, by her own admission, in a way that made her stand out for all the wrong reasons. In a recent candid interview on the YouTube series Salon de Loop (살롱드립), Lim Ji-yeon shared the story of how her classmate, now-celebrated actor Park Jung-min, once branded her the school's biggest fashion disaster.

The actress, currently starring in SBS drama "Brilliant World" (멋진 신세계), appeared alongside her co-star Heo Nam-jun for a relaxed interview format hosted by comedian Jang Do-yeon. What followed was a treasure trove of candid revelations about her student years, her humble beginnings, and the fashion crime that has apparently become campus legend.

The "Fashion Terrorist" Confession

Lim Ji-yeon didn't hold back. During her time at KNUA's acting department, she went through a phase of dressing entirely in one color — specifically, wine red. "I wore wine-colored tracksuits from head to toe," she recalled with a laugh. "I had no sense for clothes at all."

The result? Her classmate Park Jung-min — who would go on to earn critical acclaim for films like Record of Youth and Deliver Us from Evil — reportedly dubbed her the "KNUA Class of 2009 Fashion Terrorist." When her co-star Heo Nam-jun asked how she responded at the time, Lim Ji-yeon simply laughed it off, noting that her style had improved considerably since then. "I've changed a lot," she said, leaving little doubt about that.

The "sweet potato" nickname she earned from the wine-colored outfit became something of a running joke among her peers. For fans who know Lim Ji-yeon today — polished, sharp, and every bit the style icon she's become in the Korean entertainment industry — the contrast is genuinely funny.

A Dream That Started With Her Mother

The fashion story got the laughs, but the more revealing part of the interview was how Lim Ji-yeon arrived at acting in the first place. She credited her mother's love of the performing arts for planting the seed early. "My mother took me to musicals all the time," she said. "Watching those performances as a child, I wanted to be on a stage like that."

What makes her path particularly impressive is the discipline it required. Lim Ji-yeon attended a regular high school before beginning to prepare for KNUA's notoriously competitive acting department entrance exams in her second year. She passed — joining a cohort that would turn out to include Byun Yo-han (Vincenzo, Mr. Sunshine) and Park Jung-min, both of whom would become some of the most respected actors of their generation.

She described Byun Yo-han as brimming with energy and enthusiasm even as a student, while Park Jung-min was already the quiet, sharp observer. "He was smart, even back then," she said of Park. The dynamic clearly left an impression — funny stories about fashion critiques aside.

Ramen, Part-Time Jobs, and Building a Career

In another highlight from the interview, Lim Ji-yeon revealed that her part-time jobs as a student were driven almost entirely by food. She worked at a ramen restaurant — not for the paycheck, but because she had eaten there once during a university break and became obsessed with the lunch menu. "I applied for a job there just so I could eat that ramen," she admitted. The added bonus: staff were sometimes given different dishes, which she found genuinely exciting.

She also worked at a custom burger joint. "I didn't have a lot of money as a student," she explained, framing it with the kind of self-deprecating warmth that has made her one of Korea's most likable stars. The picture she painted — a ramen-loving student with questionable fashion instincts, grinding through part-time work while training to act — is a long way from the commanding presence she delivers on screen today.

The Drama That Made It All Click: "Brilliant World"

The interview context matters as much as the anecdotes themselves. Lim Ji-yeon and Heo Nam-jun sat down with Jang Do-yeon to promote "Brilliant World," the SBS Friday-Saturday drama that debuted in early May 2026 and immediately captured attention. The show follows a Joseon-era villainess whose soul possesses a struggling modern-day actress — creating a body-swap narrative about a scheming historical figure navigating 21st-century corporate Korea, and the coldly powerful chaebol who becomes her unlikely entanglement.

The premiere drew a 5.4% nationwide rating — a strong opening for a primetime drama — and the show has since climbed to the top of Netflix's charts in 24 countries. Critics have praised the writing for subverting the usual fish-out-of-water formula: rather than playing the time-traveling character as helpless, the show lets the Joseon villainess take charge from the moment she arrives, using her cunning and ruthlessness to dominate every scene.

For Lim Ji-yeon, the role represents a conscious step toward something lighter after the psychological intensity of her most famous work. She has spoken in other interviews about choosing Brilliant World specifically because it is a comedy — a genre she had not fully explored. "That was the biggest reason I chose it," she said. "The comedy aspect."

From "The Glory" to a New Chapter

That choice is all the more striking when you consider the roles that made her famous. Her portrayal of Park Yeon-jin in Netflix's "The Glory" (2022–2023) — a vain, ruthless bully who gets away with years of violence only to face a long-planned reckoning — was one of the most talked-about villain performances in recent Korean drama history. The role required Lim Ji-yeon to embody a character viewers loved to hate, and she did it with unsettling precision.

Lim Ji-yeon has said in interviews that she still feels the weight of that success — and that she chose Brilliant World partly to break out of the shadow of Yeon-jin. "I haven't had my best work yet," she said in one interview, demonstrating the kind of self-awareness that tends to produce great performances. If the early numbers and the fan enthusiasm for her portrayal in Brilliant World are anything to go by, that assessment may be about to change.

A Side of Lim Ji-Yeon Fans Rarely See

What made the Salon de Loop appearance so effective was precisely the contrast. The woman who terrified viewers as Park Yeon-jin, who commands every scene she enters, who can make an entire drama pivot on a single expression — that same woman spent her student years dressed like a wine-colored sweet potato, working ramen jobs to satisfy a craving, and getting gently roasted by a future award-winning actor.

The clip has been circulating widely online since the interview dropped, with fans sharing clips of Lim Ji-yeon's delighted, self-deprecating laughter at her own expense. For a star whose screen presence can feel almost supernatural, these moments of ordinary humanness have a way of deepening the affection fans already have for her.

Park Jung-min, for his part, has not publicly commented on the "fashion terrorist" designation. Given how far both he and Lim Ji-yeon have come since their KNUA days, it seems safe to assume it's a story they can both laugh about now — even if the wine-colored tracksuit probably isn't coming back anytime soon.