News from ApparelMagic clients

Starting with the runway itself, which was set with vignettes of furniture from their brand-new home line, this was a season of firsts for Badgley Mischka. The ApparelMagic client is known around the world for their elegant gowns and cocktail dresses, but starting this fall, their loyal customers can wear Badgley Mischka all day long.

A post shared by Badgley Mischka (@badgleymischka) on Feb 15, 2017 at 7:56am PST

The show began with thirty-some-odd iterations of their impeccable eveningwear, this season turning towards old 1940s Hollywood for inspiration. Every dress was gorgeous, as can be expected from these red carpet masters: some sleek columns in midnight blue sequins, others goddess style in diaphanous red chiffon. Each look was set off with the model’s bright red lips and strong, screen siren brows. One shirtdress in particular, lushly embroidered in metallics over sheer panels, seemed absolutely finale-worthy. But the boys at Badgley Mischka had a trick up their sleeve: their new daytime ready-to-wear line.

Bridging the divide between comfortable and classy, the new line included everything from luxe velour sweatsuit separates to swing coats paired with easy slacks and leggings. Accessories were elevated with youthful details like embellishments on slip-on sneakers and fur pom-poms on beanie hats. Whether a fancy film premiere or a casual weekend movie at home, the new Badgley Mischka is a 24/7 lifestyle brand.

A post shared by Badgley Mischka (@badgleymischka) on Feb 21, 2017 at 8:08am PST

Leave it to New York’s premier provocateurs to show their latest fall collection in an abandoned store in midtown Manhattan. The dated, neglected retail space, patchy carpet and all, proved to be the perfect foil for Eckhaus Latta’s dowdy-cum-avant-garde designs. The ApparelMagic clients, a design duo of Mike Eckhaus and Zoe Latta, have been upending the trend-driven fashion landscape with their own brand of cerebral cool, but this collection shows that they are ready for the big leagues.

A post shared by @eckhaus_latta on Feb 19, 2017 at 1:27pm PST

Fabricating much of the clothing on display in shiny outerwear nylon, the designers took on classic American sportswear in the most underground of ways. The first model out wore a jacket in fleece tie-dyed like a microbial culture and a skirt that could button away from midi to mini at a moment’s notice. Another innovative look included felt leggings that below the knee were sliced and diced into pointe shoe ribbons.

In keeping with the label’s progressive slant, the show was often androgynous, with menswear taking cues from women in the knitwear department, and both genders wearing mannish, square-shouldered blazers. One male model wore a head-to-toe safety orange number, as if to announce: “This is Eckhaus Latta, and this is the face of fashion today.”

A post shared by @eckhaus_latta on Feb 14, 2017 at 8:55am PST

What could be more luxurious than wrapping yourself in huge swathes of crimson velvet? Not much, according to Zero + Maria Cornejo. The ApparelMagic client’s fall runway show at New York Fashion Week was dedicated to the indulgent fabric in all of its luster.

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Sticking to mostly oversized volumes, each piece felt generous and a little bit decadent, starting with loose A-line skirts with hems that sinuously dipped and peaked paired with roomy sweaters and punctuated by bright red velvet sandals or tall, slouchy boots.

Shoulders were on display, many casually exposed through wide necklines or sensual cut outs. A pair of evening shell tops in gold and red velvet were cinched at the neckline on one side and elegantly slid off the opposite shoulder.

Cornejo took a similarly restrained look at daywear. Confining herself to a palette of mostly neutrals, she let her loose silhouettes in fine wools and silks do the talking. If their subtle luxury wasn’t clear enough, a couple of Mongolian lamb jackets and coats were thrown into the mix. Cornejo’s vision of luxury is understated and elegant, but at the same time, it’s modern enough for today’s woman.

A post shared by Zero + Maria Cornejo (@zeromcornejo) on Feb 14, 2017 at 3:13pm PST

From their looks to the way they move, penguins are arguably the funniest of the animal kingdom. And for a designer who loves to inject more than a little bit of humor into his fashion, Thom Browne’s adoption of a penguin motif this season seems particularly apt.

A post shared by Thom Browne (@thombrowneny) on Feb 18, 2017 at 10:31am PST

Staging his typically wacky piece of theatre on a set imitating a frozen lake and surrounded by these chilly birds (sewn in wool houndstooth, of course,) the ApparelMagic client brought forth an cadre of ice skating tomboys in suiting that ranged from steadfastly conservative with only outré proportions to mark Browne’s involvement all the way to the far-out groovy of one particular astrakhan overcoat paneled in primary colors to duplicate a childish illustration of a storybook-style prairie church.

The penguin motif appeared in a dozen iterations. Sometimes it was nearly tessellated on a patent leather coat, other times a full-size version functioned as a leather handbag. The final models, however, in their black and white and bow ties, reminded us that while the classic tuxedo is often jokingly called a “penguin suit,” under Browne’s supervision it can be as modern and chic as it is funny.

