Backstage at Tommy Hilfiger Fall Winter 2013

Sunday February 10, 2013 – Park Avenue Armory

In the world of fashion, few can claim to reinvent a style category that they themselves helped create. You can add Tommy Hilfiger to that short list with his latest collection, where he broadened the idea of ‘prep’ to mean Savile Row tailoring and bold patterns. For womenswear, TH took masculine attires and softened them into flirty, youthfully feminine silhouettes that gave nods to academia and Allie McGraw.

Oversized and miniature Prince of Wales patterns are beautifully incorporated into outerwear, either as a standout pattern on dress coats, trenches, blazers and perfectos, as part of a lining to beige tone and red trimmed parkas and trenches, or as a soft backdrop to a midnight blue cardigan. Several white numbers incorporated checkers and stripes into argyle patterns, sleeve cuffs, and pocket trims giving shirt dresses, peacoats, and button down blouses depth and dimension.

Deep navy blue argyle-perforated leather skirts, red pin stripe blazers and shorts, and cuddly white Steiff lining on coats and parkas delivered a powerful undercurrent of Americana. Knee-high leather derby boots were a ‘slight of the eye’ fetish interpretation of the school girl’s knee socks. The show’s climax came near the end when a series of black matte leather cable-knit sweater-dresses floated down the runway only to be bookend by a breathtaking black woven-leather argyle mini-dress.

With brilliant collections such as this one, it’s no wonder Tommy chose a library setting for his show; he’s clearly rewriting the American fashion lexicon.

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Photos courtesy of stylerumor.com

Altuzarra Fall Winter 2013 Collection

Saturday February 9th, 2013 – Skylight Modern  

The Altuzarra Fall Winter 2013 Collection is inspired by the ever-changing and multi-faceted aspects of the Street. It continues to explore the core Altuzarra aesthetic, with its restrained and ultra-feminine silhouette. Their strictness of line reflects the purity of the urban landscape. With the color palette concentrated in black, anthracite grey, sycamore green and forest green accented by shocks of optic white and persimmon, this collection’s tailoring gives the Altuzarra woman classic menswear with a fiercely feminine twist. The design and construction emphasize the nip of the waist and exaggerate the hip, while shrunken proportions mixed with a bolder shoulder volume sharpen the classic silhouette. This collection mirrors the street itself, melding disparate materials and textures to create a new whole: Wispy chiffon softens felted wools,Leather turtlenecks modernizes tailored flannel trousers,Fox fur peeks from behind bonded crepe, Black/White intarsia fox fur outerwear add volume and proportion to the strictness of pencil skirts, Satin-finished gunmetal hardware of snaps, rivets and industrial zippers strengthens fluid jerseys, Novel matte poly-leather plays with classic pieces in a myriad of ways, sensually pairing with mink in anatomical cocktail dresses and reinterpreting the classic biker jacket. Luxurious materials, exaggerated proportions and deconstructed classic tailoring: like the Altuzarra woman, this collection is consistent in its very ability to surprise.

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Photos courtesy of Stylerumor.com

Moncler Grenoble Fall Winter 2013 Collection

Saturday February 9th 2013 - Gotham Hall

Moncler Grenoble unveiled its Fall 2013 collection earlier today in the impressive cupola of Gotham Hall in New York.

The iconic brand impressed again with a brilliant visual spectacle, creating circular light effects. Five rows covered the circular walls along which 370 boys and girls wearing Moncler Grenoble AW 2013/14 collection lined up, whilst a mirror hanging from the ceiling reflects kaleidoscopic repetitions of their images.

Only one colour, green, dominated the scene in a variety of hues. The green of the trees that bring to life Alpine peaks where wind, sky, snow and ice reign supreme.

A new high altitude ritual in the heart of Manhattan.

