Corduroy’s editor Tim Chan and guest contributor Stefania Yarhi were in New York for the shows and compiled a list of five things that stood out to them over the week, for a “he said/she said” look at the spring/summer 2012 collections…

FIVE THINGS HE LIKED:
1. Mixing and Matching. We loved the intersection of classic tailoring with modern details, like the cotton trench coats with leather sleeves, two-tone suiting and leather motorcycle jackets bonded with cork at Simon Spurr. We also loved the way Marc Jacobs unabashedly mixed prints with stripes with colors and textures at his show, which closed Fashion Week (bonus points with us for the Philip Glass-created soundtrack!)

2. Rich colors. Say so long (for now) to soft pastels and basic black and white; this year’s collections displayed a range of bold, vibrant colors in sophisticated hues and tones. Sure, Betsey Johnson did her signature hot pink tutus and neon mini-skirts but even she took it up a notch with — dare we say — some sophisticated floral prints and deep hues of purple, yellow and gold. Elsewhere, we loved Tommy Hilfiger’s use of color in his playful yet elegant collection (photos above). Anyone else ready to add the bright canary yellow to your closet for spring? The shows this season proved that bold colors aren’t as big of a stretch as we may have thought.

3. Fashion as art. We loved everything about Doo.Ri’s collection, which was inspired by illustrator Aubrey Beardsley’s iconic use of print and lines that spurred the Art Nouveau movement. The collection fittingly played with length, shapes and print, all juxtaposed by designer Doo-ri Chung’s signature softness and ease.

Jeremy Laing, meantime, collaborated with artist Niall McClelland on prints for Laing’s “Wabi Sabi meets Wild West” collection (photo at left). The stencil prints were created by spraying paint onto paper through a chainlink fence, then cracking and folding the ink until the whole of the paper showed through in the pattern of folds. Though the process was intricate, the clothing had a fluidity and languid feel to them, as if perfect for hot desert nights or early mornings by the beach. “Women will want to wear these clothes,” our seat-mate said to us. We couldn’t help but agree… which brings us to:

4. Clothes we actually want to wear. Sure, the New York collections are dubbed “ready to wear,” but often we’re left with highly conceptual pieces that sound good in theory (and look good on models) but don’t work when it comes to the average consumer. How many pieces have you seen on the runway that actually make it to a store? This season, we were left with a list of “must-buys,” from Threeasfour’s Middle Eastern-inspired prints and Alexander Wang’s surprising and sumptuous knits, to the easy-living cool of Billy Reid’s collection (photo at right), inspired by the revival of the great American songwriter and the lost days of the bohemian artists living in Laurel Canyon.

We loved the return to more casual dressing, and over and over again we heard words like “distressed,” “slouchy,” “washed” and “relaxed,” as key phrases used to describe a collection. The fabrics chosen by the designers this year, too, read like the perfect effortless and comfortable wardrobe: hand-loomed cotton, washed linen, slub jersey, cashmere, raw silk… we want to live in these clothes every day and we want every piece in our closet come spring.

5. Bill Cunningham. With many of the A-listers now choosing to head north to Canada for TIFF over New York Fashion Week, we were left with front-rows comprised of teen stars, reality TV personalities and sartorially-inclined athletes (Linda Evangelista in the front row at Alexander Wang notwithstanding). What a welcome sight it was then, when we were seated across from Bill Cunningham at the Timo Weiland show at Lincoln Center. Cunningham — sporting his signature blue shirt with camera strap dangling around his neck — brought us back to the best kind of front-row guest there is: taking notes, snapping photos and paying careful attention to each look that came down the runway (while ignoring the flashbulbs of eager photographers and attendees that came his way). Cunningham was everyone this season, from front-row at Derek Lam to front-row at CHADO Ralph Rucci. And amongst all the clothes and models and hoopla thrown our way this week, seeing Bill Cunningham hard and work and enjoyinh himself was easily the best thing we saw all week.

- Tim Chan

Read on for Corduroy contributor Stefania Yarhi’s take on what she liked from New York Fashion Week…

FIVE THINGS SHE LIKED:
1. The shoes at Proenza Schouler! By that I mean, chunky heels. Not like 90s chunky, but something you can rest your weight on (see photos above).

2. Shiny plastic dangles. Get yourself to the craft store and get to sewing! A sweater, dress, skirt, lapel for spring/summer 2012 must be covered in tassely plastic colored dangles. Start now and you may be ready in time for the editor’s must-have summer editions.

