Showing posts with label NEW YORK FASHION WEEK. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NEW YORK FASHION WEEK. Show all posts

FALL 2009 RTW: PEDAL TO THE METAL



Brilliant and lustrous, colored metallics have glamorized the nightlife of Fall 2009 by channeling rocker vibes and a sleek retro look. Metallics of all colors have made their way into stylish closets for Fall 2009, and this chic look was a hit on the runways at New York Fashion Week Fall 2009 Ready-To-Wear.

I must say, my favorite feat for this trend is probably that anyone can whip an otherwise dreary outfit into shape with a single lustrous metallic piece, such as a bright blazer. If recessionista chic has not yet hit you, try eyeing Elise Overland’s Fall/Winter Collection. Pedal to the metal, allllll the way.



ALEXANDRE HERCHCOVITCH SPRING/SUMMER 2010


A sporty spectacle, Alexandre Herchcovitch throws it back to the eighties with his football-themed runway show for his Spring/Summer 2010 Collections. With twenty-eight incredible outfits, architectural genius carves its way into fashion as Herchcovitch displays his creatively constructed wired dresses. Symmetrical to perfection, every shoulder that made it’s way down the runway had an identical match mirroring it on the opposite side. With big shoulders bold enough to mock a football player out of his uniform, brights and neons caught the eye of every row. Herchcovitch really captured the essence of color revival this show, and we can expect eccentric colors for SS/10 to follow.

Hot pinks and vibrant oranges made their mark on rubber dresses suitable for a basketball team. Of course, I’m not quite sure I would ever find myself in a rubber dress, but the talent and exquisiteness of the pieces were so fine I turned a blind eye to the peculiar trend.

Other pieces parading down the runway included silk dresses and pants in pastel neutrals, paired with ruffled sleeves and flowing sheen material. See through symmetrical shirts with skin-tight form also strutted along with the models. Some pieces I cannot say I absolutely adored, including the abysmally bright checkered blouses and the multicolored patch pants. Some should have stayed in the eighties along with their mullet-sporting forefathers. But alas, what is meant to be will always find it’s way. Hopefully, not in the form of outlandishly bizarre patchwork.

On foot, the models trekked the catwalk in what looked like gym socks from the nineties, which in my books, is a major win (pun intended). High socks have always resonated in my books, ever since I spotted them way back at American Apparel. Perhaps I might not pair them with the leather wedges our dear bright Brazilian-born designer did, but nonetheless, athletic knee socks take the cake.
My favorite piece was by far the closing one, modeled by one of my Canadian favorites, Kate Somers (the first picture at the top of the post). A structural wonder, the dress was draped around a framework of metal rods pieced together to create the shapely composition for the design. From the waist down, the dress bubbled out around the body of the model, and from the waist up, the same big, athletic-inspired shoulder-pads jutted out just like they would on a jock. The dress was filled with bright oranges, yellows, reds, and pink, but also had the basic fundamentals of black and white worked in wisely. Both sheer and solid materials were included, as well as both striped and polka dots. Somehow, Alexandre Herchcovitch managed to pull together polar opposites and fused them into one wonder of fashion design. Walking art, to say the least. Absolute brilliance, skill, and artistry is definite to say the very best.

But back to basics, any designer who sports an athletic-inspired theme derived from and including stylish gym socks, legitimate protective shoulder pads, and puts baby footballs in the hands of the models definitely has gotten a touchdown for me.


(Not to mention the gift bags for those in the front row were awesome. I got a white umbrella and a special edition of Brazilian Vogue!)

FIERCE KITTY SWIPES BACK





While perusing some online boutiques just the other day, I found a frequently re-occurring trend that clawedat my couture-thumping heart each time I managed to stumble upon it. Fierce as a kitten, yet suave as a sultry cheetah, imitation leopard prints have pounced their way back into the summer style scene. However, be wary with these prints (or any for that matter), for there is in fact such a phenomenon some wise wanderers like to title “too much of a good thing”. Nonetheless, everything in model-worthy moderation my darling couture cats.

