Elle Canada - The Elle Word

My favourite runway music moment from New York Fashion Week didn’t come until the last day, but it was definitely worth the wait. Before the first model even appeared at Ralph Lauren’s fall/winter 2012/2013 show, the first few notes of music caused the fashion crowd to utter a combined sigh, produced hundreds of knowing smiles and started a tweeting frenzy. What music could possibly elicit such a reaction? Only the theme song to Downton Abbey. Mary-Jess’s “Did I Make the Most of Loving You” was a perfect match for the herringbone and houndstooth suits that opened Lauren’s show.

Ralph Lauren opened his most recent runway show with the theme song from Downton Abbey.

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Diane Von Furstenberg, watch out for Michael Kors! With his runway show on Wednesday, he might just have taken the lead in the race for the most star-studded runway show at New York’s fall/winter 2012-2013 Fashion Week.

Jessica Alba, Michael Kors, Paula Patton and Amber Heard. Image courtesy of Getty Images for Michael Kors.

From the moment I entered the Theatre at Lincoln Center where the Michael Kors show was staged, I could tell something was different. The runway was so clogged with camera crews—even more so than usual—that I could hardly move. Side-stepping my way slowly forward, I was making gradual progress until a tall, raven-haired lady darted in front of me. She wasn’t mean about it, she was just on a very determined mission. “Hello, darling! How ARE you?” she cooed. “So good to see you…” another woman replied as she smiled and reached her hand out. Wait. That’s not just any hand. It’s Anna Wintour’s hand…and she’s seated beside Grace Coddington (love those fiery red locks!)…and the raven-haired woman is Anjelica Huston! And I am in the middle of their conversation. Move. MOVE! Side-step. Side-step! (And yes, Anna Wintour does smile.)

It was even more difficult to leave the theatre post-show as Jessica Alba and Debra Messing (surrounded by ample security) made their way backstage to check out the collection’s fluffy furs and sparkly red-carpet-ready gowns in crimson, black and silver. Meanwhile, Stacy Keibler happily did TV interviews. Katie Couric, Paula Patton, Amber Heard, Patti Hansen and Alexandra Richards were just a few more of the bold-faced names on the scene. Just another day at the office for Michael Kors…

Later in the day, Anthony had a celeb moment of his own at Reed Krackoff—following a noticeable lack of one at Marchesa. Here’s Anthony’s take:

“As I arrived at the Plaza Hotel for the Marchesa show, all I could see were shiny black sedans, a paparazzi mob and a bright red carpet snaking up the stairs. Is this going to by MY red carpet moment, I wondered? Unfortunately, there were no celebs around as I made my entrance—meaning no roar of clicking shutters or blinding lights. (I’m sure I heard three or four clicks…) Still, it was a lot of fun to actually walk a red carpet. Inside, the clothes were a dreamy mix of hand- embroidered threadwork and gilded accents combined with beaded tulles, lace, taffetas and laser-cut leathers. No wonder there was a red carpet out front.”

“Before the Reed Krackoff show started (his runway featured a sleek assortment of the week’s top trends—statement coats, collaged chiffons and top-to-toe monochromatic dressing) I finally racked up a few more camera clicks. Julianne Moore was having her picture taken in front of my seat when our eyes met. ‘Honey, you are standing in my light,’ I casually joked. Not missing a beat, she gave me a wink and a smile and continued posing for the cameras.”

Which celebrity would you love to bump into at fashion week?

New York Fashion week is coming to a close, but stylistas aren’t running out of fabulous looks. Today’s streetstyle photos capture three women who all give a modern spin to classic ’20s, ’70s and ’60s fashion touchstones.

THE GIRL: Kelly Choy is a host on NYC TV and Bravo.

SPOTTED: Lincoln Center on her way to the Alberta Ferretti show.

HER STYLE: Modern 1920′s flapper style.

WHY WE LOVE IT!  Kelly’s Philosophy di Alberta Ferretti look was all pretty in pink—one of the season’s go-to hues.

FASHION WEEK FAVORITE ADDRESSES: “My favorite spa is in Chinatown is called Relax Foot Spa. It’s great because you can get a one-hour foot massage. I particularly love it during fashion week!”

