>> Of all the shows this week, Jack McCollough's and Lazaro Hernandez's Proenza Schouler presentation had the most excitement and energy about it; Joe Zee agreed, calling it "one of the best this week."  We didn't know it at the time, but a piece from the collection actually debuted on Dasha Zhukova during the POP dinner last Friday.

Tonight, the lights above flickered back and forth on the bottom floor of Milk Studios, and with three Trainas in the front row — Victoria, Vanessa, and Samantha — we got to see the full urban scuba collection, which seemed to be a continuation of their Tahiti-inspired resort 2010 collection. Neon printed minidresses mirrored the backs of tropical fish, cateye sunglasses had lifeguard-style reflective lenses, neon tops resembled long sleeve Under Armor, and tinsel and feathers fringed dresses.  One girl sported beachy green-tinged hair, another purple.  And of course the boys, known for their knack with accessories, didn't disappoint with rainbow-linked minibags and strappy toggle wedges.

Afterward, they told Fashion TV's Jeanne Baker they wanted to indulge in color this season, and edited out about half their potential looks from the show to leave people wanting more.

>> Alberta Ferretti's Spring 2010 presentation was both upscale and democratic: waiters circulated with champagne and caviar, on the one hand, but everyone also had the chance to be a front rower — there were no seats but there was a four foot high or so runway, allowing guests to get up as close as they wanted to the walking models, concert-style.  The Italian contingent was out in full force — Anna Dello Russo in fiery Lanvin and nude pumps, Franca Sozzani — and the collection, full of fresh, gauzy, light minidresses had prints of eyes, butterflies, and lips — the last vaguely remniscent of Prada's iconic Spring 2000 lip print collection.

>> Lauren Santo Domingo has been turning it out front row this week — from Phi leather pants to Balmain sandals — aside from that front-row smoke break at Alexander Wang which caused a stir according to The Daily, but she was also back to style Christian Cota's presentation for Spring 2010.  While waiting in line to view the presentation, we overheard one of Cota's publicists talking about how Santo Domingo was "obsessed" with the jewelry she paired with Cota's cocktail dresses; Style.com also just published a piece about how Cota's "show stylist" — Santo Domingo wasn't named — "happened upon" LITTER, a line of headpieces and body jewelry that is primarily made from secondhand jewelry, "on a trip to San Fran a few months back, so she did the natural thing and coaxed the designers back to New York."

>> Designers collectively seem to be over the ubiquitous body-con, hard-edged rock'n'roll look that has swept fashion for the past few seasons: Lorenzo Martone said Marc Jacobs is; Elise Overland told WWD: "I’m tired of that rock-star style — everyone else is doing it now, so I wanted to do something different"; and Joseph Altuzarra, who has focused on form-fitting silhouettes in the past, added some flounce this time around.

Narciso Rodriguez, who like Altuzarra typically goes with a lean look, also loosened up. A white linen and silk dress billowed around Monika "Jac" Jagaciak, even the nipped-in waists flared at the hips.  But the three stunners, which showed Narciso's experiment with volume at its best, were the last three finale gowns — one in black, one in white, one in "mercury" gray — knee-length in the front and parachute-like in the back as the model walked.

Also of note: pre-show, Anna Wintour was escorted backstage — not something that happens at every show; Narciso's close friends Ruben and Isabel Toledo sat front row, as did Tory Burch, whose show is tomorrow morning. Narciso has also just signed a deal with eBay to create a line — for Spring 2010 — with nothing over $350 (his runway designs are typically $1,800-plus), to be called "Narciso Rodriguez for eBay." A preview of his ideas for the line can be seen here.

>> Laura Mulleavy told WWD she didn't sleep last night because she was so nervous about the Rodarte show — inspired by the singed Death Valley and "mangled and tattered" black vultures — today, but she had nothing to fear. The room was packed for her and her sister Kate's Spring 2010 collection debut; crunchy black sand was on the floor, dry ice smoke filled the room, and a musky scent wafted through the room as part of a collaboration with fragrance company Firmenich. The first look emerged from the silver cave opening-like set, all plaid and burnt cheesecloth.  Following behind was lots of black, some feathers . . . deconstructed looks with tie dye and raw hems and patchwork.  Every model had her arms painted with makeup to appear like tribal tattoes, goth lips, and their hair wrapped in webbed wool.

Tavi of Style Rookie, the Mulleavys' muse, was front row, Nicholas Kirkwood did the heels again, causing one tumble and a trip by Karlie Loss, and frequent Rodarte collaborator Autumne de Wilde was backstage filming a Rodarte movie.  Full play-by-play here.