Day four of New York Fashion Week was a sleepy one, with many showgoers choosing to stay in and cuddle up with their loved ones for Valentine’s Day. However, any thought that night four would be as relaxed was quickly diminished by the biggest schlep in recent fashion week history.
More on that later.
By 5:00 PM, even the laziest invitees braved the snow for Alexander Wang, who chose to present his Fall 2015 collection down at Pier 36 near the Manhattan Bridge. Mr. Wang’s show is always one of the most anticipated of the season, and this collection was no exception. As guests sat checking their watches, Kim Kardashian, Kanye West and their daughter North were finally escorted in. Within seconds, the lights went down. Mr. Wang sent out a series of hangry (hungry + angry) looking models in all-black looks primed for some escapades straight out of “50 Shades of Gray,” or at least a heavy metal show. Silver beading lined each of the all-black looks, most of them featuring leather separates, layered with 90’s style jumpers, tuxedo jackets and high-neck dresses. The same curved beading lined quilted jackets, a particularly strong look, and a series of softer, white fisherman knits.
Mr. Wang did his signature duffel bags and smaller totes in his classic all black, also with the beaded trim, and finished each look with oversized platform boots reminiscent of those found in the shoe stores that once lined East 8th Street. The styling was more severe than the clothing themselves, but Mr. Wang executed a strong vision as models practically ran down the runway with unkempt hair, minimal makeup and haunting looks on their faces. Poor North West.
However not even the scary models could prepare fashion week guests for the Moncler “situation.” After exiting Mr. Wang’s show, editors and retailers piled into their Ubers and headed to Pier 11, only to stand in line in the snow and squeeze into cold, dark
Once at the venue, guests were greeted by more champagne and cherry-flavored chocolates (perhaps some hot chocolate would have been appropriate) before they took their seats and waited for 45 minutes for the show to start. Once it did, it was a sweet one, with models elevating out of a heart-shaped chocolate box to cheeky 70’s love songs, all clad in Moncler’s signature sleek and chic outerwear, which climaxed with one massive make-out session. While it was cute, the show just was wasn’t enough to justify the “planes, trains and automobiles,” the 45-minute delayed start, the poorly organized exit and the fact that hundreds of VIPs were then forced to miss the Altuzarra show back in Manhattan. It was only lingering over drinks later that this editor could laugh it off and chalk up the experience to “fashion.”