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Video courtesy of Stylerumor.com

Backstage at Tommy Hilfiger Menswear Fall 2013

Friday February 8, 2013 – Park Avenue Armory

For the past few seasons, Tommy Hilfiger’s dabbling in Britannia has begun to redefine what we consider Americana. By incorporating British tailoring, with its attention to detail, fit, and all things bespoke, he’s helping ensure Americana is maturing in all the right ways. For his Fall collection, Tommy married an upbeat, Ivy League spirit to sublime sartorialism; think Central Park native that come home from studying abroad at Cambridge. The journey across the Atlantic has given way to charismatic clothing that brings a little Savile Row to Soho.

For graphic effect, TH played with over-sized Prince of Wales check on coats, parkas, pea coats and trenches, lining the insides with houndstooth patterns and then extending it to trousers. Khaki pants and jackets get a slight-of-the-eye treatment with juxtapositioning of the Prince of Wales pattern. Navy blues and red clarets were incorporated on outerwear with shearling linings while a soft Steiff parka looked perfect for winter.

“Tradition and modernity is the key point here”, said Tommy backstage to reporters.

“Beautifully made tailored clothes have to meet today’s standard of modernity and this is what we are doing here. Infusing classics and iconic pattern into sleek comfortable silhouettes”

This season, Tommy teamed up with luxury shoe designer George Esquivel, creating a very interesting hybrid loafer morphed into a running sneaker and traditional brogues into knee-high boots that perfected the looks.

Having redefined Americana clothing for nearly 3 decades, it was only fitting that the scenery be that of a library. All the savoir faire that has made Hilfiger a household name has culminated in this new class of American-wear. Graduating from just prep, Tommy’s working theory that Americana can be an evolving movement is one we can subscribe to. Class dismissed.

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Photos courtesy of Stylerumor.com

Diesel Black Gold Spring Summer 2013 Collection

Tuesday September 11, 2012 – Pier 92

Somewhere between the leatherworker ateliers outside of Venice, Italy and the skater parks of Venice Beach, California, Sophia Kokosalaki discovered her inspiration for her latest collection. Set inside a hollowed, paint chipped warehouse on Pier 40, a series of skaterboarders kicked off the show pulling stunts on a set of ramps headboarding the catwalk. The intro wasted no time at making a powerful statement: this collection would be as much about street style as it would be about the brand’s tradition of luxe leather-wear. One by one, models streamed out sporting sharp, but feminine silhouettes that played with the brand’s DNA of refined, contemporary edginess paired with 90’s-esque prints.

Staying mostly in black and white territory, the collection did offer a large variety of wearable pieces. Ivory short skirts, blanc asymmetrical perfectos and distressed leather  jackets, as well as white sheer corseted dresses contrasted beautifully against tailored oversized cardigans, ankle trimmed trousers, and noir see-through square-mesh dresses. The dual-chromatic motif ollied into prints and color, with denim jeans being given a graphic, street-art treatment and turquoise and salmon neoprene accents on a few numbers. Accessories-wise, strappy, fringe stilettos, elongated tassel belts, and supple-leather clutches added the right amount of titivation to already strong looks. All in all, Sophia’s sporty take on street chic kickflips the status quo to the curb with a brilliantly high octane collection.

Shop Diesel Black Gold via Diesel.com

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Photos courtesy of Stylerumor.com

Backstage at Tommy Hilfiger Spring 2013

Sunday September 9th, 2012 – The Highline

For the past few seasons, Tommy Hilfiger has presented his mens and women’s collection outside of the fabled tents, leveraging the background scenery to tell a narrative. This season was no different for his women’s showing, which was set inside of the Highline park on Manhattan’s lower west side. Lanterns, with their auburn fiery glow were lined along the entrance and hung over the runway, dancing in the wind as a cool breeze broke the stifling summer heat from the day before.

Backstage, stylist Karl Templer and makeup artist Diane Kendal were busy adding their final touches to their works before Tommy comes in for a final inspection. Diane helped makeup artists work on their models, who were busy being powdered, primed, and perfected on a stage above the clothing racks where Karl was finalizing his styling choices. Mr. Hilfiger’s arrival was met with excitement by the staff, who all seemed exhilarated to present his vision in its final form. After taking a peek at the look board followed by an inspection of the clothes and luxurious leather bags on the accessories table, Tommy could hardly wipe the smile from his face. As his staff pressed on, he took some time to provide interviews with the throngs of magazines lined up to speak with him.