As per usual, the designers and style forecasters had their fierce kitty fashion on long before any of us set foot outside in leopard print Manolo Blahniks. Top couturiers such as Proenza Schouler, Dolce & Gabbana, Christian LaCroix, Oscar de la Renta, Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo, Nanette Lepore, and Diane Von Furstenburg have been serenading the runway with safari-sweet inspirations since the Spring 2009 Runway Previews last September at New York Fashion Week in Bryant Park. Diane Von Furstenburg took the runway by storm with her fresh, bohemian safari theme, transforming the runway into a earthy jungle with top models strolling down the catwalk in flowery prints of all sorts. Since then, the fashion world has been prancing to get their paws and claws into safari-themed, jungle-cat prints to adventurously adorn for Spring/Summer 2009.

So as summer sends its warm, gentle breeze streaming around the corner, the time to re-up our summer wardrobes has finally fallen upon us. With this darling new discovery of the finest feline prints, I know what few items I will be in search of to add to the closet that summer so excitedly demands I have. Hence, the items I have chosen to feature at the top of this post are my favourite finds from our dashing new discovery, and are ideal pieces to imitate for the sunny months of summer. Check out the few items (with clickable links) below to take a look at a few leopard-themed items to have yourself looking as fierce as a kitten this season. May your new finds prove to be just the catnip you need to send you into your rip-roaring summer safari!



BARBIE CELEBRATES THE BIG FIFTY IN STYLE


From when we were all just young little things, dressing up our dolls in marvelously mismatched outfits and pairing them with erratic, self-cut hairstyles, the ageless beauty doll who had won our hearts continues to reign supreme in today’s fashion world. Our favorite fashionista doll, Barbie, just celebrated her fiftieth birthday this year at New York Fashion Week 2009 with an overwhelmingly enticing pink catwalk that transported the audience a long way into the fantastic realm child’s play.

The parade-like show featured ensembles by Alexander Wang, Marchesa, Kimora Lee Simmons, Rachel Roy, Michael Kors, and Calvin Klein- just to name a few of the fifty phenomenally creative designers invited by the CFDA to imaginatively create funky, flirty, and fresh looks for our favorite darling-faced doll. The show was pieced into three main extravaganzas- Decade, Faux Reality, and Future- with Barbie-like models strutting down the runway in delightfully flirty and glamorous ensembles, each outfit coupled with an identical pair of shiny fuchsia heels to each model. Barbie’s key iconic colour, bubblegum pink, plastered the eyes of the audience as each viewer dove into the razzle-dazzle charm of the plastic piquancy of the world of Barbie.

That sparkly Saturday afternoon opened with a shimmering retro-glam bathing suit and trench designed by Rachel Roy, and modeled by Canadian beauty Jessica Stam. Many splendorous looks and thematic styles ensued, from the minimal, boyish trend we see sweeping some catwalks, to the prom queen chic look maxing-out the rest of the runways. Alexander Wang playfully paired an iconic “Barbie Pink” open-neck blazer with a cream bodysuit, while Calvin Klein toyed with a long, single-sleeved white dress that dipped into the artistic minimalist style. In sooth, the show left a mingled taste of fashion allure and birthday-cake-turned-couture on the tongues of the avid audience. Have a look below to see the runway snapshots and indulge in the delectable plasticity yourself!
P.S. I spy with my little eye: Amanda Laine in a long, pink dress!

FYI: LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION.


After years of massive white tents and long, structured catwalks being propped up in Bryant Park near Times Square, New York Fashion Week has hopped on the real estate wagon and is wheeling on down to the Upper West Side’s Lincoln Center plaza commencing Fall 2010. Well, well, I hadn’t even the slightest clue they were house shopping!

The gorgeous 16.3 acre series of buildings forms the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, and although reports are unsure of whether all the shows will be moved indoors or some still kept outdoors, the palatial buildings will serve as a grandiose venue for the Fashion Week. After all, this is the same stomping ground for many renowned cultural organizations, such as the renowned Juilliard School, the American Ballet School, the New York Philharmonic, and the Metropolitan Opera. Fashion has really taken it up a cultural notch, and I simply adore it.

So if you are lucky enough to be attending the Mercedes-Benz Fall Collections 2010 Fashion Week next February, be sure to capture the iconic tents in their natural habitat, because it will be the last time you see them standing on the grassy green grounds of Bryant Park (tear, tear).
What do you think of the new location?
(Photo courtesy of David Lamb, 2000.)