November 11, 2012 Fashion recap

Hello Fashionista's!
I am going to try to do a weekly or bi-weekly fashion recap. It may be a little early, but I want to set a 'new years goal' of trying to stay up with the trends. As Heidi Klum says, "One day you're in, the next you're out," the same goes for trends. I'm going to keep you up to date on what's going on and what's hot. As the business people I commute with are reading the newspaper, I'll be catching up on Vogue & WWD! ;)
*Nicolas Ghesquière has left Balenciaga after fifteen years with the company. One may say that he even created Balenciaga to be the company that it is today. His Spring 2013 RTW collection was amazing (if I do say so myself). From the cutouts of the pieces to the ruffle and geometric shapes of the skirts were breathtaking. The rumor mill is saying his depature is due to finances and how commerically driven the line has become. Some are saying that Nicolas may be starting his own line. He has created a name for himself and his designs are truly inspiring, with some funding I believe he could make it happen. The hot gossip piece, besides Nicolas's departure, is who will succeed him. Rumor has is that the edgy designer, Alexander Wang, is a hot target. Whoever takes his Nicolas's place will have a large runway to fill!
* Alexander McQueen gave us a backstage view of their Spring 2013 collection. McQueen is a designer on my bucket list who I want to own. The Spring collection was no exception! From the veiled headpieces to the bustier tops, it was pure ingenious craziness. For them to show a video backstage lets the outsider, get an inside perspective, on what truly goes on. From trying to get the models dressed to sewing each piece onto a garmet. McQueen shows how fashion is an art form.

* Check out the website https://www.materialwrld.com/account/ .This website gives you the chance to look into CEO's, PR girls, and the fashionable social media girls closet. It was co-founded by Rei Yano & Jie Zheng who went to Harvard Business School. You can even go through these fashion guru's closet to see what they are selling. I love how I can get style inspiration by getting a sneak peak in their closets and even have a chance to purchase some of the items! Fab

*All shopaholics must download this app called PS Dept. This app gives you your own personal shopper inside your phone. (And they say smart phones can't do everything ;) You type in the product you want and it sends it out to every store associate across the country. They let you know the availability of the item and you can either have it shipped or pick it up at the store. Michelle Goad, previously at Marc Jacobs, created this app. During her time at Marc Jacobs, she encountered many sales associates. She wanted a way for the 'girl on the go' to get what they need without having to wait/ drive to the store.

Vivienne Tam: Spring 2013 Collection, Backstage, After Party

Wednesday night at 7pm was Vivienne Tam’s show at the Stage in Lincoln Center. Along with showing her spring collection, she was debuting her jewelry line TSL. Just arriving at Lincoln Center, you are welcomed by the sign “Mercedez-Benz Fashion Week” which can give any fashionista chills. As you look around you see people posing for photographs, busily typing on iPhones, and those hoping to catch a glimpse of a celebrity. We walked into Lincoln Center and there are a ton of booths set up around the room. To retrieve your ticket, you go up to this machine to get a print out or to the person behind the Apple computer. Very high tech and chic! We walked into The Stage and the room is pitch black. The only way to see is through the red backlight coming from the opening at the front of the runway. You have your chance of being able to have five seconds of feeling like a model as you walk the runway to get to your seat. To be able to get to your seat is a challenge in itself. It’s almost like a maze as you are trying to dodge the photographers, people doing interviews, and those mingling. I had an amazing seat: fourth row near the front of the runway. And I had an aisle seat making for easy viewing and picture taking.

The spotlights turned on and the show started. The show was based on the five elements of Chinese cosmology: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. The colors and structure of the clothes were a complete representation of this theme. The show started with a gauzy dress that had a geometric print on it with the colors of red, black, silver, and gray in the design. The audience got a view of her new jewelry collection with the  large, octagonal shaped earrings. 

The color scheme for the show stuck mainly to red, black, tan, white, and gray. Then you got the pop of color with this beautiful sea green color and metallic golds and silvers. The sea green went perfectly with the water/ earth theme and the metallics fit with the metal concept. The makeup was muted and au natural. The hair was slicked back with a middle part and some of the models had red/blue colored paint in the part. Every model wore the same bootie shoe.  The black material went up quarter length of the shin and the material went right before the toe. The sides had several straps and a killer 5 inch heel. A reoccurring trend in the collection was the prints and cutouts. These cutouts coincided with the jewelry shapes which really brought cohesion to the clothes and jewelry. I was in awe of the ENTIRE collection! The styling from the the slicked hair, jewelry, clothes, and shoes were on point. The collection was delightful and very wearable.

My boss (Ginger) is a a very close friend of Vivienne and I had the luxury of going backstage. When you go backstage after the show, it is complete mayhem! People are pushing and shoving to get a glimpse of Vivienne. There was media EVERYWHERE trying to talk to Vivienne about her new jewelry line. We stayed until the last minute to say a personal ‘hello’ to the designer herself. There was an after party at 9pm for her to debut the jewelry line. It was held at this new Japanese restaurant called Hakkasan. The restaurant was quite chic and was almost like a maze with the various walls and lounges. There was an open bar where they were serving margaritas and champagne. Servers came along with traditional Asian cuisine as well. There was one room with Vivienne and dozens of press that you could barely get into. The entire party was packed with various people. Vivienne had an extraordinary collection and made my first Lincoln Center show an event to remember!