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Updated: October 1, 2009, 9:35 am	Share    Print    Email

The Devi Kroell Spring 2010 Collection showcased during Fashion Week 2009 in New York City. Photos by Douglas Harrington

New York City - The evenings turn chilly, the line lightens at Nick & Toni's and the swaying masts in Sag Harbor thin against the horizon as moorings are abandoned. Labor Day weekend has come and gone and autumn is fast approaching. What is a Hamptonite to do but head into town for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week 2009 and take in some of the Spring 2010 Collection to be ready for next Memorial Day weekend?

Tommy Hilfiger waves to the crowd of well-wishers.

In the past my brush with Fashion Week has been that of a civilian, so there was definitely a bit of a learning curve for this reporter, who pretty much works his way around the Hamptons summer in my Brooks Brothers blue blazer or seersucker sports coat, chinos, a half dozen polo shirts, a few pairs of topsiders and my Pat Boone white bucks. Of course, no socks! I have always considered myself smartly dressed, but my color palette has been a bit low key. I like to think I am understated, however, my late wife frequently referred to me as "Mister Monochromatic," particularly in my winter wardrobe.

Admittedly palette challenged and steeped in traditional fashion formality, I undertook this adventure with an open mind. I was determined to let these designers teach an old East End dog some new tricks. Fashion week is definitely an experience, at times a minefield, so I'll not only share with you the fashion on the runways, but the flavor of this legendary Manhattan event.

Originally called Press Week, this bi-yearly fashion industry self-celebration was started by publicist Eleanor Lamber in 1943, taking advantage of the Nazi occupation of Paris and the difficulty of European travel at the time to draw the fashion media's attention to American designers during WWII. Now considered as important as any fashion showcase in the world, the event's impact on the history of the American fashion industry can be described as nothing short of seminal.

Ruby Kobo's young designers, Dana Kobo and Yuri Alpert.

My first stop during Fashion Week had nothing to do with clothing, but with jewelry, as Hamptons.com was invited to a Friday night party at The Cellar at the Bryant Park Hotel celebrating the young designers behind the Ruby Kobo line. This grotto bar is pure medieval in flavor and atmosphere and was packed for the fete. Ruby Kobo's interesting and urban baubles are definitely designed for a generation or two removed from me, with a list of fans that include Rihana, Kanye West and Lindsay Lohan, who was an affirmed attendee at the party, but was no where to be found unless she was completely undercover and in disguise. In other words, sober and not making a scene.

A combination of precious diamonds, fine gold and silver with died threads and third world beadwork, Yuri Alpert described his and co-designer Dana Kobo's inspiration and materials, "I spent a year in the Far East before we designed the line, places like Nepal and India. I picked up a lot of organic materials. The whole line is a combination of natural beauty and fine jewels. You can wear them whether you are dressed up or dressed down."

Saturday brought me to the "Tents" at Bryant Park, which has been ground zero for Fashion Week since 1993. That designation has diminished substantially since the last spring show, as many designers opt to unveil their lines at private or their own corporate venues around the city. Some note the present state of the economy for the exodus, but I cannot help but wonder if venue mismanagement might not have something to do with it as well. (Later on in the article I'll address that subject!) .

Tim Gunn of "Project Runway" was front row center at the Christian Siriano show.

Missing from the tents this year were the likes of Ralph Lauren, Donna Karan, Nicole Miller and Calvin Klein, to name but a few. Starting in 2010 the event is supposed to vacate Bryant Park entirely and take up residence in Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center. Whether designers of that caliber return to the tents is yet to be determined.

My first tent show was Christian Siriano at 4 PM. There are actually three tent venues at Bryant Park, "The Tent," the "Salon" and the "Promenade," which is where my show was scheduled. Admission to any event during Fashion Week is by invitation only and a RSVP is required. To actually get a seat, as opposed to standing, you need to RSVP months in advance and obviously the major fashion media outlets like Vogue and Elle get prime consideration along with the hordes of celebrities, fashion and otherwise, that flood into Manhattan to see and be seen at the runway shows. New to the protocol, I responded about two weeks in advance. Obviously I was standing, but thanks to an amiable security guard named Vinnie, I did not have to wait on the SRO line. I was front row standing for the show that, like most shows in the tents, started 45 minutes late.

Tardy or not, the Siriano show proved to be one of the highlights of the week for me. After the paparazzi and electronic media were done assaulting the front row celebrities and moved off the floor, the paper was peeled off the runway, the lights dimmed and the music rose. Siriano's designs were nothing short of breathtaking and delicately feminine. Inspired by "luxurious Mediterranean travel," the designer's palette included blush, which I would describe as champagne, fuchsia, steel blues and orange. Chiffon, satin and silk dominated the many strapless and halter day and cocktail dresses which structurally were layered in folds, but with an airy flounce to their movement.

The show stopping gowns of the Christian Siriano Spring 2010 collection.

