PETA Invades Donna Karan’s Apartment; More Black Models on the Runway• PETA says it managed to get an operative into Donna Karan’s home yesterday. The young woman tricked her way past Karan’s assistant by using a fashionable outfit and a tray of soy lattes. When Karan showed up, the infiltrator put on a DVD of animals being harvested for their pelts. [NYP]
• Runway model vet Karen Elson fell down as she closed Zac Posen’s show, and Sean “Diddy” Combs and Caroline Trentini helped her up. [The Cut]
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Video: Leven Rambin Gets Tough at Tommy HilfigerNew York’s Jada Yuan took our cameras to Tommy Hilfiger yesterday at Lincoln Center and heard from the designer himself as well as his more recognizable fans.
harriet and amy
Five Things We Liked on Thursday
1. The last few dresses at Calvin Klein. Divine!
2. The sexy colored tights on Phi’s look No. 22.
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Fashion Week Show-Hopping Wears on Anna and SuzyFor all of Fashion Week’s pretty clothes, we’re exhausted, and our under-eye circles are kinda ugly. But at least we’re not the only ones feeling a bit worn out. “You’re running all over town, and nobody’s thinking through how much time you spend in a taxi or car,” said Vogue queen bee Anna Wintour at Thursday’s 3.1 phillip lim show.
new york fugging city
We’re Forced to Get on Our Knees at HilfigerBecause it took us 45 minutes to get to Lincoln Center in rush-hour traffic, we might have been a little late for Tommy Hilfiger. And because we might have been a little late for Tommy Hilfiger, we might have missed the chance to sit in our actual assigned seats. This may be how we ended up loitering in a glass-enclosed balcony, fighting for a spot past the folks in standing room who’d gotten there at a reasonable hour. And that’s how we found ourselves at our lowest Fashion Week point, both emotionally and physically: kneeling on the carpet, peering through people’s legs down at the front row below.
new york fugging city
Plimpton’s Cute, Posey’s Ragged, and Price’s ScaredIt’s not often that we completely geek out for a celebrity, but when it happens, it’s generally only because we bump into someone from an Aaron Spelling drama and become embarrassingly unable to contain ourselves (like when we saw Nat From the Peach Pit at our grocery store and called out to him in the parking lot, which is practically against the law in California). Tragically, after a bottle of complimentary Prosecco at Cynthia Rowley’s show on Thursday, one such moment occurred in which our cool vanished like the Great Wall of China under David Copperfield’s mischievous hand.
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Model Falls! And Diddy Helps a Damsel in DistressWe almost made it through Fashion Week without a model fall. The surprise, when one finally came at Zac Posen, was that it wasn’t a newbie who took the plunge, but runway vet Karen Elson — as she was closing the show, no less. Brazilian bombshell Caroline Trentini helped her up, with help from Sean John (as Diddy/Puffy/Sean Combs is now calling himself) who chivalrously stepped onto the runway to extend a hand. Maybe he’s a gentleman after all. Elson later came out smiling with Posen for his bow. —Kendall Herbst
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Subdued, Modest Chic at Calvin KleinFrancisco Costa, the designer at Calvin Klein, takes his mandate as New York’s minimalist-in-chief quite seriously. His commitment to the line is admirable: Each of the looks in today’s collection could’ve been cut with laser. The palette was navy, black, and gray; any bits of flash were subdued, in some cases beneath a layer of sheer cashmere.
new york fugging city
Ali Larter: Half a Shirt Short, and Moody to BootLindsay Lohan was rumored to appear at the Calvin Klein show on Thursday, but we saw neither hide nor hair of the leggings-loving former redhead. Tragic, yet not surprising: LiLo seems like the sort to ditch. We also wondered if we’d see Kate Bosworth, since she’s appearing on CK billboards all over town.
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Breaking: No Celebs at Posen? Seriously?That’s the word in the tents right now, anyhow. Apparently he wants to lose the flash factor and have tonight be about the clothes. Now that’s just crazy talk.
The show’s supposed to start at 8 p.m. (or, y’know, 8:45). More as we know it.
