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What To Remember From New York Fashion Week: Day One
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What To Remember From New York Fashion Week: Day One

Proenza Schouler and Pete Davidson cosplay included.

What to Remember From New York Fashion Week: Day One

By ARAN KRENTCIL - published

What to Remember From New York Fashion Week: Day One

Photo: Zimmerman

Why scream into the void when you can dress for it? That’s the question I ask myself as I try on designer clothes that will not zip over my boobs, despite boobs being the thing to have this season—at least according to the very designers whose clothes will not accommodate mine. Sure, I can just wear a bra with the Khaite jeans of my dreams, but Katie Holmes already did that—in Khaite, no less!—but I lack the $400 cashmere bra to pull of that kind of cosplay.

In fact, cosplay seems to be the vibe of the moment. It’s a graft instead of a riff—a costume, not a creation—and it’s happening a lot in our lives right now. We see it on the streets, where it’s impossible to tell if the guy you bumped into was Pete Davidson, or someone just having a really good hoodie day. We see it on Spotify, where Doja Cat’s cover of “Celebrity Skin” is so growl-for-growl with Courtney Love’s original, you wonder if it’s a kind of fan fiction. And of course it’s happening in fashion, where “90s grunge inspo” becomes a plaid-for-plaid copy of an old Shirley Manson outfit, instead of a springboard for whatever’s next.

But look, it’s not surprising. The past two years have compressed and conflated our senses of memory and desire, short-circuiting the distance between who we think we are and who we want to be. We’ve already seen some copycats this Fashion Week—and it’s only Day One!—but we’ve also met a slew of new talent ready to shine, watched established names raise their own bars, and stayed up too late at Georgia Room, because… well, these deadlines don’t miss themselves.

Here's what kept us sane, intrigued, and sometimes downright delighted on Day One of New York Fashion Week—including some cosplay forays that actually worked out for the best.

Related article: Where To Eat, Drink And Stay For New York Fashion Week

Tibi
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Dance like nobody’s watching << Dance like everyone’s shopping. New collections from Rosie Assoulin, A. Potts, and Tibi are basically guidebooks to FKA Twigs choreography, with the added bonus of showing the clothes mid-motion to get a better sense of fabric and fit. The models look cool, the styles look fun, and Tibi’s actual looks in particular are reassuring proof that you can move your body and elevate your wardrobe at the same time.

Getting ready to get down at Tibi (left and center) and Rosie Assoulin (right) 

 

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Bella Hadid as Edie Beale? Done. Claire McCardell waists and dolman sleeves with a fist-bump to Tory Burch? Done. Corset shapes but make them soft knitwear? Yeah, cool, of course. This considered collection was stocked with beautiful options for busy women, and a smart answer to the new rules of hybrid work (and the very real desire to dress up again—but not at the expense of our wellbeing).

Left: Tory Burch, Spring 2022. Right: Proenza Schouler, Fall 2022. Both are deft references to Claire McCardell, the female entrepreneur and American sportswear pioneer who realized women have to actually work in their workwear.



"Your aura, it’s purple, and so is this dress." (Photo: Victor Virgile/Getty Images)

Designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez called the collection “Where Will We Go Next?” and oh! We can answer that one: Go towards even more American women and put a wider range of sizes on your runway. (Come on, dudes, that purple trench dress is meant to be rocked with curves.)

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Zoom in on the incredible lace detail, or zoom out on my earnest jaw drop. Is this dress a Sailor Moon superpower? A Neverending Story nod to the Empress? A piece of steampunk couture with needlepoint softness? Let's discuss in the dressing room, because I will already buy it, price tag unseen. (This could be a very bad move. Will let you know.)

Fighting evil by moonlight, winning love by daylight, it’s the Victorian Sailor Moon dress by Zimmermann.

BFA
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With a performance by Sharon Van Essen (OMG!) and slouchy suits for everyday excellence, this emerging made-in-Manhattan brand is an argument for livable luxury and locally rooted business. Ones to watch for sure.

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“Influencers” who actually influence have been flashing this sold-out Prada bag in artful selfies for weeks. Staud designed their own riff on the impossible-to-get accessory, which comes in a slightly larger size so you can actually take a book to read on the subway before a dinner date. (And maybe during the date, too. Look, we've all been there.)

Staud’s new bag is a sparkly echo of the moment. 

With appearances by Anubis (ancient Egyptian god of the dead), Persephone (ancient Greek goddess of the underworld) and Lucifer—and otherworldly chanting by the experimental rock priestess Earth Eater—showgoers emerged from Shayne Oliver’s Anonymous Club dazed and possibly imbued with otherworldly powers. (Of course, that could also be from waiting 2 hours—until 11 PM—for the mists of the other realm to part so the show could begin at all…) With shades of Rick Owens, The Dark Crystal, and Guillermo del Toro if he dipped his creatures in crystals, Oliver's latest experience—there's no other word for it—was pretty damn spellbinding. But if you're gonna channel the chaos of the gods, you have to be careful what you might unleash... including the wrath of those who believe disruption should be 80% design and 20% spectacle, instead of the even split we got at this show.

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Don’t cosplay her—the original is just too good.
This article originally appeared in Harper's BAZAAR US

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New York Fashion WeekNew York Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2022
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