There were wide legged trousers and bateau necklines, but the highlights of the show came in the form of the evening gowns. My favorite was a satin faced draped strapless with a beaded bodice in blush, but the number that drew the crowd's ovation was described by Siriano himself as, "A Chiffon and tulle-layered ombre gown in blush and volcanic print."

Siriano was a contestant on the fashion reality show "Project Runway," and fashion mentor Tim Gunn was seated front row center next to actress Kristen Johnston who looked gorgeous in a little black dress and turquoise heels. I caught up with Gunn after the show and asked him how he liked the line, "I loved it. I was crazy about it. It was incredible!"

Dress design by Donna Karan with hat designed by Stephen Jones for Donna Karan.

After Siriano I headed downtown to the Meatpacking district for the 6:30 p.m. Poleci show. Yes, I said the meatpacking district, just south of my old neighborhood of Chelsea on the west side. This part of town, once the home of gay "leather bars" made famous in Al Pacino's film "Cruising," has become a hotbed of designer shops that include Stella McCartney among many others.

Poleci was not a runway show in design but mannequin, with a center stage and two dozen models standing pretty much motionless encircled by the audience. Designer Jeffery Chow's line was sporty yet feminine, with earth toned cotton and satin ensembles that ranged from cocktail dresses to jacketed pant/tank shirt combinations in a colorful mix of oranges, blues, mangoes, navy and the predominant season color, which I will again describe as champagne or blush. The young designer described his line to me as, "Little Tokyo meets Venice Beach." I am sure it will work just fine in the Hamptons as well.

Circling the models I ran into pal Joel Gray who introduced me to Jean Claude Huon, co-owner of Poleci, "This is my good friend Jean Paul who is bringing this company to the floor. I live around the corner and he is a good pal." I went on to ask Huon, formerly of Bill Blass, about the transformation of the area, "We feel that the meatpacking district is the future of New York fashion. All of the young designers that are coming here are transforming fashion and we think it is really important. It is the young ones time."

Sunday comes and after spending the morning working on editorial I head off to the Rachel Roy spring collection. Another show staged outside the tents, I head downtown to Cedar Lake on 26th Street and, on time, walk into the runway show of smart, tasteful and feminine fashion. The event was a standing only show and the guests were treated to flutes of Moet-Chandon champagne.

Designer Donna Karan chats up attendees at Fashion Week.

Roy's line was beautiful in its classic sophistication, vibrant colors and fitted structure. She herself described the line as "elegant, strong and polished." Her slacks where wide legged and flowing in combination with silk and charmeuse blouses, but ankle tight when it came to the number of power suits she brought to the runway, lots of white with some yellow, electric blue, pink, purple and abstract prints.

This show brought out lots of A-listers including Creative Director Joe Zee of Elle who twittered his enthusiasm throughout the show and British R&B singer Estelle who is collaborating with Roy on a jewelry line. Sarah Jessica Parker was not at the show despite the fact that the shoes were Rachel Roy for Manolo Blahnik and simply stunning.

I headed back uptown to the tents and arriving an hour early I took advantage of the complimentary bar and sat outside at a table in Bryant Park sipping vodka and having a smoke. I caught sight of three runway models who had just finished a show and were chatting and smoking at a nearby table. I asked if I could join them to get a model's perspective on Fashion Week and they kindly obliged.

The three models were Adriana Cermanova from Slovakia, American Emily Senko and Sofia Monaco from Mexico. Senko explained, "For a week and a half we have castings, non-stop. From the castings you get booked into different shows. You go and see all the designers." Monano said that they never really know how many shows they will be doing during the week, "Designers can take a long time to make up their minds. I got called for this show last night." When I asked her if this was the most exciting part of the business she said, "It is exciting, but very tiring. All you do is walk all day." Senko added, "We have been up since 6 a.m. and will not get home until 10 p.m." Cermanova confirmed the gypsy lifestyle of runway models, "I'll stay here for a few months, and after Fashion Week I will be going to London. I'll see what happens there." After being booked into the Fashion Week casting by the Ford Agency, Monaco will be heading back to Mexico.

Designer Rachel Roy's show was held at Cedar Lake in downtown Manhattan.

I left the models and headed back into the tent for the Custo Barcelona show and this is the management disaster I referred to earlier in the article. This is the only show for which I had a confirmed "seat assignment, G-9-S," emailed directly from the PR firm handling the show. Showing them the email confirmation I was ushered to a line behind the velvet ropes leading to The Tent venue. I was perhaps the 10th person in line, after waiting for almost 45 minutes the line had grown to about 350 guests. Curiously I watched as hundreds of other guests were directed into the tents. I asked a security person what was happening and showed him my confirmation. He explained that the "S" on my seat assignment meant standing. I wondered why it would be called a "seat assignment" if it meant standing, but, okay, I don't mind standing. I waited patiently as I watched another few hundred people enter the show.