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Critics Hail Marchesa and Marc by Marc JacobsPerhaps giddy from the unseasonable weather, critics were warm to Michael Kors and Rodarte and practically red-hot with lust for Marchesa and Marc by Marc Jacobs. Consider these adjectives (used in reviews) in order of increasing positivity: “almost camp,” “high-polish,” and “exuberant.” Find out which designer drove critics to the thesaurus in our review roundup.
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Vera Wang Gets HeavyVera Wang’s ready-to-wear collection is, unlike her bridal and red-carpet pieces, intensely personal. Wang has spent her entire adult life obsessed with fashion, and these are the clothes she wants to make because she dreamed them.
three is a trend
The ShiningFall’s runways were glittering with more than just A-list celebs. Sequins — which popped up last season — have stuck around for another go.
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Donna Karan Is a Proactive ParanoiacDiane Von Furstenberg and Narciso Rodriguez were glowing and ready to party at last night’s Gucci/Madonna-hosted benefit for UNICEF and Raising Malawi at the U.N. But then, their shows were already over. Donna Karan was less sanguine. Her show isn’t until tomorrow, and, like a fretful mother, she worried about being away from her collection for too long. “I’m nervous,” Karan said.
ask a retailer
Jen Mankins of Bird Likes Lim, Sarafpour, Cornejo, and WalkerThroughout the week, the buyers from Bird, Intermix, Henri Bendel, and Oak will tell us which runway looks they plan on stocking. In today’s installment, Bird owner Jen Mankins loves the accessories at Phillip Lim, the colors at Zero + Maria Cornejo, and the party dresses at Behnaz Sarafpour.
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Today in Marc Jacobs Rumors: K-Fed to Sit Front Row?!There may be a bribery scandal floating around the 69th Regiment Armory, but Marc Jacobs’s show will still go on tomorrow night at the scene of the crime (bets are still out, however, on how many hours late he’ll start). As Marc is the show of the week, rumors are flying about the blogosphere like they’re, dare we say, going out of style. Cathy Horyn heard that Sonic Youth would be playing at the show and found it hilarious (why that’s so funny, we have no idea).
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Bright Colors, Cool Necklaces, and Happy Vibes at Zero Maria CornejoThere was something really special about Zero Maria Cornejo’s show yesterday afternoon, held in the designer’s new, unfinished store on Bleecker Street. We were far away from the tents, it was balmy outside, and inside, the white-box space was simple and lovely, with daylight streaming in the windows. We were already feeling fuzzy, and that was before the clothes even appeared — though once they did, we were a little mesmerized.
three is a trend
Booty CallJust when we thought ankle booties would stay the reigning “It” shoe, classic, comfy flat boots hit the runways in droves.
video look book
Mourning Fashion Week’s Classier PastSavannah M. Clark is a former stylist and college professor who still comes to Fashion Week even though no one wears hats and gloves anymore. (Her hat, of course, is fantastic.) Clark considers herself “one of Carolina Herrera’s favorite customers.” Watch the Video Look Book to see what she buys.
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Lily Donaldson Is Wednesday’s Top ModelOne of our favorite art students turned model, Sasha Pivovarova, hit the runway for the first time this week at Anna Sui. But it was Lily Donaldson (also known for dating Vladimir Roitfeld) who dominated the catwalk Wednesday.
new york fugging city
Vera Wang’s Show Is Just Too Early for the Celebrity SetDuring a week that’s all about forecasting and setting trends, we’re starting to think the biggest one is that 10 a.m. is the new crack of dawn. Thank God for Mariska Hargitay, without whom the front rows at Vera Wang this morning would’ve felt as lifeless as our hair after six days of heat-styling.
Video: Glamour and Gowns at MarchesaNew York fashion correspondent Fabiola Beracasa went to the Marchesa presentation yesterday, and our cameras tagged along to see beautiful people and red-carpet-worthy gowns.
harriet and amy
Five Things We Liked on Wednesday
1. New proportions at Michael Kors: longer, skinny pencil skirts with fitted long tops.
2. Zero Maria Cornejo’s chic coats.
new york fugging city
Little Girl Is Mean to Vincent Gallo at Anna SuiListen, we know we’ve said a lot about Vincent Gallo that has been, shall we say, unflattering. But we can’t help that we noticed this: At Anna Sui’s show in the tents Wednesday afternoon, Gallo sat next to a little girl who spent most of the show leaning away from him and at one point held her invitation up between them. However, and here’s the shocker, we felt bad seeing that.
