We've had red-carpet looks on the brain here for, oh, ever, so we paid special attention to the gorgeous gowns coming down the runway at New York Fashion Week. There were florals, lace, flowy chiffon numbers, lots of red, and plenty of sparkle from our favorite designers, including Jason Wu, Prabal Gurung, and Monique Lhuillier. Here are the top 25 most drop-dead gorgeous dresses of the week — and the ones we're hoping to see on the Oscars red carpet!
Peter Som and Diane von Furstenberg both sent red-carpet-worthy sequin dresses down their Fall runway. The important question is: which one would you like to see on the red carpet? And most importantly, on whom?
>> "It was truly about things my friends wanted to wear," Peter Som explained of his Fall 2011 collection's starting point. "Everyday but heightened and with a touch of quirk." Translated to the runway, Som's friends wear their hair in mussed poufs and like their suiting in vivid reds and oranges. They don't mind having an odd tuft of fur on their jacket sleeve or over their coat pockets. And their shoes of choice — produced for Som once again by Charlotte Olympia — involve dual tone ladylike low heels in bright colors, instead of the teetering heels Som and Charlotte Olympia designer Charlotte Dellal usually make together. Another Som collaborator, Tommy Hilfiger (whose signature line Som consults on), and wife Dee Ocleppo made the front row.
Alana Zimmer's long sleeve jersey dress earned many a fan, and Som's closing look — a floor-length blue sequin gown with short sleeves — is sure to find its way onto a red carpet somewhere.
Day two down, and so much more to love in the way of Fall fashion. Oscar-worthy gowns from Jason Wu, impeccably chic tailoring from Peter Som, and Rebecca Taylor gives us more color combos to try. The beat goes on in the form of covetable Fall collections, and we're bringing you our faves of the day. Click through for Fab's top 10 — and let me remind you, we're just 48 hours in!
As we near the end of day two of Fall 2011 New York Fashion Week, we couldn't help but notice that things really started to heat up on the runway. (And that's a good thing.) From a cool take on a crimped hairstyle to some rather mesmerizing eye makeup techniques, check out our favorite beauty looks from the day that was.
Peter Som is designed for the girl who loves a little quirkiness in her otherwise ladylike wardrobe. Exhibit A: Olivia Palermo in gray trousers, a bright fuchsia blouse, and a shortsleeve jacket in the front row. Fall 2011 went uptown with a dose of humor, as in a gray pea coat with fur sleeves and a fur back, and metallic trousers mixed with a boyish checked blazer and orange sweater. While a peplum coat felt a bit dated, the mink-lined twill parkas were just the kind of uptown/downtown mix today's sophisticates love. Luxurious fabrics and details — lacquered jersey, mink, paillettes, and sequins — made for a richly textured collection with a fresh sense of whimsy. Final thought: Peter's finale dress, a crisp pewter sequin shortsleeve gown, would be a stunner on the red carpet.
>> Last night, the 2010 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund winners were announced, but before they could be named during the dinner gala at New York's Skylight Studios, the results were leaked on WWD's Twitter: Billy Reid won outright, and Prabal Gurung and Eddie Borgo were both named runners-up.
Style.com's Nicole Phelps wrote that the results were a bit of a surprise: "Many in the audience had pegged Gurung and Joseph Altuzarra as the front-runners." But nevermind: the prizes were even bigger this year, with Reid granted $300,000 (up from $200,000), and Borgo and Gurung each taking $100,000 (up from $50,000). "The main prize is the mentoring we provide," CFDA president Diane von Furstenberg noted of the increase, "but a little cash never hurts."
The rest of this year's finalists — Christian Cota, Robert Geller, Oliver Helden and Paul Marlow of Loden Dager, Pamela Love of Pamela Love Jewelry, Moss Lipow and Gregory Parkinson — were treated to a keynote speech by Karl Lagerfeld, who talked about how much fun Yves Saint Laurent was "before Pierre Berge" and advised: "Young goes. But good? If you're good, it may all last."
>> The CFDA has had a busy last couple of nights. The 2010 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalists, which include Eddie Borgo, Pamela Love, Joseph Altuzarra, and Christian Cota, gathered at Anna Wintour's house on Wednesday night with their model muses for the design challenge cocktail party, which this year required a look for a working woman, inspired by Ann Taylor. Photos of the event can be seen here, and a video of the the finalists presenting to this year's judges can be seen here.
And last night, designers like Francisco Costa — with Bianca Jagger on his arm, Subversive Jewelry's Justin Giunta, Peter Som, and Yigal Azrouel braved the torrential rain to toast the CFDA and Assouline's latest tome, American Fashion Designers at Home. CFDA president Diane von Furstenberg didn't make it — she's been temporarily bedridden with a cold — but plans are already in place for the next CFDA and Assouline collaboration: American Fashion: Designers on the Go, due out in Spring 2011, which will encompass travel guide tips, suggestions, and personal photos of favorite vacation places from designers.
A few years back, Peter Som's P.S. Kiss lipstick collaboration with Lancôme was one of the year's most coveted shades. This year his partnership with Beauty.com is probably also going to rock some worlds. Buyers who spend $100 or more at the website right now are getting a Som-designed bag full of luxe goodies. "I love prints," he says. "This particular one captures the essence of the Peter Som woman — feminine, individualistic, and with a touch of bold whimsy." Inside, there are products from Korres, Philosophy, and Perricone MD, among others. If you're a big spender or were stocking up anyway, it's a stylish little freebie.