3. Clear, see-through, plastic accessories and outerwear. It was all over the city, from Marc Jacobs’ gathered plastic skirts, to Alexander Wang’s see through tops, to the “clear” collection by Slow and Steady Wins The Race.

4. Silver shoes. They were everywhere: Jenni Kayne, 3.1 Phillip Lim and Marc Jacobs. And I loved them all. They give just enough punch and added sparkle to an outfit without going over the top.

5. Fashion is nostalgic. This season we’re looking further back than usual, with many designers referencing the 20s. Dropped waists, surreal dinner parties à la Thom Browne (photo above), Bill Blass’s tennis court cool and Marchesa’s vamped-up flapper girl all took us back to an era of easy living and elegant style.

- Stefania Yarhi

(photos courtesy the designers, Peter Ash Lee, Getty Images and Stefania Yarhi)

1. From the city of the black uniform, New York’s Fall 2011 runways were chockfull of pattern clashes. The theme ran straight through Fashion Week, from Proenza Schouler’s digitzed take on the Midwest with revamped Navajo blankets, to under-the-radar SUNO’s mash-up of Kenyan fabric that could stop traffic on Broadway. The story was loud, shocks of luscious colors. Thakoon mixed buffalo plaid and African-referenced paisley prints, and more African inspiration from Duro Olowu, who loves to mix-n-match prints straight from the bustling markets. PREEN from London (image at left) got caught up in geometric prints, so much so that they layered one against the other, with enough pizzazz to make Diana Vreeland weep a single tear.

2. Fur. Whether a pragmatic way to keep warm, or pinnacle of luxury, the runways were gaga for pelts. From Michael Kors to The Row there were fur accents on collars, feather-light cropped jackets and floor-grazing statement coats. Prabal Gurung (image below) mixed fox with mink—a modern take on a done-to-death classic, while fur added softness to Marc by Marc Jacobs’ masculine suiting and tailored lines.

3. In a year of record-breaking cold it was quite warming to see fashion you could actually walk outside in. NYFW was an army of anoraks, capes and a new breed of puffy. Alexander Wang (image above) took top honors with his unique mash-up of luxury and utility reworked into functional street wear. Then there was menswear designer Patrik Ervell who got his inspiration from flight suits. Band of Outsiders gave us New England prep, and for their fall collection, the heavy duty anoraks they showed are perfect for a misty morning on the coast. The same type of oversized industrial coats were shown at Rag and Bone and Altuzarra. 3.1 Phillip Lim, meantime, was about the statement puffer, the new layer of fashion, wherein the useful becomes fantasy.

4. Menswear in the Katherine Hepburn sense, not the melding of the sexes, crept fittingly into Fashion Week this year. Women now make up just over 50% of the workforce and it’s time for them to show their power suits, minus the 80s shoulder pads (at least for this season). There was traditional black and white pin stripe at Ralph Lauren to Olivier Theyskens for Theory’s use of tailoring with subtle accents of sheer fabrics (at left). Calvin Klein’s Francisco Costa has finally gotten into his groove at CK. channeling the brand’s effortless minimalism with separates that stood so stiff the models needn’t have worn them and turning menswear for women story on its head with a black calf hair pantsuit. Yigal Azrouel used pops of electrifying colour — think bright and airy à la Jil Sander — but paired with a masculine prep school base it was a fresh take on the winter blues.

5. Fashion so firmly planted on the ground looked to the stars and galaxies for Fall 2011. Canadian sweetheart Jeremy Laing (image at right) used astronomical shapes for reference in his prints and architectural geometric separates, while Ohne Titel cited being inspired by space suits, from utilitarian zipper embellishments to circular sleeves and rounded shoulders you’d see on any Apollo mission. Rad by Rad Hourani is andro, but his latest collection was beamed down to us from the future, where gender is irrelevant. Marc Jacobs showed a very prim and proper woman set against a white cushioned backdrop and reflective floor — call it New York in the winter — and as an insane asylum or the set for a sci-fi thriller, it was ingenious. As a venue for a fashion show, it was even better.

