Donna Karan

If DKNY was all about young women moving through the city that never sleeps, Donna Karan's Spring 2013 line for her grown-up eponymous label examined what happens far above the streets of the bustling metropolis at sunrise and sunset.

A muted palette of morning's dove gray and pink, dusk's pale gold, and midnight's dark blue set the stage for a languorous array of garments cut from crinkly cotton that had a well-worn feel. The dresses that weren't loosely draped around the body took a modern approach to the empire silhouette or surrounded the legs in soft pleats. Jackets ranged from trim bias-cut toppers to floaty, trapezoidal arrangements, but none had buttons or snap closures. Instead, they made loose and sometimes tenuous connections predicated on shape alone.

In true Karan fashion, the gowns were draped almost effortlessly: two with asymmetrical necklines caught the breeze the models created coming down the runway. The final look, a strapless blue work, featured pale orange whorls that called the setting sun to mind.

In a total departure from her sexy, menswear-inspired Fall collection, Donna Karan went soft and ethereal for Spring 2013, showing a collection of draped dresses and softly tailored jackets in a gorgeous array of rosy pinks, mustard yellow, icy blue, and seafoam green. Check out the all the pictures from Donna Karan's Spring 2013 collection, and come back soon for our full review.

As if to reassert her position as the designer of the most quintessentially New York brand in the industry, Donna Karan's Spring 2013 DKNY show was a love letter to the city that never sleeps written in black, white, and taxicab yellow.

The clothes, "born and inspired by life in the city," according to the show notes, were classic DKNY — they perfectly blended the sporty athleticism women need to make it through pedestrian traffic with an unpretentious elegance. Clean-lined dresses and skirts hit just above the knee with wide perforated borders, while neoprene jersey dresses were accented with mesh panels that showed a little skin. Leather pieces, like a metallic silver bomber jacket and a rich brown dress, added a little edge, and the yellow garments — which included a shirt, a gown, a swimsuit, and the long windbreaker Karan wore to take her bow — were as eye-catching as a cab on a busy street.

This show also included pieces from DKNY's secondary lines DKNY Jeans and pureDKNY, and the denim pieces blended seamlessly with the rest of the collection. After all, city girls need good jeans just as much as they need little black dresses and silk button-ups.

DKNY Spring 2013 was all about the New Yorker's uniform, whether for sport, street, or work. The sporty theme has been a dominant one at Fashion Week thus far — and at DKNY it was expressed through mesh bodysuits, nylon anoraks, and baseball caps (baseball caps seem to be the hat for next season). Then there are uniforms of a different kind, like a perfect denim skirt with a white top, or a canvas and tweed car coat to be thrown over everything. It was all about updated basics you could wear all the time, from day to night, and who doesn't want that kind of versatility? Ashley Greene, the brand's recent ad campaign star, was in the front row and seemed to be especially excited by a denim-skirt-and-white-top combo, while Donna Karan took her bow in a bright yellow nylon anorak and her signature black bodysuit and black pants.

• Trends: Sporty, cutouts, mesh, sleeveless blazers, monochromatic dressing.
• Colors: City neutrals — white, black, and "taxicab" yellow.
• Key Piece: The all-white opener was chic, as were the anoraks, a denim skirt, and an awesome sleeveless blazer.
• Accessories: Pointy ankle-strap heels, baseball caps, backpacks, and fanny packs.
• Who Should Wear It: This is for someone who defines easy street style — we could see SJP rocking the slouchy denim looks.