New York Fashion Week: the highlights

You know when you have a premonitory intuition that something will disappoint you, again? Well, that's how I started watching the shows of the NYFW that just ended.

And I must confess, I am happy to report I was totally wrong. I think it all started with Raf Simons, i mean, I am still raving and still will for years to come. He made me proud of loving him so much and I said it all extensively. 

After him, seems like all these designers, the real designers I mean, not the stylists turned runway momentary prodigious specimen or commercial brands (except one that you'll see why), have followed suit with a lot of awesomeness. 

The parameters I have used for this highlight are simple and clear.

There has to be a story, the show notes are what I go after first. A precious suggestion, the best at sharing show notes is Eva Chen on Instagram.  You are welcome. 

Sartorial elements like coats and blazers, anything interesting borrowed from the boys because that's where skills, talents, intuition, innovation and creativity go unspoken and most of the times unrewarded. That's where Fashion wins and blends with art.

When you follow the details, the story, you understand the inspiration, your eye becomes utterly discerning, the selection of designers that you look forward to seeing will become tinier, and at the same time you start catching on new talents.

This time was also a peculiar one, unique in its genre. We are all taken by the storm, proudly, the fashion world has spoken up. The current political situation is putting any form of free expression at risk, from the arts to the press. What is Fashion if not the primordial language made of unspoken words that form sentences also known as style? There were powerful speeches, statements and encouragement words embroidered in shirts and hats. Time is still not ripe for a true revolution, like ‘70s type of revolt, and also the surreal-ness of the new status quo started so close to T-time, but the reactions all throughout fashion week made me feel part of an avant-garde movement, it created consciousness, unity and an educated discourse.

To promote unity, solidarity and inclusiveness, The Business of Fashion launched an initiative called #tiedtogether represented by a white bandanna that appeared profusely on runways and down the streets.

Exemplary statement of embracing realness have been Marc Jacobs with his 6 minutes on the dot runway with no music, photographers, flashes and the distractions of social media, the J.Crew presentation with some of my style icons, Christiane Barberich, Sandra Bernhard and Taylor Thomas Hills, Lauren Hutton,  and Julianne Moore at Calvin Klein

I let you be the judge. 

this is the look that most represents the collection to me 

I single out Mica, my favorite model, who walked the Ralph Lauren show with a pair of boyfriend jeans and a silk kimono like silk gown. 

divine Mica 

Raf Simons raised the bar

A pivotal moment in history.

We are talking about the debut ready-to-wear collection by Raf Simons for Calvin Klein.

Simons’ sensibility, surgical attention to detail, thirst for art and unique skills of designer’s proportions brought to surface all the elements that make Calvin Klein the incarnation of American fashion: Art Deco, the American West, the city, workwear, the denim, the quilt, power dressing, the ‘80s.

Nothing was left unattended or unspoken for, the show opened to David Bowie singing “this is not America” and that was the moment of truth and tears: finally Raf Simons back in action, free of expressing his talent, the true Calvin Klein, the one we grew up with coming down the runway and, last but not least, fashion, the one with the big “F”, the big universal connector.

And we all were in love again.

We are living within the tremors of our democracy, our freedom of expression through the arts, the diversity that immigration has brought into our country are being mined and weakened daily and this Calvin Klein Collection was an “homage to America”

To say it with the words of Christene Barberich of Refinery 29

A lot of people say that fashion and politics have no inherent connection, but they do […] we need a show like this to shake us out of our daily Orwellian despair, to see some beauty and art, but also to see how precious the time we are living now really is.

The harmony of the diversity resulted in a masterpiece of a collection that pleased all the senses.

It even received the seal of approval from The Cut ’s critic-at-large Cathy Horyn

Simons at Calvin Klein makes sense for a couple of reasons: He started his career as a youth-culture designer in Antwerp [...] And he has always worked with fine tailoring, which fits the minimalist image of Calvin Klein. Yet the reality is that the brand has meandered through various types of pastiche for a couple of decades now. That leaves Simons with a blank slate to reinvent with the kind of freedom that would never be available at a couture house.

Thank you for the dream. It's been real. 

Couture is the illusion that holds reality

You know Couture is something French, only a few houses are granted the title, Elsa Schiaparelli was the last one to be accepted this year.

There is rigor in the selection, because couture requires the authenticity and the craftsmanship of les petites mains 

It's for a seleted clientele, the wealthiest and most demanding.
Couture is not for everybody although at time the use of the word is misunderstood for made-to-measure or some sort of tailored version of clothing.

No.

If fashion is supposed to make you dream, couture is pure dream, the illusion that lifts you from reality.

REPEAT AFTER ME: #luxuryisastateofmind

I use it to escape, I use it to wipe my eyes with beauty and I suggest you do that too.

Watching and immersing myself in art, any form that pleases me, Puccini, Le Claire de Lune, An American in Paris, Monet's Les Petites Danseuses make me happy beyond everything else.

This past week I woke up earlier than normal just because Schiaparelli and Chanel were showing before the cock sings in Miami and it helped my day.