A post shared by Thom Browne (@thombrowneny) on Feb 18, 2017 at 7:01am PST

This awards season, expect more glitz and glamor than ever. As one of Hollywood’s favorite brands, ApparelMagic client Naeem Khan took to the runway at New York Fashion Week with a collection heavy on crystal, tinsel, and everything that shines.

Starting off the show on a high note, the first model made her way down a premiere-worthy red carpet in a louche set of black silk pajamas with thick stripes of crystals worn over lacy lingerie. The next look was an equally stunning robe coat embroidered from collar to hem with metallic gold thread. Both looks, while updated with a maximal, showgirl style, harkened back to Faye Dunaway’s iconic silk-robe-attired portrait at the Beverly Hills Hotel after her 1977 Oscar win.

A post shared by Naeem Khan (@naeemkhannyc) on Feb 16, 2017 at 4:44am PST

The extensive detailing was not limited to only the pajama dressing styles, but further applied to a suite of coats, dresses, and over-the-knee boots in graphic jumbo florals. Too much was just enough when Khan layered those florals with oversize leopard print and spliced it with beading, purple rick-rack, and sheer insets. Showpieces galore.

Other, more paired down pieces made just as much effect though, with a dress for every type of embellishment and style, including a feather column, a gold-scaled sweetheart neckline number, another patterned with petals, and classic red chiffon drapes.

Tailor made to make an impression in the paparazzi’s flashbulbs, we can expect Hollywood’s best—and brightest—starlets to take a spin in Khan’s frocks down the red carpet.

A post shared by Naeem Khan (@naeemkhannyc) on Feb 16, 2017 at 6:54am PST

Bullfighting may be on its way out on the other side of the Atlantic, but its iconic uniforms may never go out of style, especially if ApparelMagic client Jonathan Simkhai is involved. Indeed, his fall collection was an ode to Spain and all of its traditional costumes, short maybe only of mantillas.

The opening look, a matador’s ensemble updated for 2017, replaced gold braiding for tiny grommets, and eschewed a shirt entirely so as to expose a sliver of a midriff. While the inspirations might be classics, these were no costume museum displays.

A post shared by Jonathan Simkhai (@jonathansimkhai) on Feb 13, 2017 at 11:57am PST

More likely, they’d be what a Kardashian or Jenner would wear to the Costume Institute’s Met Gala. This goes doubly for the finale gowns, blindingly gorgeous ones that looked as if the wearer just stepped out of a shower of crystals.

The matador-inflected style was repeated throughout the collection in various forms, from a minimal white suit to motorcycle leathers to a version in denim.

On the cocktail and evening side of the equation, Simkhai favored off-the-shoulder shapes and sleeves with slight flares. Feeling cold? An assortment of super-luxe fur stoles and puffy fur coats could fend off a winter breeze over the Iberian peninsula.

A post shared by Jonathan Simkhai (@jonathansimkhai) on Feb 12, 2017 at 3:32pm PST

ApparelMagic client Jill Stuart cast a spell with her fall presentation at New York Fashion Week. Like red-lipped, retro witches, the models stood in pointed shoes on platforms above the crowd, looking down imposingly. Swathed in voluminous velvets and heavy melton wool, they were femme fatales with a flair for the seventies.

A post shared by JILL STUART (@jillstuart) on Feb 11, 2017 at 11:53am PST

A heavy Victorian undercurrent ran through the collection, with high, often tied or ruffled necklines and sleeves ranging in shape from bishop to leg-o-mutton and back again. These high-coverage looks were often cut with transparent fabrics or even mesh, making them more Biba than prairie wife. A number of the looks went full-on YSL with throwback riffs on his famous Le Smoking tuxedo jacket and tiered taffeta skirts.

The stars of the show, however, were the wide black belts with huge brass buckles cinching in the closing looks. While they could equally well be sitting undiscovered in a thrift store since the 1970s, suddenly they look absolutely of the moment for 2017.

A post shared by JILL STUART (@jillstuart) on Feb 13, 2017 at 3:12pm PST

A backdrop peeling with urban decay set the perfect stage for Nicole Miller’s fall runway show at New York Fashion Week. The brand, an ApparelMagic client, oscillates between uptown and downtown, and this season the designer was resolutely below 14th Street. Taking on the Nirvana decade directly with combat boots and destroyed denim, Miller also twisted some of the trends of the era to bring them up to date. Bandanas became paisley-print pants or a handkerchief-hem dress with a flannel shirt knotted around the waist.

A post shared by Nicole Miller (@nicolemillernyc) on Feb 12, 2017 at 5:57pm PST

Another print took a step towards the occult with fortune cookies, skulls, and crystal balls. Like rock stars after a swing by Bergdorf Goodman, many of the models sported louche leather jackets or show-stopping sequin baseball jackets.

Badges with tattoo motifs like roses, Chinese dragons, evil eyes, and skull and crossbones appeared on many of the other jackets and outerwear.

Miller’s final look was in many ways its apotheosis: an evening dress complete with studs and tarot card embroidery and topped off with a nonchalant beanie.

A post shared by Nicole Miller (@nicolemillernyc) on Feb 10, 2017 at 5:30pm PST