Back at the Highline, as guests streamed in so too did the wind, picking up briskly off the Hudson but having the net effect of making the lanterns dance above like wind chimes; it was almost surreal for its simplicity and natural beauty which seemed fitting for TH. In fact, it was almost as if Tommy himself meticulously planned everything to set the perfect, right down to the weather.

Lights dim for just a moment and then in flash of light, all was revealed. One by one, models stepped down from a small wooden Hampton’s cottage at the head of the runway, and revealed TH’s new take of his much-lauded ’85 nautical and safari collection. Bold variations of the Americana color palette, with its regal blues, bold reds, and subtle whites, produced brilliant zigzag print shirtdresses and swimsuits as well as Balenciaga-esque multi-striped leather dresses. Trompe l’œuil rope prints on suit numbers and twisty shirt frocks offered a modern take on maritime motifs, while varsity silk dresses with patriotic trimmings looked modishly minimalist.

A few looks from the men’s collection earlier in the week also made it to the women’s runway, almost as if their counterpart model girlfriends took it from their boyfriends closets and transformed them into something only a women could carry. Case in point, cable knit sweaters with mustard trims and striped cardigans, worn to the waist on the men, reappear elongated to short-dress proportions.

Stripes, whether in breton or multi-tonal patterns, looked sleek on many numbers, be it on a sand silk blouse, navy and white knit polo, or as an open-weave dress. From the sea to a Dakar rally across the Sahel, Tommy shifted into high gear with racing stripe motto pants and jackets and sand tone swimsuits and wide-legged trousers. For evening, a pair of mustard and red trapeze dresses with white hems summarized the collection in one fell swoop: it demonstrated Mr. Hilfiger’s ability to deliver on effortlessly simple clothing, that are simply empirically sophisticated.

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Photos courtesy of Stylerumor.com

Backstage at Tommy Hilfiger Spring 2013 Menswear

Friday September 7th, 2012 – Maritime Hotel

Set inside the Maritime hotel on Manhattan’s west front, Tommy Hilfiger combined his discourses on prep and rocker irreverence, culminating in a men’s runway show that was much to do about properness as it was about rebelliousness. With a garden-walled setting in an open aired space of the hotel, the Hilfiger man had this sleek polished allure that takes us back to a time when New Yorkers used to spend weekends at la Havana. TH celebrates the iconic symbols of the brand’s hallmarks – prep- by converting it into a version that your mother would not approve. Striped silkscreens on jackets, neo cricket cashmere sweaters with pocket accents, and white poplin shirts with trompe l’oeil stripe tie plackets. Backstage, Tommy cited nautical and safari themes as inspiration, which were part of the very first 1985 Hilfiger collection.

Nautical stripes are infused into a motorcycle jacket, while leather paired to espadrilles looked cooly luxe. Classics such as the military jacket are merged into a cool neo-nylon/leather trench. The classic navy blazer gets a major makeover made in twill with leather quilted shoulder and zipped cuff sleeves. Seersucker shorts and distressed jeans offer movement and freedom for the gregarious types. Racing stripe trousers and sand twill pants add an adventurous contrast to the sophisticated gold insignia crested blazers and Breton oxfords.

Backstage, Tommy was working hands-on with models whilst discussing last minute details with his star consultant team of stylist Karl Templar and designer Simon Spur. This trifecta of all things TH have cracked the formula at making sure boys looked prim, proper, and powerful while still adhering to the house’s DNA of off-kilter cool.

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Tommy Hilfiger Spring 2013 Menswear Backstage Video

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Photos courtesy of Stylerumor.com

Style by Karl Templer

Hair by Eugene Souleiman

Backstage at Tommy Hilfiger Fall Winter 2012

Sunday February 12, 2012 – Park Avenue Armory

Stepping back into the Park Ave Armory two days after showing his cadet inspired Men’s collection, Tommy Hilfiger unveiled a very chic and esquestrian tinged women’s collection. To compliment his sharp West Point military boys, the Tommy girl embodies a strong, classic American spirit that could just as easily transition from horseback riding in the countryside to stepping out at night on the streets of the Upper East Side. Based on the concept of “Town and Country” it was difficult not to think of Ali MacGraw strutting the Harvard campus in the 70′s hit, “Love Story”. This elite-collegiate style, once called “Sassy Class” by Candice Bergen, was a key theme from the first A-line skirt.

