>> "I just wanted to do things that women want to wear, to figure out how to make clothes that look rich but feel easy," Joseph Altuzarra said before his Fall 2012 show. Sounds simple enough, but there was a lot of depth here: the designer culled influences from Morocco, India, and the '60s-era Italian comic-book hero Corto Maltese — and it all melded together beautifully. Silk, jodhpur-shaped cargo pants — some lavishly printed — were tucked into slick, thigh-high boots and topped with Mongolian-fur vests; wrapped dresses and blouses were embroidered with dangling rows of coins; and — for those who prefer not to jingle — there were thickly knit intarsias patterned in Berber motifs.

The designer also injected a nice bit of structure into the mix, and so — for every tapestry print or bit of fringe — there was also a well-tailored naval coat, a strict-collared shirt, or a sharp black sheath. "It was really about mixing it," he explained.

>> For Fall 2012, Wes Gordon went for a "disheveled kind of elegance" — and he delivered. Silhouettes were dramatic with graduated hems and strong shoulders — and cut in an assortment of evening fabrics that ranged from velvet to brocade. There were billowing skirts in marigold silk, slouchy tanks in metallic mesh, and blouses in iridescent organza. But our favorite look? A smartly cropped jacket in lush forest green, complete with a matching, laser-cut peplum that tumbled out over a pair of silk, oxblood trousers. Also of note were the shoes: Manolo Blahnik for Wes Gordon peep-toes in shimmering silver chainmail.

>> Alexander Wang presented his Fall 2012 collection to a packed-in house at Pier 94. All the notables were in attendance: Carine Roitfeld, Grace Coddington, Bill Cunningham, Giovanna Battaglia, and Franca Sozzani — just to name a few. Also in the house were notables of a different kind: supermodels Natasha Poly, Karolina Kurkova, Shalom Harlow, Carmen Kass, and Gisele Bundchen — who all walked the show. "He asked me and I'm very happy that I was able to be here," Bundchen told WWD from backstage.

One would think that all this would make for a very exciting, very satisfying runway show. And, it did — at least for those in the audience who could see it. Among those who couldn't? Cathy Horyn. "Each model, along with her outfit, dissolved in the darkness," the New York Times critic said in reference to the poorly lit runway.

But what of the clothing? Well, there was lots of leather. Super-shiny and pitch-black, it appeared on boxy, military-tinged coats, front-slit skirts, and slouchy riding pants. There were also sharp-looking trousers, lacquered tweed jackets, and gauzy, fringe-draped knits. And, for those who love a good Wang boot, this season's were knee-high with buckle straps.

>> "If you took Mick Jagger in the '60s and made him a woman, these things are what he'd be wearing — with a bit of Marianne Faithfull, Bianca Jagger and Jane Birkin thrown into the mix," Rachel Zoe said of the inspiration for her Fall 2012 collection. And so, out came the velvet brocade blazers, thigh-high suede boots, sequined minidresses, and long pile fur coats. Also in the mix were a few new silhouettes: pleat-front trousers, below-the-knee pencil skirts, and some super-wide palazzo pants. A little something for everyone, perhaps? "It's just for a girl or woman that loves fashion, that kind of is not trendy, but she's on trend, a woman that wants to enjoy life," Zoe explained.

>> The leather harnesses that made an occasional appearance in the Hervé Léger Pre-Fall collection were out in full force for Fall 2012. They came in nearly every incarnation — brown, black, metallic, corset-like, or full-torso — and adorned nearly every look. They added an element of toughness to the line's ubiquitous bandage dresses, which, this season, came patterned in geometric panels, emblazoned with crystals, or spliced with intricate prints. Also adding toughness: strict leather vests, jet-black fur, and laser-cut fabrics.

>> Mara Hoffman's signature prints got a dose of cowboy mystique for Fall 2012. The designer riffed on the idea of "Shaman gauchos", and so tribal patterns, blanket stripes, and intarsia knits were topped with wide-brimmed hats, scarves, and talisman jewels.

>> VPL's sporty aesthetic remains in tact for Fall 2012. Designer Victoria Bartlett sent her signature innerwear-as-outerwear aesthetic down the catwalk, but this season's offering was updated with extreme draping, heavy asymmetry, chunky knits, and earthy tones. Yellow and a few printed pieces were also in the mix, providing contrast to all the sportiness. Fall's pieces — some wearable, others better left to the models — are for the girl who doesn't mind showing off her figure.

>>"We all have the dark and the light side, but for the longest time I've only put my happy self out there," Prabal Gurung said. And so, for Fall 2012, Gurung finally let both sides out — plus a little bit of everything in between. The collection started with a series of all-black looks — undulating capes, flared trousers, coats piled high in fur — segued into a group of blues and mirror-prints, and finished in a flurry of frothy white and metallic. Along the way there were some lovely forays into embellishment: gowns in intricately beaded lace, skirts punctuated with ostrich-feather fringe, and crystal-encrusted frocks. It was a lot to take in, but Gurung is nothing if not ambitious. "I am a little more confident in my own skin," he explained.