a little turn on the catwalk

>> When Natalie Portman comes to the show, Keira Knightley hits up the after party, and Anna Wintour brings Bee — who usually only goes to Marc Jacobs and Proenza Schouler — along, you know Rodarte is really starting to make it big. Even Vogue Italia's editor-in-chief, Franca Sozzani, had a little trouble getting in — apparently, she tried to follow Anna and Bee through the velvet rope, but the PR staff wouldn't allow it.

Onto the clothes: They followed the same thought process as the Fall 2008 collection, but with a few key changes — the colors, the shoes (those treacherous shoes, made by Nicholas Kirkwood instead of Christian Louboutin this season), and the leggings, which were leather instead of knit, and although they looked laser cut, were entirely handmade.  Some think the look veered into Balenciaga territory, but me?  I'm just enjoying the view.  
*image: source

>> I've been noticing a more concerted effort by designers to cast models of color this season, but so far, Sophie Theallet takes the cake. For her New York runway debut, the Brooklyn-based Parisian designer sent out an entire cast of black models — Kinee Diouf, Honorine Uwera, Ataui Deng — the works. It was her training — ten years under the wing of Azzedine Alaia — that first brought the likes of Vogue's Grace Coddington, New York Times's Cathy Horyn, Lou Doillon, and Vogue Paris' Melanie Huynh out of the woodwork, but I bet as they left the Altman Building this morning, the model imagery was on their minds — it was on mine.
*image: source

>> For the second season in a row, Marc Jacobs started his show promptly, just ten minutes after its scheduled start — only this time, half the attendees weren't locked out — everyone had learned their lesson. "Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats. The show is about to begin."

Through swinging mirror doors, the models walked the mirror-lined runway from every direction, funhouse illusions abounding. But show tactics aside, with Marc, it always comes down to the clothes — the mashed-up, layered, bangled clothes, sparkling, plaided, and sheened. As Gershwin played in the background, Marc took us in a whole new direction — and he did it while wearing a skirt.

To get the full experience, check out the runway video at Elle.com.
*image: source

>> Alice Dellal may have been a special guest at Alexander Wang, but she was there in spirit at Proenza Schouler — the sideswept wavy hair, red lip, leathers, zippers, and crop tops shown were all reminiscent of her look. She may have been a starting point, but the collection had a downtown refinement that you would never seen in Alice — she revels too much in the grunge. All I have to say is: So many fun, billowy jumpsuits, so little time. And don't forget to check out the accessories — they're part of Jack and Lazaro's first full season effort.

To get the full experience, check out the runway video at Elle.com.
*image: source

>> The third time was the charm for Costello Tagliapietra yesterday — after starting and stopping the runway music two times, the second of which included dimming the lights, the show finally got under way for the third and final time an hour after its scheduled start. Lucky for Jeffrey Costello and Robert Tagliapietra, their designs made it worth the wait.

Their tailored lady got some edge, courtesy of Philip Crangi's black leather accessories and an airbrushed-on tattoo . Each girl sported a blue anchor with her initials under it, Miu Miu Fall 2008-style, to match the designers' own anchor and initial tattoos, and Christina Kruse got to show off the big cobra tattooed on her arm. An unconventional fabric choice — ultrasuede — gave a matte contrast to all the shiny charmeuse, and unexpected color combinations gave a real zing to the lineup. The only major problem came from the shoes, made by Giuseppe Zanotti for the show — a lot of girls had trouble navigating them, and Georgina Stojilkovic came close to falling.

*image: source

>> The Proenza Schouler Spring 2009 show hasn't even started yet — it's supposed to start at 5 PM, which means it will probably be 5:30 or 5:45 before the first girl even steps on the runway. Here's your chance to be Anna Wintour for a minute, and preview a piece of the collection before everyone else — except Anna, who has already seen it.  She was scheduled to see it on Saturday, but since Hurricane Hanna blew through, she rescheduled. Exposed zippers, gloves, triangle-heeled shoes, they're all here.

>> It's hard to imagine being pregnant and designing hot little minidresses for other women to wear, but when you're Thea Bregazzi, one half of design duo Preen, and those hot little minidresses happen to be what your label is known for, that's just what you do.

The heavily expectant Thea stayed across the pond in London while her partner in design and life, Justin Thornton, carried on with the label's show today. He carried it well — everything went smoothly, save a slight wardrobe malfunction for Anja Rubik and the confusion that ensued at the end of the show, when Justin didn't appear at the end of the runway and no one knew when to start the final applause.

As for the clothes, the dresses with intricate paneled cutouts and peekaboo zipper slats, the piquante shots of tomato red, and the sexily laced up pleated skinny pants came together for a more refined collection than we have seen from Preen in the last couple of seasons. Maybe Thea should be pregnant more often . . .
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>> Alexander Wang's sweat-inspired Spring 2009 collection, featuring shiny-faced models, was quite appropriate — yesterday had the fashion crowd dripping from heat, and today, Tropical Storm Hanna blew in just in time for Alex's show.

Not that the weather would keep anyone away; Anna Wintour attended Alex's show for the first time ever — a symbol of his quick rise. As the lights went down, the sunglasses went on, and she only broke pose a couple of times — once to consult Virginia Smith's program, and the other to fiddle with her BlackBerry.

The show was definitely a different experience, now that Alex has moved on from Erin Wasson, collaborating with stylist Alastair McKimm instead, but all of the classic Wang elements — zippers, leather, a slouchy, downtown feel — were all there. The only major slip up was at the end, when all the models — stellar cast, I might add (Jourdan Dunn!) — took their final tour and got stopped up returning backstage. We're talking line of models, basically at a standstill, at the end of the show. Alex skipped out, did his usual jump and punch the air routine. And then Anna ran out.

To get the full experience, check out the runway video on Elle.com.
*image: source

>> Take working-class fashion, add a pinch of Joy Division, and you've got the inspiration David Neville and Marcus Wainwright were drawing on for their Spring 2009 collection. The Rag & Bone show changed venues this season from the upscale Cipriani to the more hard-edged Pier 94 — a change from polished to slightly edgy that you could also say was reflected in the clothes.

Black wraparound leather belts with threateningly sharp silver spikes accented so many of the looks, and are sure to be a must-have — but even the typical Rag & Bone tweedy suits were rock-n-rolled up with a leather mini, like Julia Dunstall's closing look, or a silvery silk sheen, like Jessica Stam's blazer.

The model cast was full of high notes — stalwarts like opener Sasha Pivovarova or Coco Rocha — and the coveted new girls like Aline Weber and Liu Wen. Arlenis Pena was there too: she's had a big day, between being named as the new face of Lancome and slipping up at BCBG this morning.

To get the full experience, check out the runway video at Elle.com.
*image: source, source