While the death of NYFW has been called on multiple occasions, the Fall 2019 Ready to Wear runway season has found a pulse. The runway serves as fertile soil for the seeds of trends to sprout and as a glimpse of the future. Fashion provides historical artifacts and brands and design houses this season gloriously (and finally) reflected our time and where it’s headed. A time that values diversity, recognizes responsibility, and stimulates joy.
Despite surface-level perceptions that fashion is merely superficial, take a moment to revel at the the stage fashion created for these four strong moments of inclusion, inspiration, and true craftsmanship.
Halima Aden’s Decked Out Hijabs
Halima Aden is most famously known as the first woman to grace the cover of British Vogue wearing a hijab. Since her Vogue debut in 2018, in all her glory she has taken the modeling sphere by storm with her contagious energy and unmistakable ferocity. From growing up in a Somalian refugee camp to the catwalk, Halima is a shining example of the manifestation of true beauty.
I had the absolute privilege of meeting Halima while dressing at the Laquan Smith show, star-struck to my core. Treating every person with respect and a lightness of kinship, she radiated pure joy and commanded the audience, whipping her head scarf behind her.
Halima spread goosebumps and standing ovations as she closed both the Christian Cowan show wearing a chain-link, rhinestone hijab and Laquan Smith show in a leopard-printed train hijab. Both Cowan and Smith design for women who are unapologetic and aren’t interested in following the status quo, making Aden the quintessential finale. The creation of such beautiful pieces celebrates Muslim woman everywhere and most certainly breaks down industry barriers.
Gabriela Heart Making Sustainable the New Luxury
The biggest bone I have to pick with the fashion industry is the heavy and hurtful hand it plays in environmental degradation. Fast fashion has trained us all to expect newness and affordability in a way that sacrifices ethical practices of sourcing, manufacturing, and production. With years of luxury houses burning (yes, BURNING) merchandise that didn’t sell rather than discount it, it’s designers like Uruguayan Gabriela Hearst that are correcting course.
Paired with her modern aesthetic and signature tailoring, Hearst’s collection featured a slew of recycled and plied-wool cashmere, ethically sourced leather, and dip-dyed sweaters hand-knit by local, female artisans in her home country. Even the cushions on the chairs for her show were made from excess wools and cashmeres from the collection!
Her ready to wear line displayed quality and thoughtfulness from polished daywear to more elevated showstoppers, demonstrating her exceptional range. (The scarf trench definitely taking the cake for my top look!)
Her brand began sustainably and I believe will inspire other companies to shift resources in a way that takes ownership and provides their customers with merchandise that prioritizes integrity as much as anything else. Pretty please with a cherry on top?
Laverne Cox Closing 11 Honoré’s Size-Inclusive Show
It’s no secret that size-discrimination remains a top contender for practices that make us all think, ‘have we really not fixed this yet??’. With a majority of women in America wearing a size 14 and above, the market is woefully underserved and the woman is disappointingly underrepresented on the runway.
11 Honoré serves as a platform of both conversation and pioneering size-inclusivity within luxury fashion, creating clothing by a wealth of marquee designers such as Branden Maxwell, Zac Posen, and Prabal Gurung for sizes 14-22. To kick off NYFW at Spring Studios, the groundbreaking event showed looks by 34 designers by a cast of models that strut over any notion of size, age, ethnicity, or identity exclusion.
The trailblazing show was closed by non other than transgender model and actress, Laverne Cox. The overall statement by 11 Honoré promoted the fact that no demographic box needs to be checked in order to have access to fashion that makes one feel beautiful, sexy, and confident. About time!
Unisex Looks and Freestyle Dance Moves Down the Staud Runway
If there’s one designer who understands the meaning of lifestyle fashion, it’s up-and-coming contemporary designer, Sarah Staudinger. In her Fall 2019 collection, movement and cheerfulness were the common thread of the 34-look show that quite literally demonstrated how her clothing is intended to be worn. Evidently, with shaking hips and shimmying shoulders by either a man or a woman.
From accessories to select unisex RTW, Staud remains true to a look that’s for a groovy, down to earth contemporary that adores color and surely knows how to let loose. While you may only know them by their flourishing, whimsical purses, from leather baskets, PVC novelties, and netted box bags; their RTW deserves just as much hype. Vivacious and flirty, Staud combines an intriguing affair between trend awareness and retro inspiration.
Fashion Week in general can be a very pretentious and stiff atmosphere, but this show reminded everyone in attendance to stop taking itself so seriously. That in fact playful amusement and lightheartedness have a place on the stage for everyone to play a part.
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