Lina LecaroNew York Fashion Week took its final bite out of the Big Apple last week and most fashion fiends and followers have already moved on to the substantially edgier avante-garde parade at London Fashion Week (happening now).
But NYC's shows deserve a recap, especially since many of the looks will be seen on red carpets well before Spring, and malls thanks to the knock-off effect. We followed our favorite designer's Spring 2009 NY presentations (and the party scene that surrounded it) via the always extensive online coverage at New York Magazine and our friends at Paper mag, and we've come to the conclusion that there truly is nothing new to be done fashion-wise, not that really works for women anyway. When a designer does attempt to think out of the box a bit, the results are usually too campy or just downright dumb. Example Michael Kors' mom-on-vacation meets Devo helmet-style visors. Ick.
We know you haven't even pulled out the sweaters for this Winter yet, but these shows are always about looking ahead, and in that regard, next year's warmer months promise two extremes: frilly lacy femme frocks and streamlined, almost androgynous simplicity. Our favorite dress maker, Diane Von Furstenberg, floated whimiscal boho looks down the runway complete with flowers and garlands in the hair (this is close to the ethereal getup we wore on our wedding day!) Sweet.
Cynthia Rowley's collection showed the other extreme, with a procession of jersey striped columns and bold, offbeat jewelry selections. How about this giant piercing jewelry-style ball belt?
Alexander McQueen's men's collection (which had some women's pieces too) also ascribed to the sleek/not meek aesthetic, with lots of stretchy fabrics, black and cream hues and fitted pieces. It was all very Euro-hipster ala Mike Myers' SNL Deter skits.
Over at Rock & Republic, they balanced out the jean genies (some of whom wore acid wash… please no!) with a crop of ruched and ruffled little club dresses which seemed to be going for a retro rock vibe, but mostly looked hoochie mama. (We love R&R, but this catwalk was a step backward after their noir-themed '08 Fall spectacle).
Speaking of hoochie, the bodacious Baby Phat show once again did the trashy bling thing, showing lots of leg, cheap looking pantsuits and one piece bathing suits, and baggy undies worn as shorts (?). The worst part about this one? The ill-fitting long dark wigs on the models… too urban tranny. Sorry Kimora Lee, but your show was more fugulosity than fabulosity. (This photo is actually one of the cutest).
So what did we love? We thought Charlotte Ronson's show was cute, effortless and well-edited, if a little slacker-looking. (Think that was the point though).
On the other end of the spectrum, last season's Project Runway winner Christian Siriano kept it way fierce.
Anna Sui turned up the color quotient, meshing ethnic embroidery, beading and textures like lace, quilting and knit for a Russian Doll-meets-American-Indian on acid feel. Love it…
And Marc Jacobs… ah Marc. The man is a god to celebs and iconoclasts alike for good reason. This granny chic layered look might be a bit much, but each piece is individually strong. Jacobs paired dainty chapeaus and turban-ish headbands on all his models with metallics, and plenty of layers (the man loves his layers). Nearly every skirt, cigarette pant, and belted jacket he put on catwalk was cute, even when presented in this cartoony way. We highly recommend you check out his entire show here.
All photos from NYmag.com
Even with the less than interesting stuff seen this year, the New York shows still seemed like circus-y good times. (Someday we will go to them!) In the meantime, we've got our own Fashion Week to think about, but after this came to light, and then this, things ain't exactly looking good for LA's frock lovin' flocks.
Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.