New York is freezing. Temperatures are well below zero-degree Celsius. But despite the frozen tundra weather — snow, wind chill and all — nothing is stopping the fashion flock from seeing the fall 2015 New York collections, myself included. Bundled up and layered to every inch of my skin, this guy from the tropics set out for Lincoln Center (the main hub for the shows) and to venues beyond.
Josie Natori
For the past couple of seasons now, my first stop has been Josie Natori, and it is the same this season.
Natori opts out of the Lincoln Center arena and, instead, chooses to show in smaller, more intimate venues like the Asia Society on Park Avenue several seasons back and most recently, the DiMenna Center. The location, a concert hall with a Zen vibe, couldn’t be more apt for Natori’s aesthetic.
As for the clothes, they are true to Natori’s constant pursuit of melding influences from East and West. A trip to Turkey’s capital Istanbul became the starting point for the collection. Given Istanbul’s geographical location, it is the epicenter — where the East literally meets the West, a place where history, culture, arts and architecture are multi-layered.
Fall 2015 Josie Natori is layered with belted coats worn over separates and day dresses accessorized with statement bib necklaces and fezzes. Fringe coats and fur vests are worn over swishy skirts reminiscent of traditional Turkish skirts. Passementrie embroidery is used on a couple of black and white evening dresses. But the designer succeeded most in the looks that are quite simply devoid of embellishments, those looks that made you pay particular attention to shape and technique, as in the case of a sublime trapeze coat paired with a turtleneck sweater and straight leg trousers and the finale look — a winter white dress with a daring deep V-neckline.
Jason Wu
Jason Wu started his label creating clothes for his generation’s uptown girls. At a young age, his look was so polished and sophisticated that he earned the moniker “the young Oscar de la Renta.” However, for several seasons he strayed a bit from his design sensibilities, offering collections that toyed with the hard and soft, leather and lace, with charged-up sexiness recalling heroines of Helmut Newton photographs. But Wu is best when he does the uptown look, as is the case with his fall 2015 collection.
Uptown with a touch of military and men’s dressing, even minimalism. “Strength and seduction,” he said of his collection. A medley of olive looks started his show, including coats and jackets spliced with fur, a chiffon blouse with a pussy bow paired with precisely cut trousers, and an ultra-luxe dress made completely of alligator skin. The olive medley was followed by grays and reds, like a sparkly long-sleeved T-shirt dress and an overcoat topped off with an exaggerated fox fur vest. The most standout look was a black sleeveless jumpsuit belted with a fur scarf — a modern and sensual take on the smoking jacket-and-tuxedo trousers combination.
Tadashi Shoji
For his fall 2015 collection, Tadashi Shoji was inspired by aircrafts and aviation. “We find our muse piloting the avian highways, inspired by the joy of light,” read his show notes. Given this premise, it was easy to assume that his runway would feature aviator jackets and trousers reminiscent of Amelia Earhart but that wasn't quite on Shoji's design flight path. Instead of clichéd versions of the aviator look, the designer chose to focus on what one would see from a plane looking down: aerial views of crop fields that were abstracted and projected as embroidery on sheath dresses.
As this is a Tadashi Shoji collection, there is a parade of chiffon and tulle frocks that are weightless in their execution, as well as gowns with metallic embroidery and detailing patterned after airplane mechanics.
Stay tuned to this column for more dispatches from New York Fashion Week.
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Blue Carreon is an international fashion journalist and the author of Conversations: Up Close and Personal with Icons of Fashion, Interior Design, and Art. He is also the man behind Blue Carreon Home, a home furnishing store and home décor line.