New York - New York Fashion Week was equal parts celebrity and sophistication on Tuesday, with runway shows the include collections by red carpet favourites Badgley Mischka and Vera Wang, as well as the annual Fashion Rocks concert, featuring a host of performers from Pitbull to Duran Duran.
Here are some of the highlights:
TORY BURCH
There were sequins, there were fringes, and there were, of course, purses. Tory Burch's spring collection was an eclectic mix of bold patterns and looks that could morph from a day wedding to a cocktail party to the red carpet.
Among the key looks: A shirt minidress with colour blocks of red, black, blue and orange; cream pants with dark tree prints with a dark-blue solid waist stripe; black-and-white patterned cotton shorts with a fringe; an ankle-long taupe dress accented by metallic designs; and pants with blue, black and cream vertical stripes and tuxedo-like black stripes running down the side. The fabrics were varied too, from knits and cottons to canvas and linens.
Nekesa Mumbi Moody
BADGLEY MISCHKA
Badgley Mischka celebrated its 25th year with a New York Fashion Week show that featured their signature sumptuous gowns and a queen of glamour - Naomi Campbell.
The supermodel joined Mark Badgley and James Mischka briefly on the runway Tuesday, amid cascading silver balloons, as the duo celebrated their silver anniversary together. The brand is known for delicate, dazzling dresses, and delivered that once again for its spring collection.
Ruffles were a recurring theme, including a beige jacket with two layers off it, and they also appeared on other looks. And even the more sedate looks were stunners, including a silvery sleek beaded dress with beaded belt to match.
Nekesa Mumbi Moody
RAG & BONE
The Rag & Bone girl of spring just rolled out of bed after a long night.
She couldn't find her pants or locate her bra. She misplaced her top so she threw on her boyfriend's vest, found some judo pants and headed out.
“There's quite a lot of skin,” acknowledged David Neville, half the brand's design duo with Marcus Wainwright.
In a warehouse space at a long-closed post office Monday night, the two shifted gears a bit from seasons past. They pared down looks for a sexier feel in customer-friendly colours that included light indigo, creams and white.
The menswear and work wear influences were apparent, “but at the same time it's all very feminine,” Neville said.
Leanne Italie and Nicole Evatt
THOM BROWNE
Walking into a Thom Browne fashion show often feels like walking onto the set of a Tim Burton movie, with the most fabulous and chic costumes imaginable.
And the designer didn't disappoint Monday evening when he presented his spring 2015 collection in a runway show that felt more like a fashion designer's dream version of “Alice in Wonderland.”
The soundtrack was actually a bedtime story for the audience, read by a familiar voice that Browne identified in a post-show interview as Diane Keaton, a fan of his clothes. “Good evening, everyone,” she began, promising “a short story, a simple story, a timeless story.”
The models brought life to the story, appearing in truly wondrous combinations of fabric and colour. Much more than his spookier February show, for which Browne created a church and dressed his models like strangely robotic nuns, these clothes, many of them suits, were outfits you'd want to pluck off the runway and wear to a party.
Browne said Keaton was the perfect person to read the story he had created.
“She is SO my girl,” he said.
Jocelyn Noveck
Sapa-AP