Other things we liked:
- J.Sabatino’s menswear presentation at a theater in the East Village which was inspired by a Midwest carnival with accordion accompaniment.
- Loden Dager’s painted brogues
- Pierre-Henri Mattou’s live photoshoot for his menswear collection, which depictd a beautiful French nautical story.
- Elise Overland’s show that took place on a skating rink outside the Standard Hotel, while guests sipped spiked cider to keep warm and figure skater Johnny Weir topped the evening off with his own fancy footwork.

- Stefania Yarhi

Another New York Fashion Week has come and gone and amongst all the shows, runways, designers and — of course — beautiful clothes, we found our fair share of favourite standout moments. From Thom Browne’s theatrical showing at the New York Public Library, to more understated (but still sleek and sexy) looks from Preen, there were more than a handful of highlights on our radar this season (watch for our full list later this week).

At the epicenter of all the hubbub last week though, were the models. Everyone loves to hate on the young, beautiful and skinny wonders that show off next season’s must-haves, but we love seeing them walk and pose just the same.

From model-watching backstage at Ohne Titel and Chris Benz to joining the throngs of people camped out in line outside Pier 94, our writer and photographer Stefania Yarhi was there to document those other VIPs of Fashion Week. Just try to keep up with their gazelle-like gait and when you capture one (photographically) you know that which is the rush of the hunt. Check out some of Stefania’s photos after the jump…

Corduroy’s brilliant fashion director Liz McClean is responsible for styling most of our shoots in the magazine, but she took on a slightly different styling job last week, working with New York-based womenswear label IMPROVD (pronounced “improved”) on their Spring 2011 collection.

IMPROVD presented their debut fashion week collection last Tuesday at The Standard Hotel’s High Line Room, with a special gallery exhibition directed by IMPROVD’s head designer Valentino Vettori, interpreted by noted fashion photographer Yelena Yemchuk and styled by Corduroy’s own McClean. The trio compiled a group of artists, musicians and actresses (including Melissa Auf der Maur, Pamela Racine and Byrdie Bell) to model the label’s looks through a series of black and white portraits, and a short film. The women served as a “tribe” of subjects for the moody yet buoyant spring collection; a collection founded upon the idea of the strong, independent woman, unafraid to showcase her personal expression and more delicate sensibilities through IMPROVD’s unique, feminine aesthetic.

Vettori showed a variety of avant-garde basics, describing his look for spring as “timeless, minimalist pieces with a high-end sophistication.” This meant plenty of body-conscious dresses, draped tops and shrunken jackets, in a neutral palette of soft black, grey and beige. Using high quality fabrics, the designer showed a range of deconstructed and reinterpreted trends, while maintaining a high integrity in construction, shape and texture. Materials were mixed, washed, over dyed, and distressed to bring together a look that was at once raw and wearable. And with prices topping out at around $500, it’s a look that Vettori hopes will be covet-worthy and attainable for many customers as well.

Another New York Fashion Week has come and gone and by all accounts, this year’s event was a big success. Both critics and casual attendees lauded the designers for their creativity and warmth this season, moving away from the stark rigidness of seasons past, back to a more languid and feminine aesthetic. The move from the bustling Bryant Park to the more refined Lincoln Center was also a welcome change, though many designers chose to show their collections elsewhere, opting for a presentation stage at Milk Studios, a converted downtown gallery, or, in the case of Phillip Lim, an abandoned warehouse-type space inside the Park Avenue Armory.

Corduroy’s fashion director Liz McClean and her team spent the past week and a half attending many of the runway shows and presentations. We wanted to put aside the buzz and celeb endorsements and showcase the collections that featured the most interesting and unique pieces, from a fresh (or refreshed) perspective. From Phillip Lim and Betsey Johnson, to Imitation and Pamela Love, here are some of our noteworthy and favorite collections from the last few days of Fashion Week.

PHILLIP LIM 3.1

Phillip Lim’s collection for spring featured looks that were easily transferable from a day at work to dinner at night; wearable pieces for the “conservative chic” set, with just enough youthfulness thrown in. Collared shirts were buttoned up to the top, worn under crewneck sweaters and paired with color-blocked skirts. Robin’s egg-blue was a frequent color used to contrast the predominantly camel and nude palette (Of course, this being New York, black and grey were also added to the mix). Leathers, satins, and cottons mixed nicely with the color combinations and resulted in some beautiful pieces: sexy-soft, pastel blue leather shorts laser cut in flower shapes, and buttery, leather, halter-collared blue dresses that played nicely against the neutral tones and basics. Held at the Park Avenue Armory, Lim’s runway show took place in a sparse, warehouse-style, auditorium, complete with distressed wood planks and exposed beams. But while the setting was mechanical, the clothing was anything but. With strong tailoring and delicately layered fabrics, Lim brought warmth and feeling to his collection — and as it may be, to the event space as well.