[...] "Couture is", to say it with Angelo Flaccavento, one of the most respected fashion journalists in the world at the moment, "is too slow, too elitist and too private" since "We live in a time of instant gratification and endless self-broadcasting."

The ultimate of craftsmanships, flights of fancy, enjoy the best of the best, la creme de la creme, the collections of pieces I loved the most. 

THE 'MASCULINE FEMININE' IN THE fall 17 MAN SHOWS

It's not cocotte, it's not gamine, it's not Annie Hall or Marlene Dietrich, it's all together. 

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This article on Another Magazine makes the case of Annie Hall self-styling on point. Her eyewear are considered an accessory to show her nerdiness. 

It's that blending of the tailoring elements notoriously belonging to a man's fashion and re-interpreting them with feminine attributes. 

In the book I have dedictaed a whole chapter to the art of "borrow from the boys". When to present the collections, see now buy now and incorporating girls and boys in the show has become a practice. 

I have collected the most inspiring looks. We don't all have the same opinions, but if you are reading we share similar taste and style. Juts remember the word "inspiring" because some of them bay be seemingly outrageous, but dissecting all the elements are there for us to grasp. Style is not copying, it's interpreting as your day unfolds. 

"It's Oscar Wilde, it's military, it's dandy, it's aristocratic, it's romantic" Alexandre McQueen's Sarah Burton pays a tribute to Oscar Wilde, in case you hadn't gotten the hint. 

Thom Browne was a show of sartorial uniform dissected, the glorification of Harrys Tweed in all 1,200 yard, as per WWD. 

Miuccia wants us all to be "more human, more simple, more real". Nerdy is good. 

The future is female ... 

"borrow from the boys": the italian way

At Pitti Immagine 91, in Florence, is all about the pants, big pants The New York Times says in an exhilarating (well, at least to me) article that describes how Pitti Immagine is all about fashion.

Styles, colors, fabrics, a delight and endless array of men and women dressed to the nines that become a pleasure to all the senses, the venues of the events nothing short of Renaissance buildings or green houses and gardens, the Sala Bianca in Palazzo Pitti and … the Sala Bianca in Palazzo Pitti 

Pitti is a thing, an event that any lover of fashion will have to experience in their life to consider themselves seriously inducted. When Pitti happens to you, it will never be the same, you can’t really get it any other way.

WARNING: there's a term for these boys, it's "Peacocking" 

I hoped with the book to explain a bit more, my university final thesis was on how Italian fashion was seen and portrayed in the UK in the 80s, point is, here, not to give a lecture on fashion history, but the story telling about what’s really the “fashion” that is a passion of mine and happens to be kind of in the genes of many Italians.

Chapter 6 of the book is called “Borrow from the boys” as part of the Italian way of dressing is to borrow elements from a man’s wardrobe. It’s actually more of a stealing, hence their imperfection, big pants, bigger watches, lace-up brogues or double monk moccasins, sometimes it's a perfume or a overcoat. And, please, who didn't steal a cashmere sweater to their [insert whomever male gender you were close to]. 

Women in menswear feel comfortable, look cool and sexy, things thrown together almost by mistake are worn with nonchalance and manifest empowerment. Pants are two sizes too big? Wear a thick belt at the last hole and wrap the hem all the way up and wear super duper stiletto.

Imperfection leads to effortless, there’s no premeditation, the eye catches a gorgeous tweed deconstructed jacket? There’s no cliché, in anything that you put together, add a feminine touch, and if it’s a pair of stiletto lace ups in suede with mink accents like my Baldinini borrowed for the occasion, why not?

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I barely go out with a mini-dress, but these shoes called for it.

How divine are they?

With frayed jeans, culottes, leather mini dress and animal print I could have definitely be in Florence, but even if I wasn’t, these heels are perfection: the patchwork of the different colored suede , the arch perfectly designed, an architectural heel that resembles the rooftop of the Empire State building and those mink pom poms are to die for.

They are fabulous also on a pile of books like this, kind of "Coveteured", after I took them out on the town. 

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Styling and crackin' for the holidays: connect with stylists on the go

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from www.coveteur.com

Imagine a purveyor of style on-demand from the comfort of your home and it’s not a robot. Yeah, a one-on-one conversation with a personal stylist that will result into a red carpet outfit or a total haul-over of your closet and, still, the only technology involved, is the screen.

It’s personal and intimate, sometimes he or she becomes your own confession channel like your best friend, you know those conversations that remain in your closet? Only difference from that "I have nothing to wear" confession with your friend, with this one you get your wardrobe resolved.

If you are not intrigued enough, I will add that you don’t need to go to the mall, stand in line, you’ll get first hand access to whatever goes public when it’s already public, and you are still sitting in your armchair.

To me it sounds like a Carrie Bradshaw dream.

StyleReply is an online platform that provides on-demand personal styling service, or in other words, it doesn’t matter where you or your personal stylist are, you can be a screen-call away and resolve the outfit for your office gala during lunch time.