When they brought a uniformed NYPD officer to stand at the ropes I knew we were in trouble. As I watched the PR people that were handling the seating pack up their table and disappear, a security person announced that the show was full and none of us behind the ropes would be allowed to enter, even though many of us had the coveted "seat assignments." Needless to say there were a lot of angry people behind those ropes. Made worse by the fact that fearing we might perhaps rush the show, we were told to turn around and exit out the back of the line, all 350 of us. This could have been a stampede disaster, thankfully it was not. I was not the only media member denied access, as a Vogue contributing editor told me he had already called his boss who was considering not giving the Custo Barcelona show any ink in the upcoming issue. This was indeed a very unprofessional job by the otherwise well respected company.

I had two shows to cover on Monday; the first was Hamptons favorite Donna Karan. The afternoon show took place downtown in the Village on Greenwich Street in a large warehouse next door to her Urban Zen store. The smartly dressed crowd packed into the space whose runway was horseshoe shaped with a center island of three-tier seating and five-tier seating around the perimeter.

British R&B singing sensation Estelle at the Rachel Roy show.

Karan has outdone herself this season with beautiful day dresses in linen, stretch jersey and silks. Some had beautiful folds that femininely flattered, while others were form fit in crushed tulle and matte design. Her silk satin evening gowns were just as remarkable in their up-swept style and delicate flounce folds. The designer's spring palette includes pale hues of coral, sky blue, grey, chalk, pumice, blush and whites. The show also included crushed, long on one side hats designed for Karan by Stephen Jones and her jewelry line designed by Gerda Monies.

Karan described her line as, "Inspired by the power of the elements - the sky, water, wind, sand, earth and fire." Mobbed after the show she humbly thanked us all for the support and reminded me that I needed to stop in her philanthropy driven Urban Zen store in Sag Harbor.

Heading uptown again, I made my second trip to Cedar Lake for the Devi Kroell spring show. I thought this show was a disappointment both in style and staging. As the guests waited patiently, champagne in hands, a gentleman in a baseball cap, jeans and a work shirt, who I assumed was an assistant to the show's art director, walked the two dozen models, one at a time, to specific points on the cloud designed, multi-level stage. Each model stood motionless waiting for the others to be placed, a process which took almost 20 minutes to complete. Finally set, the music began and the models started moving, weaving their way between themselves en route to the front of the stage runway walk. This process was repeated three times by each model, tedious to say the least. The crowd had thinned considerably by the start of the third trip.

Poleci co-owner Jean Claude Huon, designer Jeffrey Chow and actor Joel Gray.

The line itself left me scratching my head. I thought the clothing on the two dozen models could have been designed by two dozen different designers; there was no consistent theme or color palette to the collection, at least none that I could detect. There were metallic jackets and knit print dresses in patterns that I did not find particularly pleasing. There was the occasional mixing of print patterns that simply did not seem to work, almost as if two different garments were battling for space on the same body. I went back and looked at Kroell's fall 2009 collection, it was brilliant. I have no idea what happened this season. According to Kroell, in her show notes, the inspiration for the collection was a combination of "Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan and Michael Jackson." Unfortunately, she may have actually succeeded.

After a two day break, I attended Fashion Week's finale at Bryant Park, Tommy Hilfiger in The Tent. A must see show, this is the largest of the three tent venues and it was packed. There was not enough room to even change your mind, not that anyone would as Hilfiger's collection was stunning. This show, understandably, had it fair share of celebrities. In the front row seats I spotted Naomi Watts, Emily Blunt, January Jones and Duchess Sarah Ferguson.

Three international runway models, Adriana Cermanova, Emily Senko and Sofia Monaco take a break in Bryant Park.

The designer's theme was "Beachside Romp" with a sunset inspired palette of dusty rose, peach, shiny reds, pale yellow, pale turquoise and lots of white and navy, as is his classic color milieu. The collection included silk coats, blouses and tanks that were paired with crisp, low-slung cotton jodhpurs and cuffed shorts. His strapless dresses had nautical touches like sailor stripes and geometric color blocks that evoked sails. The belts in the collection were wide and color matched to each garment. By the way, as I didn't mention it earlier in the article, heels are high this year, as reflected in every designer's footwear choices. As much as I enjoyed his women's collection, I did not care for the six-button, double breasted, wide lapel men's jackets. This is purely subjective, as I have just never found that style of sport or suit coat particularly appealing. That aside, Hilfiger appeared to the cheering crowd, waving a thank you to them and a goodbye to Fashion Week.

For me Fashion Week was an experience that taught me several things. It taught me that it is first and foremost an event that is seminal to the survival of the American fashion industry, suffering like all of us in this difficult economy. I learned that it is not all fun and games, amid all the glitz and glamour there is hard work and serious business going on at these events. I learned, unfortunately, that the industry still demands models be near anorexic in their appearance and something should really be done about it. I also learned that this is an art form that unlike fine art, theatre, opera and literature, must stylistically re-invent itself, twice a year, and do it under a worldwide media scrutiny that those other art forms probably envy, no matter the consequences.

Finally, I learned that one needs to plan out Fashion Week like the invasion of Normandy, stylish but comfortable shoes are a must, and you will never feel out of place as a guest as long as you are dressed in black - all black! And yes, I do so look forward to Fashion Week 2010.