ANNA SUI
Twenty years of Anna Sui’s career was celebrated this week at Lincoln Center, with a beautiful, free-spirited collection. The inspiration came from the Terrence Malick 1978 film, Days of Heaven, as well as the late 60s girls of Laurel Canyon and Joni Mitchell days.

Each look presented featured an eclectic mix of the wild west, Native American fashion, 1920s silhouettes, and Poiret-like details. Sheer chiffons in quilt-like and paisley patterns, mixed with striped cardigans and classic denim further revealed the hippie/rocker soul of the collection (as the beats of 60s Stones songs played in the background). Head pieces and accessories of feathers and flowers, accompanied sheer tops decorated in sparkling embellishments and lace. The laid-back hippie vibe was glamorized with the careful application of shimmering rhinestones, fringe, ruffles and, at times, a whole lot of leg. Twenty years and many collections later, the designer continues to craft beautiful pieces from many different places and eras, piecing each inspiration into a complete work of art, now known around the world as Anna Sui’s vision.

IMITATION

Tara Subkoff has successfully battled (and conquered) cancer, so you get the sense that nothing can stand in her way. And yet in her spring collection for Imitation (formerly Imitation of Christ), Subkoff displayed a softer touch, showing a collection of goddess-like white gowns and handkerchief-hemmed chiffon dresses one would imagine seeing a nymph wear. Garments ranged from everyday pieces to pieces that appeared to resemble lingerie/nightgowns from the 30s, in white laces, chiffon, jerseys and cottons. This was hardly sleepwear though; the outfits were made to be shown off. And as the models pranced their bare feet across the faux grass runway at Milk Studios, each dress moved beautifully and freely, every step accentuating the garment as it moved, as well as the graceful airy quality the collection embodied.

BETSEY JOHNSON
That Betsey Johnson’s S/S 2011 show was anything but boring is not a surprise. As previous seasons have shown us, Johnson definitely knows how to put on a show. But the 56 looks that took the audience on a journey around New York City definitely had a few surprises in store.

We started off in Brooklyn, with eight looks that had an old western/saloon feel. Then Betsey took us up the Upper East side to the Met, where she caused some “double trouble” with two models paired down the runway. From there, it was across to Central Park, then downtown to SoHo, then the Seaport, where Betsey awed the audience with her sailor-inspired looks that almost stole the show.

The show (figuratively) ended in Times Square where Betsey topped it off with some New Year party-ready looks (think pouffy skirts and bejeweled tops and trousers). In all, Johnson showed some playful dresses and chiffon gowns straight out of a little girl’s fairytale dream, with a splash of elegance and Betsey-approved sass. The colors were bright and fanciful, to match the fabrics (many of them hand-painted) and styling. Glitter, jewels and ruffles were aplenty, though never distasteful. For the designer’s final touch, Johnson biked, then cartwheeled down the runway, followed by her models in a successful of very Betsey-Chic cabby gear. If the looks were taken from a tour of New York, the show was definitely “Le Tour de Betsey!” It was whimsical, bawdy and outrageous, and yet, if the adoring crowd’s reaction is to be believed, full of clothes that we think girls will be begging to show off come spring.

PAMELA LOVE
It’s no secret that we love Pamela Love, and it seems we’re not alone. The designer’s Spring 2011 presentation was packed with guests who had the opportunity to see the clothing and accessories up close and personal, while grooving to a live band that featured downtown rockers Hisham Akira Bharoocha, Andrya Ambro and Rachelle Rahme.

Love designed and styled the entire set, from the clothes to of course, the jewelry, inspired this season by the idea of “jewelry as a symbol of protection.” Love referenced traditional Indian and African jewelry used to protect its wearer, while dipping into the idea of alchemy, and the elements of earth, wind, water, and fire. She also based many of her pieces of new materials like resin, wood and leather, in addition to metal. The overall look and feel was one of strength and power, and understated glamour; jewelry for the downtown girl who’s not afraid to get dirty, and the uptown princess looking to break out of her shell and find a little edge.

- Compiled by Kathleen Jerry and Lexyrose Boiardo