Let’s say you need wardrobe assessment and clean-up: open your closet and let the professional do the job while you sip a glass of rose’, at the end of the session you have a pile of clothing for charity, the other to send to consignment or online resellers, you’ll monetize on your wardrobe dead branches and will regenerate life with shopping for the right pieces. I just wrote 300 words of things you can do, and you haven’t moved from home.

It’s a win win, the professional stylist has the flexibility of traveling for assignments, maintain the clientele and make it grow all by having an internet connection. The client has the privacy, the ease of a meeting that is not delayed by traffic or other annoying intermissions and has 24/7 access to professionals that will help with capitalizing in what s-he has instead of running like a headless chicken and falling in the trap of fast fashion smoking mirrors.

It’s competitive, sustainable, supports recycling, reselling, quality and peace of mind, which can be priceless.

There's much more to this: closet rehab (don't we all need this??), guided style shopping, digital lookbook, online shopping (you guys this is heaven), professional look (because sometimes we have corporate attire to respect but we can't bear how boring it is) and wedding styling. For the non-committers, there are 15 mins and 30 mins image consultations that will seal the deal.

To get to know a bit more about how revolutionary StyleReply is, I was privileged enough to be invited to a Kit and Ace Supper Club, otherwise known as collaborative consumption. It was a meeting of the minds, many talented stylists under the same roof sharing a delicious dinner and stories about travels in far away places and new projects, an incubator of ideas running around clothing, beautiful, glamorous and comfortable clothing. 

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Heart in Hands award for No More Tears

I was one of the lucky participants of the “Heart in Hand" Award event organized to raise funds for No More Tears that took place October 1st at The Sacred Space in Wynwood.

"No More Tears" is a non-profit organization that assists and empowers victims of domestic violence and human trafficking. It was founded by Somy Ali who still leads it dedicating 100% of her time, efforts and revenue from donors to the organization.

Being herself a victim of domestic abuse twice before even turning 10, Somy channeled the strength and power needed to resurrect herself from those devastating moments to help other women stand strong on their feet again.

Knowing that Miami is the third place in the US with over 9000 cases a year of human trafficking is creepy, scary and disgusting. It happens in our backyard and danger lurks in disguise, evidently.

The organizing committee was composed of two handful of talented, powerful, strong, smart women who understood two things: collaborating is the best form of success and being victim of human trafficking or domestic violence should not exist on earth, or any other planet where human beings are allowed.

The room was filled with tears of emotion, watching the documentary with the testimony of victims who were rescued, saved and given a second chance in life, listening to the heartfelt acceptance speeches of the five recipients of the Heart in Hands Award, made me realize that's an epidemic. It’s like cancer: you can’t close your eyes and wrap them in prosciutto because “those things don’t happen to you”, we all have instead a moral responsibility to do something.

It may not have happened to us, we may have been lucky to have had strong women and men raising us to be confident and our brothers to be good men, future husbands and fathers, but the risks that our daughters and children may incur in criminal minds disguised as angels are too high not to give us the goosebumps and prompt us to be proactive.

I will have the honor of interviewing Somy for my "style + substance" because she is one badass woman from whom we all have something to learn.

WHO IS YOUR ROLE MODEL? 

All about THAT pink

I remember vividly how I never wanted to be a pink girl, and how adamantly I would ask everybody to ask me what's my favorite color because I would surprise them with Blu'.

I somehow conditioned myself to be a blue girl, just because I never wanted to be like the other girls. 

I found the article Is There Some Reasons Millennial Women Love This Color on The Cut extremely interesting. By "this" it meant pale pink, peach, quartz, rose gold, salmon, creamy, dusty rose.

I am not a Millennial, yet I manifest affinity with many traits of this microscopied and scrutinized generation. Millennials this, Millennials there ... 

Where I grew up, girls in school would wear a long white coat with a pink bow in the back, something very Alice in Wonderland as school uniform, and the boys' version was blue and short.

It is a liberating thought, knowing that my daughter (almost on the cusp of being a Millennial) is not growing up with those mental restrictions. Guess what: she never liked Barbie or anything pink she’d have in the closet.

I can't help but wonder (... I have been binging on SATC lately):

Is “your favorite color” something that comes with genes or it becomes an acquired taste?

My friend Gabriella, of Su Misura Journeys says:  

“I'm loving pink these days. When I was young I hated it because my mother made me wear it all the time. But I love the soft nuanced shades. Italy does pink so well. Also the beige leather at Ferragamo had an almost pink undertone back then. So warm. I also saw it on walls. They called it 'carne' pink mixed with white and yellow in such a subtle and interesting way.”

I love how she uses different nuances, from walls to leather goods, there’s nothing defined, categorized or labeled, it happens nonchalantly, like a disceveled wall and a Madonna in the streets of Florence. 

But now that it's a color Millennial women like, looks like we ough to squeeze in, like when you grab a leg and the girl on the other side that other leg of that only one pair of pants left on sale.