The first set of looks were a play on the tomboy silhouette but done in strong feminine proportions, a segue from the men’s collection though the use of black & plum melton wools in double breasted officer coats . Equestrian details are injected into silk dresses along with tromp l’oeil cable knits. A modern super slim burgundy cavalier houndstooth single breasted jacket is paired with a skinny pant version of a houndstooth matching jodhpur. A mustard colored motorcycle jacket and skirt pair with navy accents was one the most sublime looks midway through the collection.

“There is a timeless feel. The ambiance, these penny loafers riding boots and the equestrian helmets are so elegant” said french actress Elisa Sednaoui to a reporter.

A glance across the front row, past Uma Thurman, revealed Tommy’s daughter Ally Hilfiger alongside her boyfriend, who looked like that retro idyllic pair you’d find in an old photograph in your parents photo album. And Ali or Ally were a source of inspiration, to insinuate that Tommy’s collection was somehow nostalgic would be unfounded. If anything, this collection was more than just an evolution from the classic prep; something about this new Tommy woman felt effortlessly modern with a rich narrative that kept us enthralled to the very last look.

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Backstage and runway photos courtesy of Stylerumor.com
Celebrity photos courtesy of Tommy Hilfiger

Marc Jacobs Spring Summer 2012 Collection

Thursday September 15, 2011 – 69th Regiment Armory, Lexington Ave.

Neither hurricane nor earthquake were enough to derail Marc Jacobs from presenting his much-hyped collection, though they were powerful enough to move the show date until the end of New York Fashion Week. His PR explained that certain elements of the show were unable to arrive in time for the original Monday showing and that the added time will ensure a proper display of his vision. The build-up to the show was only made greater when it was learned that the designer canceled all backstage press access, even for beauty partners Redken and Zoya.

While unprecedented in NY, this is not a new measure for Jacobs, who does not allow photographers or beauty press backstage at his Louis Vuitton show since debuting his Spring 2008 collection. Beyond the logistical challenges was the still-unanswered question of whether MJ will move on to Dior, which has been without a creative director since Galliano‘s firing last year.

Yet for all the theatrics leading up his Thursday showing, Marc’s collection was well worth the wait. His Spring 2012 show opened like a cabaret “mis-en-scene” inspired by the musical theater choreographer Robert Louis “Bob” Fosse.

The collection was a mix of everything from sportswear, with the crew neck cashmere sweaters, to evening wear, with the 20′s shaped satin party dresses. Jacobs’ signature pieces made a strong showing, as declined, cropped, double pocket jackets in “pieds de poule” print or featuring short fringes.

Clothing aside, the shoes were magnificent; in particular, the plastic and metallic leather cowboy boots. The larger bags were sporty with boxy shapes, while the smaller bags featured fringes or shiny mock alligator.

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Theyskens’ Theory Spring Summer 2012 Collection

Tuesday September 13, 2011 – Center 548 west 22nd street

It’s the third collection that Olivier Theyskens is showing with Theory. The Fast Retailing Group that owns Theory also owns Uniqlo, Helmut Lang as well as the french brands Comptoir des Cotonniers and Princesse Tam Tam. Last season many wondered in which retail section the collection will be located in the department stores. It would be hard to place it next to Gucci or YSL, though it could be sold alongside Marc by Marc Jacobs? The collection, having been “made in China”, offers a competitive price point. As for the clothes themselves, they evolved and kept few of the Theyskens’ Theory codes shown last season.