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Derek Lam Articulates Feminine LuxuryFashion can be mercilessly fickle: Designers are quite often dismissed just as soon as they’re discovered. So thank God for Derek Lam, who has slowly, methodically, and quietly worked his way toward a collection that is now a mainstay of what we consider American fashion.
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Michael Kors Designs for the Gossip GirlsMuch of the blondest hair in New York can be found in the front row at a Michael Kors fashion show. Kors, who is a master of the campy one-liner, is something of a court designer to those women who are so fortunate as to maintain a nutty brown complexion twelve months a year without ever visiting a tanning salon. He knows exactly how to show off those Palm Beach tans and blonde, blonde hair, making them shine and making them look their best.
new york fugging city
Veronica Webb’s Fashion ‘Sense’ Keeps Us AmusedThe Isaac Mizrahi show Wednesday afternoon was a very refined affair. It was held at his office on Tenth Avenue, and we were greeted with coffee (in china cups) and bonbons. Bonbons!
new york fugging city
Jennifer Lopez Is Really Fugging Pregnant!Eliza Dushku officially learned the hard way the First Rule of Fashion Week: Don’t arrive at the same time as J.Lo does. When we noticed Dushku and her brother Nate at Wednesday’s Marchesa presentation, we scampered over to check out her dress and then completely forgot about her the second we noticed La Lopez and her svelte hand warmer, Marc Anthony, a mere two feet away.
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At Phillip Lim, We Guess We Can Be Your Fergie?The tents are a little less A-list-y from nine to five, for obvious reasons: If you’re a celebrity, those are the hours during which you sit around in sweatpants, order your assistants to get you coffee, and figure out what the hell you’re going to wear when the real action starts at the evening shows. So at times, a person may feel a little celeb-starved (we should note, however, that if you really keep your eyes peeled, famous folk are everywhere; they’re just a little less obvious during the day), and this may prompt some bizarre behavior, like what we saw while waiting for this afternoon’s 3.1 phillip lim show.
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Parsons Student Contemplates Cool at Marc By MarcKenneth Baenchantha is a student at Parsons who took advantage of Marc Jacobs’s generous free ticket offer to his alma mater. Outside the Marc by Marc Jacobs show, Amy Larocca found Baenchantha questioning his roommate’s fashion advice and hoping Fashion Week would go high-tech. Watch the Video Look Book for more undergraduate yearnings.
Video Look Book: Kenneth Baenchantha [NYM Video]
ask a retailer
Louis Terline of Oak Likes Betsey Johnson, Yigal, and Marc by MarcLouis Terline, co-owner of the Brooklyn boutique Oak, took time away from the tents to share his favorites from the week so far. What’s he looking at for next fall’s inventory? He likes Betsey Johnson’s hot shorts, Yigal’s rich fabrics, and Marc by Marc’s leather dresses.
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Get the Look: Bobbi Brown at Brian ReyesNew York beauty editor Aja Magnum ventured backstage at the Brian Reyes show, where beauty legend Bobbi Brown was hard at work, creating an outdoorsy, sporty look for girls who’ve been out and about in the country. Think gently flushed cheeks, powdery tones, and windswept brows — yes, even your brows can get windswept. Watch and learn.
Beauty: Bobbi Brown at Brian Reyes [NYM Video]
three is a trend
Tie Me UpWhile bows tend to be ultrafeminine embellishments, designers are transforming them into sleek, urban additions on the runway this week. Proenza Schouler swept a chic white bow atop a traditional silk white blouse, while Thakoon tied a printed pattern variation around Coco Rocha’s navy belted coat. Meanwhile, Marc Jacobs fastened his knot front and center for a new spin on the classic black cocktail dress at Marc by Marc Jacobs. Come fall, we’ll be fit to be tied.
