September Average High: 76 degrees F; September Average Low: 60 degrees F
New York Fashion Week is one of the most stylish, cutting edge events of the year, attracting leading editors, photographers, models, designers, and It girls from around the world.
Fashion Week – which used to host only private, under-the-radar presentations for editors only – has turned into a rock-star-worthy parade of catwalk shows and parties at the tents in Bryant Park, at Milk Studios’ presentation spaces, and at galleries and stores around the city. And although everyone’s bemoaning the crippling economy, most designers are ready to bring back the beauty and have a little fun again.
Even if you’re not part of the official “in crowd,” New York Fashion Week is a major celebration of everything that makes the industry great: art, creativity, young talent, the retail industry and freedom of expression.
At Leifsdottir. Photo courtesy of Laura Milligan.
This year, New York’s sponsoring Fashion’s Night Out, an open-to-the-public, citywide event that you’ll need a stylish, but comfy, outfit for as you run around town visiting Anna Wintour at Macy’s in Queens, the bartending Olsens at Barneys, and other designers and industry celebrities as they bring fashion to the people. Here are a few tips for looking Fashion Week ready…
• Stay comfy: New Yorkers are proud of their eclectic but chic personal style, but if you think you’re going to run around the city all night in a towering pair of booties or stilettos, you’re going to look anything but cool. Grab your flat gladiators or flat boots for when it turns chilly, and you’ll add understated punch to your overall look.
• Pick one cool trend and tone everything else down: New Yorkers are of course some of the most stylish
people in the world, but even on a night that celebrates fashion and creativity, you’ll stick out (in a bad way) if you pile on too many trends. Paige Welborn, a twenty-something who lives in New York, reiterates: “As for style in New York, you might expect everyone to be on top of all the trends, constantly abreast of the must-have accessory or color of the season, but New Yorkers are less trend-focused than many other metropolitan areas… Think about it, New Yorkers are typically highly driven individuals who come here to make their own unique dream come true. Nobody comes to New York to make another person’s dream come true, so why would they follow other people’s fashion tastes?” Stick with one of-the-moment item, like a black jumpsuit or Blair-worthy headband – and then turn to your collection of basics for everything else.
Beverly Fong at Rachel Antonoff. Photo courtesy of Laura Milligan.
• Pack a blazer. It’s still the beginning of September, but the forecast shows that Fashion’s Night Out could dip into the high 60s or low 70s, so pack a cardigan or a structured blazer so you’re not in a rush to go home and get under the covers. Blazers also add a very slight mix of sophistication and edge to any outfit without going overboard.
• Take a big bag. With all of the sales, extended hours and (hopefully) free swag you’ll get, you’ll look silly and unprepared with a tiny clutch. Grab a hefty tote or messenger bag for collecting goodies door to door. “When you don’t have a car,” Welborn notes, “you tend to prepare for the elements a little more by carrying umbrellas and scarves around with you. Because of this, handbags and scarves can be the ultimate accessories for a New Yorker.” She prefers a stylish and comfortable backpack, and “as a person who likes to bring my own food/water bottle/utensils in an effort to reduce waste, I always have so many things with me, and it’s so much easier to carry them in a backpack.”
• Layer. Fashion Week hits right in the middle of September this year, a major time for transitioning weather. Think mid-high 70s during the day and mid 60s in the evening. Cardigans, scarves, boyfriend blazers, and even sheer tights are having their moment again.
written by Laura Milligan
http://www.thesartorialist.blogspot.com/
http://fashionsnightout.com/timeline.php