For Spring 2012, we found that many of the looks have a sort of deja vu, especially the jackets that have an inevitable Isabel Marant style. Who is to blame? Certainly not the designer, though the marketing machine behind Theyskens’ Theory is a more likely suspect. It is the same marketing studio that sent Helmut Lang numbers down the runway which appear to be  directly inspired by Alexander Wang or Rick Owens. Despite the similarities, Theysken’s Theory collection makes you want to be ‘that girl’. She doesn’t look like a girl walking down the runway; she looks like a cool girl from the street, just like the Isabel Marant girl.

The jackets are cropped and have the back V neck cut (Olivier’s signature), made in tweed or embroidered with sequins. The pants have a tromp e l’oeil low waist. Aside from the clothing, the bags featuring a chain do not take away the edgy style. For the final, the models switched from their vertiginous heels into Dr. Martens, which equally looked beautiful. The more interesting element about this collection is seeing where Olivier takes it in the long run. The brand is not only successful at attracting “high-end clients” but they’re doing so without directly competing with other fashion houses and offering stylish wares at an unbeatably lower price point.

Shop Theyskens’ Theory via Net-a-Porter.com

Watch the Theyskens’ Theory Spring 2012 Fashion Show Video

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Tommy Hilfiger Spring Summer 2012 Collection

Sunday September 11, 2011 – The Theatre, Lincoln Center

Tommy Hilfiger is not hiding his love for camouflage. Infused in shades of blue, green or red, the print, which made a strong debut at both his men’s and women’s Spring 2012 collection looked fresh, young and modern without a hint of military. The Prince de Galles print got “inked out” with pink and baby blue stripes. Inspired by the tenets of pop art, Andy Warhol and Basquiat, Hilfiger’s take on prep always has it’s pulse on urban inspired modernism. Elements from the menswear wardrobe have been re-interpreted in shirt-dresses, long-sleeved jumpsuits and shirttail hems. Leather polo dresses, appealing motorcycle jackets and a basic blazer paired with envelope-shaped leather clutches were some of the more enviable looks. Sporting this season’s collection, the Courtin Clarins girls happily took in the show from the front row. And on a somber September 11 anniversary, Tommy’s “Prep Pop” gave a sense of optimism about the Americana style, solidifying its place as a formidable style that will endure beyond 2012.

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Hair by Eugene Souleiman
Makeup by Diane Kendal for MAC Cosmetics
Nails by Priti Nails

Y-3 Spring Summer 2012 Collection

Sunday September 11, 2011 – 82 Mercer St

For its Spring / Summer 2012, Y-3 took a tour of British style and athleticism, which makes sense when you consider the city will host the Olympics in 2012. Twists on English checks, Union Jack, and Londoner street chic were all par for the course. Dwight Howard, Samuel L.Jackson, Michael Pitt, and Peaches Geldof watched on as a procession of modular symmetric and asymmetric pieces charged down the runway.

London style is often both “street” and soft, and the collection of Y-3 does well to juxtapose the two extremes. Balancing hard and delicate elements, the women’s pieces included a leather jacket with a mesh back and a blazer with a ruffles along its seams. On the men’s side, classic suits were redefined through shirts and jackets. Piecing together several different materials produced a buttoned cotton pique polo with poplin sleeves and a brilliant canvas trench with Adidas printed sleeves .

Unbeknownst to the eye but not to the skin is the use of new semi-impermeable yet breathable materials. The use of these elements advance how fashion marries aesthetics to comfort, offering clients a comfortable, lightweight material made of a combination of durable nylon and soft jersey.

Accessories are a Y-3 staple and this collection did not disappoint.

Shoes came in a spectrum of colors and styles, many of whom recalled archival design elements such as the rubber adidas stripes. Elastic laces in shades of red and purple were worn looped around classic white, athletic shoes. A cut neoprene platform complimented the women’s looks while men sported English flag sneakers. The Decade, a new line of Y-3 shoes also made an appearance in shades of gold, silver and bronze. Y-3 also presented his first collection of glasses, with shapes and graphics in shades of rubberized black, white and orange

“For me, the style of London is a funky style,” said Mr. Yamamoto of the inspiration of the collection. “It’s not just the center of London. It’s not just punk. It is also refined. We tried to capture that. “

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