The dust has settled, the last remnants of all runways have been swept away, and the four Vogue editrixes dispersed to their respective four corners of the fashion world...the time to pack away the Louboutins, massage the feet and make sense of the hundreds upon hundreds of looks taken in over the last four plus weeks has at last come.
So it begins with New York. Seems so long ago that the first model took to the catwalk of the newly minted Lincoln Center, but in fact twas not so. There's no denying that the word of the season, the darling decade du jour, is the 1970's. And it's influence--from disco to boho to hippie au naturale--was felt across all four cities. Crochet, punchy oranges, wallpaper florals, flared trousers...the ingredients for an American flirtation with a groovier time were all there in spades and Marc Jacobs' nod to the decade locked in the 70's as the anachronistic "new 80's."
The 70's vibe, however, though palpable in its influence on the runways of New York Fashion Week, was but an emerging (ie not yet dominant, wait for London and Milan to seal the deal) trend, running neck and neck with 90's Calvin Klein style minimalism (interesting that there was a big time 70's revival in the 90's, no?). Monochrome tones, black and white shifts with a bit of a deconstructed seam there, a jutting hip there, breezing beige on beige suits, collections were rife with staples of simplicity. White was as strong a color as ever, some collections (BCBG among them) were nearly executed solely in it. Delicate straps fine as hair signaled the return of the spaghetti strap and silhouettes were kept breezy and loose.
But hands down, the biggest trend to clamor off this season's NYFW catwalks was (drum roll please): the sheer maxi skirt. It seems at long last, after what feels like decades of being relegated to the wardrobes of the sister wives of Big Love, pilgrims and eighteenth century school teachers, the ankle-length skirt has at last emerged from the full-skirted shadow of its sister the maxi dress to have a major fashion moment of its own. Hardly a runway in New York this season was sans chiffon floor length skirt, some with slits, some without, in a sumptuously sheer flesh tone, white, black or other delicate neutral. The look can be dressed up or down--a ragged tee and some workman's boots for day, a pretty top and some heels for night. Just remember: flesh colored spanx are your new best friend for Spring/Summer 2011.
Almost in quiet protest of last spring's favoring of less-than-figure-flattering crop tops and peekaboo cut outs galore, for this spring, New York turned away from the tummy (hooray!) and gave us a renewed interest on the back. For some of the more minimally driven collections, all of the detail in the simple garments was in the back, signaling the arrival of a new erogenous zone. High and crew-cut necked gowns revealed plunging backs or backs of garments so intricately delineated with geometric cut aways and ties they resembled stringed instruments. Bringing sexy back.
As far as color was concerned, the dominate hues amidst the perpetual seas of neutrals, whites and blacks where electric blue and shocking coral.
In terms of day to day logistics and my personal experience of NYFW, this season was by far the best. Lincoln Center, a stone's throw from my old stomping ground, as it were, is a fantastic venue, though less central than Bryant Park of fashion weeks yore. Firstly, tucked off Broadway, the towering tents are concealed by the bulk of the Metropolitan Opera, which keeps all manners of unwelcome rubberneckers a bit further distanced from the fashion hustle and bustle, which just makes your life simpler. For example, on Dennis Basso day, I only saw three blood-smeared animal rights protesters. Secondly, there's a Chipotle on 73rd and Amsterdam, unbeknowest to the fash pack (who had sniffed out the one positioned smackdab on the edge Bryant Park), which made for enjoyable and frequent feasts without the hassle of my fellow fashion folk fighting like starving walking talking stress bombs for a bit of chips n' guac.
This season's move by PRs to exclusively use FASHION GPS and iPads, relegating lists and hard tickets to an archaic memory of a far less civilized time, was like a breath of fresh efficiency at what is normally an aneurysm-inducing sh*tstorm of disorganization (cf London Fashion Week). To claim your seat at any given show at Lincoln Center, all one had to do was scan one's confirmation bar code and a little receipt like print out with pop out from the til-having-replaced-intern. Blissful.
**This round up is by no means a be-all end-all definitive summary of everything shown at NYFW, it is merely a visual representation of the trends I noticed both on and off the runway including parties, people, Editor Watch and more...
New York Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2011 Table of Contents
Shows
Parties
5 Whisper-backs:
This is the great blog, I'm reading them for a while, thanks for the new posts!
Glad you enjoy reading! And you are most welcome
xx
Very awesome NEW YORKER FASHION TRENDS ! As usual they all look so elegant! Everyone will really admire it especially the way it was presented ! Very clolorful !!! :) How I wish I could also be one of the model.. =)
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I'm so love this blog, already bookmarked it! Thanks.
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