Breaking: Marc Jacobs May Have Paid Dearly to Show in the ArmoryJames Jackson, the superintedent of the 69th Regent Armory on 26th and Lexington, is accused of soliciting over $30,000 in bribes from Marc Jacobs and other vendors to ensure their ability to hold shows in the cavernous, medieval-looking space. The Armory is used for high-end events like Jacobs’ shows and Vogue’s Seventh on Sale charity shopping event, though Vogue hasn’t yet been included on the list of purported victims (perhaps Jackson fears Anna Wintour as much as we do).
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Chicago Shopgirl Flies In for Marc by Marc JacobsOutside the Marc by Marc Jacobs show yesterday, New York’s Amy Larocca met Katy Noonan, a salesgirl at Marc Jacobs’s Chicago store. She was wearing her boss’ clothes, of course. But she also repurposed a Second City icon to make a necklace. Watch the Video Look Book for more about what they’re wearing in the Midwest.
Video Look Book: Katy Noonan [NYM Video]
new york fugging city
The Donald Hands Out Mints at Michael KorsThere is something comforting about walking into a show and finding Donald Trump already seated and looking resplendent in the front row, as we discovered Wednesday morning at Michael Kors. The Donald was, of course, accompanied by wife Melania and spent most of the show sharing a running commentary with her, patting her leg, and passing out mints to the people around him.
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At G-Star Raw, Good Denim Makes for Good AssIf there’s one thing you need to know about G-Star jeans, it’s that they make your ass look good. Or that was the consensus among the attendees at the G-Star Raw show, from Tyson Beckford to Damien Fahey to Duran Duran, who went as far as to note that the denim even makes “your other bits look good.” In this backstage video, reporter Jada Yuan surveys the crowd’s collective bottom, makes notes of Ryan Adams’s $20 shoes, and catches Dennis Hopper’s freaky runway narration. Click to watch.
Video: Backstage at G-Star Raw [NYM Video]
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Critics Praise Proenza, Oscar But Wonder About Carolina Herrera, HalstonProenza Schouler’s fall collection delighted critics, even as they considered the clothes too unattainable for all but the designers’ “socialite pals.” Carolina Herrera’s equestrian theme led to accusations of “costumery,” Cathy Horyn is a powerful advocate for the resurrected Halston line, and Oscar de la Renta may be contemplating inaugural gowns. Our review roundup has the rest.
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Karlie Kloss Is Tuesday’s Top ModelIn a sea of brunettes, redheads were on fire Wednesday. Olga Sherer opened Narciso Rodriguez, and Karen Elson returned for her first show of the season, Rodarte. But the real talk was of whom Marc Jacobs would cast for Marc by Marc Jacobs.
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Video: Resurrecting the Flapper Backstage at Monique LhuillierNew York’s Jada Yuan took cameras backstage at Monique Lhuillier to capture the preparations for the designer’s flapper-inspired show. The makeup artist sought “poetic glamour” with you guessed it a smoky eye. The hairstylist nixed short-haired girls. And the designer herself had a preshow freak-out that lasted five days. Watch the video to see the drama for yourself.
Video: Backstage at Monique Lhuillier [NYM Video]
Five Things We Liked on Tuesday
1. Marc by Marc’s look No. 1: chic, beatnik Paris with beret and navy cowl-neck.
2. The fun, neon DKNY bikes around the city.
new york fugging city
Lance Armstrong Fails to Win Back Tory BurchWe thought the Tory Burch presentation on Tuesday evening would be sort of a snore: pretty clothes, no celebrities. Little did we know that we’d find ourselves in the middle of a romantic drama — just the way we like it!
new york fugging city
Narciso: Seinfelds Return! Amy Adams Suspiciously Normal!Whenever we arrive at a show and see a huge line snaking along the building and way down the street, it’s always a relief to see that people like Tim Gunn and Plum Sykes are languishing in the same queue.
Non-Runway Models Are the Real WinnersTonight we overheard the following conversation in the Imperial Vodka lounge, between a male promo model and another random staffer from God knows where, and learned about life as a non-runway model:
cult of personality
Max Azria Launched Three Collections. Now He Dances!Max Azria, the design world’s most adorable happy little man, just completed the très impressive feat of launching three different collections (BCBG, Hervé Léger, and Max Azria) in the span of four days. How was he holding up at the end?