55 Secret Street

édité Presentation Spring 2009

édité is a boutique fashion agency that represents emerging luxury and high-end designers that you want to know like Lovenia, Ishii, Your Slip Is Showing and Pring Paris.  Stylists who select clothes for the photo spreads you see in magazines like my friend Sydne Bolden Long of InStyle, regularly come through to pick up select pieces, most of which are available online or in specialty boutiques.

It is rare to like just about everything you see, but I really did - especially the beautiful dresses by Verrières & Sako and the daring yet quite wearable shoes by Bionda Castana.

Opening photo: A dress by Ixchel next to display of Gretchen handbags.  Above, a display of Bionda Castana shoes.

Model April wearing an Ixchel gown and Bionda Castana shoes standing next to a blue and white raffia coat by Bradley Scott.  April told me that she had been in those shoes since 9 a.m. (we were there in the afternoon) and her feet were not hurting!

Clockwise from left: Nalini holding a blue pleated dress by Lialia; édité partner Rachel Paletsky wearing Vassilisa scarves and showing a white Verrières & Sako dress to Charrell; Rachel dressing model Nicole in Verrieres & Sako with a Vassilisa scarf; a Bionda Castana shoe.

STEiNUNN Spring 2009 Collection at FIT

If you follow 55 Secret Street on Twitter, then you probably saw lots of "tweets" via Twitpic from the Steinunn presentation which was held at FIT (The Fashion Institute of Technology). 

Inspired by a single beautiful feather, Icelandic designer Steinunn Sigurd created a beautifully crafted, feminine collection.

These are my two favorite STEiNUNN dresses: Jalika Gaskin is in the gray version and Marlene Landauer is in the light gray.


I also liked this ebony silk chiffon gown on Francesca Tedeschi.  The fringes on the single feather that inspired Steinunn are the feathers on this dress.  I also loved the suit (below left) on Lisa Porter and the dress on Katy Beal.

Nuj Novakhett Spring/Summer 2009 at 320 Studios

Nuj Novakhett is a designer based in New York and Thailand.  My Fashion Week running buddy Lesley and I went to her presentation which was held at 320 Studios.  Rosé and Fiji water were  served as models rotated on risers. 

Nuj said her inspiration for her collection was derived from the classic style of Audrey Hepburn and the bright, bold colors of Formula One racing.   Some of my favorites: the red silk tank top with tire fitted silk satin skirt on Anya and the burning red quilted pocket silk dress right next to her on Tsubasa.  The antique white waterfall crepe draped dress on Jotasha Turnbull (photo above) the sand chiffon ruffle secretary blouse on Galy (below second from the left) and the noir tulip gown on Ataui Deng (top photo and below). 

Her collection is available in boutiques across the country.

New York Fashion Week Spring 2009 - The Last Day

My last day at Fashion Week began with Christian Francis Roth's Spring 2009 collection at a youth center on the Lower East Side (top right and bottom left) and ended at the tents at Bryant Park with the amazing Chado Ralph Rucci show (bottom right).   That is my friend and Fashion Week partner-in-crime Lesley of FashionTribes as she interviewed eBay's Style Director Constance White (my 55 Q&A with Constance will appear in a few weeks).

I promise I will have a proper roundup and more pictures up by the weekend - just need a little sleep first.

Joy Bryant in the Mercedes Benz Star Lounge

   
I snapped this picture of Joy Bryant when she stopped in the Mercedes Benz lounge just before the Max Azria show.