New Talent Alert! Parson's Graduate Fashion Show

"Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”--Coco Chanel

So yesterday during lunch I made my way over to the Grand Hyatt Ballroom at Grand Central...

...to view Parson's Graduate Fashion Show. While Fashion Week in NYC is great, it's always a special treat to see the future leaders in the game...the next Tom Fords, Marc Jacobs or Zac Posen's.
So when I reached the ballroom (late!) it was packed to the brim...

with parents, friends, and family. I squeezed in a seat in the back and settled in for the show.
Tim Gunn opened it up...

...saying that the show featured the cream of the crop of the graduating class and represented a diversity of perspective and skill.
While 25 students presented, I identified three Fashion Bomb worthy designers...here are a few of their looks.
First, I loved student Bora Hong's designs...

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...for her use of ruffle details and the bold color acid yellow. I can just see those ruffle jackets paired with jeans, over a black dress, or thrown on with a pencil skirt. I thought her designs were very pretty...avant garde yet wearable at the same time. She gets an A+!

My next favorite was Michael Venker...

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...perhaps I was seduced by the black models, but I liked his use of silk charmeuse, ethnic prints, and delicate hand beading. His foreign inspired designs were an unexpected treat...I look forward to tracking his progress.

Finally, there was Rachel Lerro...

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...I instantly fell in love with her back drape cotton and rayon jersey dress in mustard yellow. I also gave her long tops, knit tanks, and jackets a passing grade.

So stay tuned for future stories on these designers... And when you read about them in Elle, remember you heard it here first!
Smootches!
PS Kate Moss's new line premiered at TopShop in London today...

Kate Moss joins mannequins wearing her design in the window of Topshop in Oxford Circus
According to the Age, hundreds of shoppers lined up in the morning, but when doors opened, groups were let in for only 20 minutes at a time, were allowed to try on a maximum of 8 garments, and could only buy 5. The English are so orderly! If H&M did this, we'd avoid all those catfights over clothes!

Make it Work: Interview with Tim Gunn

“What happened to Andrae ? Andrae. I always like to start my sentences with Andrae. There’s already a big age difference Andrae, and acting like a big baby and throwing a plate of lobster in my lap is inappropriate. If we continue to fight in front of my colleagues at Red Lobster, we’re going to have to break up. We’re going to try to make this work. We're going to make this work. You and me.” Santino joking about Tim Gunn and Andrae, Season 2 of Project Runway.

True fans of Project Runway should not only find the above quote hilarious, but also be excited out of their minds that I got to talk to the loquacious, fabulous, and fierce Tim Gunn!!!


He was the nicest ever and gave me some great quotes for my fashion story.

So towards the end of the interview, I decided to swallow my nerves and mention 'The Fashion Bomb' and how I wanted to get his input for a question that would interest all of you shopaholics out there reading my humble blog.

The golden question was this:
"If you're a twenty something female with limited funds, what three fundamental pieces should you invest in to start building a fashionable wardrobe?"

There was a moment of silence in which I held my breathe...after a bit of thought he revealed the following pearls of knowledge:

" The first thing would be a good tailored jacket that can be paired with a skirt (not necessarily a matching skirt) or serve as outerwear with jeans on the weekend."

"If one’s living in a climate where the seasons change, a basic winter coat is a good place to make an investment. But spending more than $500 is definitely too much." (Guess I should forget that BCBG coat...)

" A good bag that you'll feel great carrying all the time. I travel in the fashion circles. I see women with the same handbag all the time. Their look changes but the handbag doesn’t. Why not just carry the same bag? But if you're wearing it around that also means that you’re going to want something that’s not shouting at you."

Words of Wisdom. I told Tim the url of the blog and he said he'd be interested to see. So maybe he'll read this?? How exciting!

So readers, I hope you learned something. If not, Tim Gunn was amazing.

Smootches!