Check out the ’70s and ’60s streetstyle fashions.

As yesterday’s snow turned to rain, the fashion crowd shifted into a nautical mood with classic stripes taking center stage. Here are the striped looks that caught my eye.

THE GIRL: Brooke is a freelance fashion editor.

SPOTTED: Lincoln Center

HER STYLE: Urban mariner.

WHY WE LOVE IT!  A creative mix of different designer labels, textures and style in a J.Crew shirt, Marni pants, Zara feather vest, Reece Hudson handbag and slipper shoes.

FASHION WEEK FAVORITE ADDRESSES: “My favorite store is Barneys and Opening Ceremony. They showcase some of the best designers!”

Here are a few of our most memorable celeb moments—so far—from the New York Fashion Week trenches.

One of the last looks from Zac Posen's Fall/Winter 2012-13 collection.

Before we could check out all the Canadian models at the Zac Posen show—Coco Rocha opened and closed, with appearances from Anais Pouliot, Lisa Winkler, Herieth Paul, Alana Zimmer and Heather Marks—Anthony had a close encounter of the Dita (and Anna) kind. “You won’t believe what just happened!” Anthony gushed almost breathlessly to me before the start of the show. While coming down the steps of the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Centre, he literally bumped into Dita Von Teese as she attempted to climb the stairs in a very fitted dress (Zac Posen, of course). Thankfully, no one took a tumble. “She could hardly move, but she looked great. Her makeup was impeccable,” he said. “Then, just as I was coming back to my seat, I suddenly felt like I was being surrounded by men in suits talking into their wrists. Then Anna Wintour appeared in front of me! I felt so disoriented. I don’t know if I can take all the drama!” he said with a laugh. We settled in for an Oriental-architectural themed show full of glamorous hourglass gowns thankful that most (see below) of the celebs were seated a safe distance away. Read the rest of this entry

Fashionistas were on the prowl this week wearing some of the season’s cool cat exotic prints. From leather-good accessories to coats, printed dresses, shirts and scarves, exotic skins—real and faux— ruled the style kingdom. Here are a few samples of women who were “spot on” with the trend.

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It’s been a busy few days at NYFW and already some key hair trends are starting to emerge for fall. One of the most interesting ones is a return to super straight, flat hair – usually with a dramatic centre parting.  The ’90s are clearly back, but without the grunge and the recession! Oh, no. Wait, scratch that. Well, at the very least, the sleek, pin-straight styles that caused hair straightener sales to fly through the roof are back.

So far, the look has emerged at Prabal Gurung, where Paul Hanlon (working for TIGI) added extensions to create his piecey, slick look (seriously, look at this hair!), Victoria Beckham, where Guido Palau (for Redken) created a glossy, “uptown, rich girl” style, and at one of my favourite shows — Alexander Wang — Palau (again, using Redken products) added hair extensions to the models so that hair could have a clean line cut straight across the bottom. It looked like classic Wang to me — modern and minimal with an edge. Read the rest of this entry

I started off my day with a double dose of Canadian style. First up was Jeremy Laing who presented his collection in a glossy white loft space in Chelsea.

The show opened with a zip-back jacket and skinny pants in bleach-print velvet, which reflected the starting point for the collection: tailored jackets and textures. “I frequently will start my design process with dresses but you can kind of get bored with the way you work, so it’s nice to try a different approach to see what happens,” Laing told me. This season, he made a conscious decision to opt for “something with a more tactile sensitivity” rather than the digital prints, for which he is well-known. “Bleach printing is a reactive process that removes dye and ink from the fibre, so it’s harder to control. But that’s the beauty of it, you get variety, which is cool.” Read the rest of this entry

New York was under a cold spell on Sunday, but nothing could keep the town’s tastemakers from attending the day’s top catwalk shows. The “haute” heads were sporting every style from Dr. Zhivago-inspired fur pillboxes, to lady-lady crown caps to boho Ushanka or trooper hats.

Here are some that caught eye:

For more streetstyle hot, haute hats, click here.  Read the rest of this entry